HOW FIRE EXTINGUISHERS WORK

Fire is one of humankind's oldest discoveries. It has benefited human kind in more ways than we can imagine but it is also one of our biggest threats. It can destroyed lives that are too precious, home or business that has taken decades to establish. Even if fires are necessary to it is still something to be afraid of. Fire is actually combustion, a reaction that happens when certain chemicals combine with oxygen to produce heat. Combustion needs three things, namely fuel, air, and heat. Fuels are something that burn, like wood, paper, and coal. By air, it is the oxygen around us. Heat can come from the surrounding temperature. Combustion doesn't normally happen all by itself; things don't burst into flames without help. It usually takes some activation energy (provided by a spark or a match) to kick off the reaction. Once combustion is underway, the fire seems to continue all by itself. Fire extinguisher removes at least one of the three elements (fuel, air, heat). They extinguish or control small fires, often in emergency situations. Fight the fire using the substances inside. There are two substances in every can: one can be a solid, liquid, or gas material depending on which type you choose; the other is a propellant. The material is specially made for the sole purpose of fighting the fire. A propellant, meanwhile, helps push out the material because it is highly pressurized. The fire extinguisher is a cylinder that contains water or some fire retardant material. Also inside the extinguisher is a second, smaller cylinder about the size and shape of a test tube. This small cylinder holds carbon dioxide gas that is under very high pressure. Finally, the extinguisher contains a long tube that runs from the nozzle at the top to the bottom of the larger cylinder, something like a straw in a glass. When the handle on the fire extinguisher is pressed, a valve on the top of the interior cylinder opens, allowing the carbon dioxide gas to fill the upper portion of the extinguisher. This causes the extinguisher to be pressurized like a can of soda that has been shaken. The water or fire retardant material is forced down by the pressurized gas and goes up through the strawlike tube and out the nozzle. Different types of fire extinguishers which are color coded according to their type: water (red), dry chemical (blue), foam (cream), Carbon Dioxide (black), vaporizing liquids (green) and wet chemical (yellow). Each of them has their own variations, and is used on different occasions. Water extinguishers are, as the name says, water. It is work by removing heat from the surface, thereby killing the fire. In water extinguishers, compressed air pushes water to come out of the tank to be sprayed on fire. It is never used in laboratories and electrical stores

because it will worsen the fire. The cause of the fire should only be paper, wood, or other ordinary materials easily removed by water. Dry chemical extinguishers are often termed the multi-purpose extinguisher, as it can be used on fires cause by solids materials such as paper, wood, plastic, flammable liquids such as paraffin, petrol, oil and flammable gases such as propane, butane, methane. It will efficiently extinguish flammable gases but beware; it can be dangerous to extinguish a gas fire without first isolating the gas supply. This is made up of foam or powder to separate the fuel from the air around it. Nitrogen acts as the propellant here, unlike water extinguishers which uses compressed air. Foam is more expensive than water, but more versatile. It can be used for paper, wood, or other ordinary materials easily removed by water and flammable liquids such as paraffin, petrol, oil. Foam extinguishers interfere with the chemical reaction of the fire, by coating the fuel with a layer of foam, separating it from the oxygen. Foam spray extinguishers are not recommended for fires involving electricity, but are safer than water if inadvertently sprayed onto live electrical apparatus. Carbon dioxide is a non-flammable gas which makes it a good choice for a fire extinguisher. The gas is kept at very high pressure inside the aerosol can to make it into a liquid substance. When released, the swells Carbon dioxide up and removes the fire. Carbon dioxide sucks up the oxygen in the fire and gets rid of the heat because of its cool temperament. The best way to use this fire extinguisher is in electrical things and flammable materials. Its not the best choice for paper or wood-caused fire. Take note that this works really bad with metal fires as Carbon dioxide sometimes reacts with them in a different manner. Vaporized liquids with halotron are for fires cause by grease, fats, oils, paint, and petrol. A vaporizing liquid that is ozone friendly and leaves no residue because it requires no cleanup, fire extinguishers with halotron are ideal for computer rooms, telecommunication areas, theaters. This type of extinguisher does not cool the fire very well and you need to watch that the fire does not start up again. Wet chemical fire extinguishers are also safe to use on solid paper, wood. They are not designed for use on electrical fires, but most will be safe if accidentally sprayed on nearby electrical equipment. The usual place to deploy them is in a commercial kitchen environment where grease and deep fat fryers are common. Wet chemical fire extinguishers contain chemical additives that react on contact with hot oil to create a type of soap. This reaction, called saponification, coats the oil in a thick layer of soapy foam that smothers the flame. Since saponification is endothermic, meaning the process absorbs heat, the reaction also cools the oil at the same time.

ENG 205 HOW FIRE EXTINGUISHERS WORK Mechanism Description

September 02, 2011

Submitted to: Mrs. Greta Rey-Matias

Submitted by: April Joson BSCE-III