INTRODUCTION

Today modern fire detection and extinguishing technology is used to control potential fires at the incipient stage and to minimize personal injury or property damage.

OxyReduct, the innovative fire prevention system, is one step further:

-          It reduces the oxygen level in closed rooms so that a fire has difficulty starting.

However people can stay in the room permanently or for a given period of time depending on the oxygen concentration.

CONVENTIONAL FIRE PROTECTION

Fire protection of technical and EDP installations is usually met by adequate fire detection and fire fighting systems.

The protection concepts are based on the following objectives:

-          Detecting the fire as early as possible to take adequate countermeasures

-          Extinguishing the fire as quickly as possible to minimize fire damage

To meet these requirements reliably (and automatically if necessary), fire detection systems are often used to detect fires and automatic extinguishing systems are used to fight fires.

INNOVATIVE FIRE PROTECTION

Oxy Reduct completes the conventional fire detection and fire fighting systems through its fire prevention concept.

Conventional fire prevention methods specifically reduce the combustion of materials e.g. by special surface treatments of fire-preventing additives.

However, these measures only apply to single substances. In general, the combustibility of a mixture of items is reduced by a lower oxygen level in the ambient air.

Using the innovative OxyRedct system the oxygen level in closed rooms is controlled such that an open fire cannot be maintained. People may enter the room protected by OxyReduct depending on the chosen oxygen level.

THE PRINCIPLE OF COMBUSTION

Combustion is a chemical process during which a combustible combines with oxygen (oxidation). For a fire to develop the following conditions have to be fulfilled:

-          Presence of a combustible

-          Presence of oxygen

-          Reaching of the ignition temperature of the combustible

If one of three conditions is not fulfilled a fire cannot occur or an already existing fire is extinguished.

ON WHICH KNOWLEDGE IS OXYREDUCT BASED?

The reduction of the oxygen level in the ambient air leads to two phenomenons:

-          On the one hand, the energy is increased which a solid needs to absorb for being ignited.

-          On the other hand, the reduction of the oxygen level causes a considerable deceleration of the fire spread rate.

Thus the probability of a fire and the fire spread rate are much lower in a room with a decreased oxygen concentration than under normal conditions. Dependent on the oxygen level and the type of combustible substance a fire can completely avoided in single cases.

A NEW FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEM

 Our innovative fire prevention system OxyReduct has been developed on the basis of this knowledge.

The oxygen level in the room to be protected is defined according to individual customer requirements and specific application. The risk of a fire is considerably reduced if the oxygen level is reduced to 15% of the room volume. At this oxygen concentration (which can be compared with the oxygen level at 3000m above the sea level) human life is not likely to be at risk. For areas to be protected containing solids which can still be ignited at an oxygen concentration of 15% the oxygen level can be reduced to about 12% of volume. If adequate precautions are taken these rooms can still be occupied for a limited period of time.

The oxygen level in the rooms to be protected is reduced through OxyReduct by controlled flooding of the protected area with the inert gas nitrogen (N2)

WHY NITROGEN TO REDUCE THE OXYGEN LEVEL

With inert gas-extinguishing systems a fire is extinguished by flooding the area with an inert gas (nitrogen, special gases, carbon dioxide or mixtures). This gas reduces the oxygen level in the air of the room. In contrast to this OxyReduct maintains a low oxygen level in the room by adding nitrogen.

Combustibles are only hardly combustible or not able to ignite at all. Nitrogen offers the following advantages:

-          Nitrogen is non-toxic. The human breathing system can adapt quickly to a change in the oxygen level of the air. Typically this occurs when climbing or walking on mountains. Only when the oxygen content in the air falls below 8% vol. is there a danger to life.

-          Among all inert gases nitrogen is the better extinguishing agent (except CO2)

-          Nitrogen is distributed in an optimum way. The densities of nitrogen and air are similar. Therefore the distribution of nitrogen is better than that of other inert gases.

-          Nitrogen is easy to obtain. As a natural component of air with a concentration of 78% vol. the availability and supply of this inert gas is easily achieved.

APPLICATION EXAMPLES OF OXYREDUCT

OxyReduct systems offer individual concepts for optimum fire prevention. It is particularly suitable for rooms with a low amount of leakages, air circulating systems (no permanent fresh air supply) as well as for rooms which have to be entered frequently  is:

-          EDP and telecommunications / Internet service rooms

-          Data and other archives

-          Electrical switching and distribution cabinets

-          Highly automated fabrication

-          Storage areas for high – quality goods

-          Safes and containers

YOUR ADVANTAGES WITH OXYREDUCT

-          Reduces or completely avoids the fire risk

-          Limited or permanent access to the areas to be protected

-          People are not physically at risk – nitrogen has non – toxic effect

-          Individual use of different OxyReduct systems according to user requirements

-          Easy disposal via the ventilation system if the oxygen concentration needs to be increased

-          Can be combined with another lower cost extinguishing system