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This work explores the challenges of using life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost (LCC) analysis to provide easily accessible decision support for early product development in cases where intellectual property (IP) and privacy issues require special consideration. Innovation research projects with partners representing different links along the value chain are potential examples of such cases. A case study in which spreadsheet-based cradle to compounder's gate LCA and LCC screening tools were created for candidate flame retarded polymer formulations exemplifies the need for better solutions to overcome problems associated with lack of transparency due to IP/privacy concerns. These problems affect data quality, scaling up processes, and uncertainty of the results. The consortium in this case study had a common overall goal, although each of the partners had a unique perspective on the polymer development process and different IP/privacy needs. The measures used to overcome the challenges include aggregation, normalisation, and omission of costs and impacts common to all candidate compounds. The resulting LCA and LCC screening tools represent a compromise between providing the requested information at the level of detail required by the partners and reporting results that are as accurate and useful as possible. The findings are: in cases where absolute secrecy must be maintained, no one can learn which materials and processes provide the optimal results; appointing a trusted third party to handle sensitive inventory data can cause increased uncertainty of the results due to lack of peer review; the results of the work cannot be built upon by subsequent research.

As material age, the durability, strength, and other mechanical properties are impacted. The lifespan of a material generally decreases when exposed to weathering conditions such as wind, temperature, humidity, and light. It is important to have knowledge of how materials age and how the material properties are affected. Regarding materials´ fire behaviour and the effect of ageing on these properties, the knowledge is limited. The research questions of the current work are: Are the fire properties of composite materials affected by ageing? And if so, how is it affected? The study is on material at Technology Readiness Level 9 (TRL). In this study, three composite fibre laminates developed for marine applications were exposed to accelerated ageing. Two different ageing conditions were selected, thermal ageing with an increased temperature of 90°C and moisture ageing in a moderately increased temperature of 40°C and a relative humidity of 90%. Samples were collected after one, two and four weeks of ageing. The reaction-to-fire properties after ageing was evaluated using the ISO 5660–1 cone calorimeter and the EN ISO 5659–2 smoke chamber with FTIR gas analysis. The test results showed that the fire behaviour was affected. Two of the composite laminates, both phenolic/basalt composites, showed a deteriorated fire behaviour from the thermal ageing and the third composite laminate, a PFA/glass fibre composite, showed an improved fire behaviour both for thermal and moisture ageing. The smoke toxicity was affected by the accelerated ageing, especially for the PFA/glass fibre composite that showed a higher production of CO and HCN, both for the thermal aged and the moisture aged samples.

Basalt fiber‐reinforced polybenzoxazines (BFRP) were manufactured through vacuum infusion using resorcinol bis (diphenyl phosphate) and poly‐(m‐phenylene methylphosphonate) together with bisphenol‐F and aniline based benzoxazine. Different types and loadings of flame‐retardant additives showed to have catalysis or dilution effects in viscosity measurements. BFRPs show well‐penetrated fibers and near‐zero porosity. Additive addition did not influence tensile properties, while apparent interlaminar shear strength decreased indicating a lower adhesion between fiber and matrix. BFRP's heat and smoke release properties increased, though time to ignition increased and flammability behavior improved by decreasing delamination yielding oxygen indices in between 72 and 91%.

Bisphenol F and aniline-based benzoxazine monomers were selected to fabricate basalt, glass and carbon fiber reinforced polybenzoxazine via vacuum infusion, respectively. The impacts of the type of fiber reinforcement on the resulting material properties of the fiber reinforced polymers (FRPs) were studied. FRPs exhibited a homogenous morphology with completely impregnated fibers and near-zero porosity. Carbon fiber reinforced polybenzoxazine showed the highest specific mechanical properties because of its low density and high modulus and strength. However, regarding the flammability, fire, smoke and toxicity properties, glass and basalt reinforced polybenzoxazine outperformed carbon fiber reinforced polybenzoxazine. This work offers a deeper understanding of how different types of fiber reinforcement affect polybenzoxazine-based FRPs and provides access to FRPs with inherently good fire, smoke and toxicity performance without the need for further flame retardant additives.

This article reports on a qualitative study of Swedish teachers’ summative assessments of students’ writing in upper secondary school. Based on teacher group discussions, the study describes and analyses teachers’ expressions of norms when assessing and grading students’ writing in the subject of Swedish. Data consist of audio- and video recordings from three focus group discussions, comprising a total of 17 teachers. Topic analysis (Linell, 2001) is the method used to identify expressions of assessment norms in these discussions. The analysis reveals that these teachers’ summative assessments of students’ writing express two competing norms: a non-compensatory and a compensatory norm. The non-compensatory norm is expressed through perceptions that all text qualities must correspond to the same criteria. This means that shortcomings in texts are crucial for teachers’ summative assessments. The text qualities that primarily determine these decisions are language style and text structure. Meanwhile, the compensatory norm is expressed through perceptions that in summative aspects such as students’ age and writing instructions as well as students’ writing development and the national test must be considered. These competing assessment norms have a substantial impact on these teachers’ decisions on summative assessments. The teacher groups show significant variation in the basis for their decisions regarding summative assessment of students' writing.

The market for lightweight fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites is growing. This is seen within advanced applications for e.g. aeronautics, modern ship vessels and railway vehicles. FRPs are often used to save weight, but the downside is that they are ignitable, which implies a potential higher fire risk. It is thus important to thoroughly characterise the material properties of FRPs, including the fire performance, in order to ensure a high safety level. Fire performance testing is made with newly produced materials to show the conformance to required standard test. However, the impact of ageing on the fire performance of materials and products is not mandatory information and hardly ever known. This is still an overlooked matter that is important to address for combustible materials in transport applications, where the requirements of personal safety are especially high. Accelerated ageing is a method to expose materials and products to various environmental parameters for a simulation of long-term usage. Within a few days, weeks or months the damage and degradation of the materials can occur, which normally would be after years in normal climate and after normal usage. Fire performance testing of test samples subjected to accelerated ageing would potentially give important information on the long-term safety of the end-use application of FRPs. The objective of this paper is twofold. One is to find out if the industry, society and research need to deal with the effect of ageing on materials in relation to fire safety as this is not dealt with in fire regulations. And further to identify the state-of-the-art of accelerated ageing methods relevant for Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP) materials. In summary, the findings in the literature were limited of reported ageing effects of FRPs, with respect to the fire behaviour. An important conclusion is that there is a major lack of knowledge regarding material aging and fire behaviour, especially for FRPs. However, the identified ageing studies showed that both fire and mechanical properties were affected by ageing. The accelerated ageing methods described in literature was not consequently applied. The ageing methods were special designed for each study and application of material. All methods need a proper validation applying real time ageing.

Lithium-ion battery fires generate intense heat and considerable amounts of gas and smoke. Although the emission of toxic gases can be a larger threat than the heat, the knowledge of such emissions is limited. This paper presents quantitative measurements of heat release and fluoride gas emissions during battery fires for seven different types of commercial lithium-ion batteries. The results have been validated using two independent measurement techniques and show that large amounts of hydrogen fluoride (HF) may be generated, ranging between 20 and 200 mg/Wh of nominal battery energy capacity. In addition, 15–22 mg/Wh of another potentially toxic gas, phosphoryl fluoride (POF3), was measured in some of the fire tests. Gas emissions when using water mist as extinguishing agent were also investigated. Fluoride gas emission can pose a serious toxic threat and the results are crucial findings for risk assessment and management, especially for large Li-ion battery packs.

In order to assess the risk for spontaneous combustion of biomass pellets during storage it is important to know how prone the fuel is to self-heating, i.e. to determine the reactivity. This artic ...

For the risk for spontaneous combustion in storage of biomass pellets to be assessed, it is important to know how prone the fuel is to self-heating. There are traditional methods that are used to d ...

The EC Directive on landfill of waste and the development of different national regulations, together with the need and interest for biofuels, have resulted in more extensive handling and storage of these products. Calorific value and bulk density are for most fractions lower than for example oil, which translates into a further increase in volumes of fuel needed for a given amount of energy. Since the material is to be used as a high-grade fuel, higher requirements are placed on the storage technology. There will also probably be strong desire to place stocks in direct connection with for example a specific industry or co-generation plant, to minimize the need for transport. Overall, this means that very large production and handling facilities with large stocks will be required. These new types of storages also mean new types of risks. There is therefore a great need for knowledge on the risks for spontaneous ignition, fire characteristics, and risk for fire spread for these fuels and storages. If a fire occurs it can lead to significant problems with emissions and in many cases the rescue services have problems with handling these fires. These fires can also lead to large economic losses. It is, therefore, important to know both how to avoid and how to facilitate extinguishment of these fires. In the paper some trends regarding storage of waste are discussed together with the risks for self-heating and emissions. Experiences from real fires are presented and some existing guidelines for storage of waste are discussed.

One way to support the development of new safety practices in testing and field failure situations of electric vehicles and their lithium-ion (Li-ion) traction batteries is to conduct studies simulating plausible incident scenarios. This paper focuses on risks and hazards associated with venting of gaseous species formed by thermal decomposition reactions of the electrolyte and electrode materials during thermal runaway of the cell. A test set-up for qualitative and quantitative measurements of both major and minor gas species in the vented emissions from Li-ion batteries is described. The objective of the study is to measure gas emissions in the absence of flames, since gassing can occur without subsequent fire. Test results regarding gas emission rates, total gas emission volumes, and amounts of hydrogen fluoride (HF) and CO2 formed in inert atmosphere when heating lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and lithium nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) dioxide/lithium manganese oxide (LMO) spinel cell stacks are presented and discussed. Important test findings include the large difference in total gas emissions from NMC/LMO cells compared to LFP, 780 L kg&minus, 1 battery cells, and 42 L kg&minus, 1 battery cells, respectively. However, there was no significant difference in the total amount of HF formed for both cell types, suggesting that LFP releases higher concentrations of HF than NMC/LMO cells.

The work involves fabrication of natural fibre/Elium® composites using resin infusion technique. The jute fabrics were treated using phosphorus-carbon based flame retardant (FR) agent, a phosphonate solution and graphene nano-platelet (GnP), followed by resin infusion, to produce FR and graphene-based composites. The properties of these composites were compared with those of the Control (jute fabric/Elium®). As obtained from the cone calorimeter and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, the peak heat release rate reduced significantly after the FR and GnP treatments of fabrics whereas total smoke release and quantity of carbon monoxide increased with the incorporation of FR. The addition of GnP had almost no effect on carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide yield. Dynamic mechanical analysis demonstrated that coating jute fabrics with GnP particles led to an enhanced glass transition temperature by 14%. Scanning electron microscopy showed fibre pull-out locations in the tensile fracture surface of the laminates after incorporation of both fillers, which resulted in reduced tensile properties.

Batteries, in particular lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, are seen as an alternative to fossil fuels in the automotive sector. Li-ion batteries, however, have some safety issues including possible emissions of toxic fluorine-containing compounds during fire and other abuse situations. This paper demonstrates the possibilities to use the Fourier transform infrared technique to assess some of the most important compounds, including hydrogen fluoride and the far less often measured POF3 and PF5. The study is conducted in the cone calorimeter with different solvents used in Li-ion batteries. The measurements show that, in addition to hydrogen fluoride, with a known high toxicity, POF3 is emitted and can be quantified using Fourier transform infrared.

In this paper, we report the development of a glass fiber commingled composite (GFCC) based on a nanoclay-doped polyamide 6 (PA6) and the evaluation of its fire reaction. The preparation of the com ...

This investigation studied the utilization of intumescent thermal resistive mats to provide surface protection to the core natural fibre-reinforced Elium® composite structural integrity. The intumescent mats contained flame retardant (FR) i.e. expandable graphite (EG) with four different expansion ratios and alumina trihydrate (ATH). All natural fibre thermoplastic composites were fabricated using a resin infusion technique. The impact of char thickness and chemical compositions on the flammability and smoke properties was investigated. It was found that surface protection significantly reduced the peak heat release rate, total smoke release, smoke extinction area and CO2 yield, and substantially enhanced UL-94 rating, time to ignition and residual char network, depending on the EG exfoliation ratio, ATH and mineral wool fibre. The glass transition temperature increased for the FR composites containing EG with lower expansion ratio. Inclusion of intumescent mats increased the strength of the composites while it had a negative effect on the modulus.

Commercial lithium-ion battery cells are exposed to a controlled propane fire in order to evaluate heat release rate (HRR), emission of toxic gases as well as cell temperature and voltage under this type of abuse. The study includes six abuse tests on cells having lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) cathodes and, as a comparison, one test on conventional laptop battery packs with cobalt based cathode. The influence of different state of charge (SOC) is investigated and a limited study of the effect of water mist application is also performed. The total heat release (THR) per battery energy capacity are determined to be 28-75 kJ Wh(-1) and the maximum HRR values to 110-490 W Wh(-1). Hydrogen fluoride (HF) is found in the released gases for all tests but no traceable amounts of phosphorous oxyfluoride (POF3) or phosphorus pentafluoride (PF5) are detected. An extrapolation of expected HF emissions for a typical automotive 10 kWh battery pack exposed to fire gives a release of 400-1200 g HF. If released in a confined environment such emissions of HF may results in unacceptable exposure levels.

For many years, Higher education institutions have been engaging with sustainability, many focussing on environmental ones. In this context, two phenomena have arisen that have, usually, been studied separately: (1) engineering schools have been at the forefront of sustainability efforts; and (2) women have tended to be more concerned about of environmental sustainability than men are. This paper is aimed at analysing the differences in perception between engineering students and nursing students at the University of Gävle, Sweden. Engineering and nursing programmes are practice-oriented with different foci on sustainability and usually being dominated by male and female students, respectively. The data for this article were based on two surveys carried out during 2010 and 2013, in which the same students answered the same questions at the beginning and at the end of their studies. Principal component analysis and regressions were carried out to analyse the survey answers. The results show that engineering programmes and gender affect actions positively. The results also show that engineering students increased their sustainability performance significantly more than nursing students. To improve environmental sustainability, it is important to promote the presence of women in engineering schools, and at the same time, social science oriented programmes (such as nursing) could learn from the efforts and action taken by engineering schools, so that sustainability is taught and learnt in a more holistic way.

The self-heating propensity of biomass fuels is a major challenge to the large scale handling of e.g. wood pellets. The insulating properties in combination with exothermal processes sometimes lead to fires when larger volumes of wood pellets are stored. Recently, the thermal conductivity and specific heat of wood pellets have been investigated (Gou et al., 2013) through back-calculations of transient temperatures in wood bulk storage. Such properties are important in order to make simulations and predictions about safe storage and use. However, little information is available about the temperature dependence of these properties as well as the bulk properties of broken pellets, which is abundant in critical parts of a storage facility. In this study we show that the specific heat and thermal conductivity of wood pellets can be directly measured using the Transient Plane Source technique. We present data between 22 and 120 °C for bulk wood pellets and investigate the change in conductivity for fine particle bulk material. In addition, we investigate the possibility of measuring on individual pellets while studying the moisture content dependence.

Summary The analysis of fire effluents using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) is increasing in the field of fire science. This technique is very powerful and may be very selective and precise if the FTIR instrument is properly calibrated. However, results are sensitive to instrumental parameters, including especially pressure effects on the contents in the measurement cell. This communication presents experimental and numerical evaluation of pressure effects in FTIR analysis, and an evaluation of the feasibility and limitation of pressure corrections. The work performed concerns experimental measurements on pressure influence with four different gases, at different levels of concentration, and for one of the gases with different equipment from two laboratories. Some of these results are compared with theoretical models obtained from HITRAN database. Finally, this communication proposes limitations to the range of validity of correction if the actual pressure and the pressure for calibration differ, and suggests a tolerance of ±10 Torr on pressure variation for application of the method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This study has examined the distribution patterns between gas phase and particle phase of some chemical compounds produced in fires. It has also addressed the question of the distribution of indivi ...

The ISO/TS 19700 steady state tube furnace is designed to measure the yields of combustion products, and in particular toxic combustion products, under a range of different specified decomposition conditions occurring in full-scale compartment fires. In order to establish the repeatability and reproducibility of the method, a Round Robin inter-laboratory study and statistical analysis has been carried out involving three laboratories. Pre-existing data from a fourth laboratory have also been considered where appropriate. Samples of different polymers (PMMA, LDPE, PA6.6 and rigid PVC) were tested under two fire conditions: well-ventilated flaming at 650 °C and post-flashover under-ventilated flaming at 825 °C, with each laboratory performing three replicate runs on each polymer under each condition. The results showed good agreement between laboratories and against calculated stoichiometric maxima, demonstrating satisfactory levels of repeatability and reproducibility for key combustion gases. These included O2 consumption, and the yields of CO2, CO, HCN and HCl. A number of amendments to the standard have been recommended as a result of minor procedural issues arising during preliminary work. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

Highlights ► PVC carpet releases CO, HCl, PAHs, and PCDD/F on burning. ► The greatest acute hazard comes from CO and HCl in under-ventilated fire conditions. ► The greatest chronic hazard arises from PCDFs and PAHs in under-ventilated conditions. ► The distribution between gas and particle phase shows most PAHs are in gas phase. ► The peak particles size ranges (, A large number of investigations have been reported on minimising the PAH and PCDD/F yields during controlled combustion, such as incineration. This study is an attempt to quantify acute and chronic toxicants including PAH and PCDD/F in conditions relating to unwanted fires. This paper investigates distribution patterns of fire effluents between gas and aerosol phase, and the different particle size-ranges produced under different fire conditions. PVC carpet was selected as the fuel as a precursor for both PAH and PCDD/F. In order to generate fire effluents under controlled fire conditions, the steady-state tube furnace, was chosen as the physical fire model. Fire scenarios included oxidative pyrolysis, well-ventilated and under-ventilated fires. Fire effluent measurements included: carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen chloride, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated dibenzo-dioxins and furans and soot. The distribution patterns between gas and particle phase, and the size-ranges of the particles produced in these fires together with their chemical composition is also reported. Significant quantities of respirable submicron particles were detected, together with a range of PAHs. Lower levels of halogenated dioxins were detected in the fire residue compared with those found in other studies. Nevertheless, the findings do have implications for the health and safety of fire and rescue personnel, fire investigators, and other individuals exposed to the residue from unwanted fires.

I studien samtalar tre lärargrupper om elevers skrivande och skrivundervisning i ämnet svenska på gymnasiet. Det teoretiska perspektiv som läggs på dessa samtal är didaktiskt och inriktas på hur lärare formulerar och använder bedömningsinformation om elevers skrivande för beslut om skrivundervisningens innehåll. Resultatet visar att lärares bedömningar av elevers skrivande behandlar fler och delvis andra aspekter av skrivförmåga än vad deras didaktiska beslut sedan omfattar. De kvalitetsuppfattningar och förväntningsnormer som lärarna uttrycker i sina bedömningar av elevers skrivande inriktas huvudsakligen på texters kommunikativa kvaliteter, den stilistiska utformningen och textuppbyggnaden, följt av ämnesinnehåll och källanvändning. De didaktiska beslut som fattas utifrån bedömningen av elevers texter inriktas däremot i stort sett enbart på att eleverna behöver skrivundervisning i att disponera text och att använda källor. Detta gör att överensstämmelsen är låg mellan lärarnas beslut om skrivundervisningens inriktning och deras förväntningar på vad eleverna ska kunna. De didaktiska besluten omfattar i begränsad utsträckning den bedömningsinformation som lärarna själva har formulerat.Nyckelord: Skrivbedömning, kvalitetsuppfattningar, förväntningsnormer, didaktiska beslut, formativ bedömning, svenskämnets didaktik, svenska på gymnasietAbstractThis article presents an analysis of teacher group discussions about students’ writing in the subject of Swedish in upper secondary school. The study adopts a pedagogical perspective on these discussions and focuses on examining teachers’ expressed assessment criteria and relating them to their pedagogical decision-making. The results reveal that the teachers’ assessments of students’ writing focus on much more, and partly other, criteria than their pedagogical decisions. The quality standards that teachers express in the discussions about students’ texts focus mostly on communicative quality, language style and text structure followed by content and the use of sources. The pedagogical decisions are, on the other hand, almost exclusively focusing on text structure and the use of sources. This means that there is a gap between the teachers’ perceptions of qualities in students’ writing and their pedagogical decisions. The pedagogical decisions cover to a limited extent the assessment information that teachers themselves formulated.Keywords: Writing assessment, assessment criteria, pedagogical decision-making, formative assessment, Swedish in upper secondary school

The advantages of textile materials as building components include low weight, and in the case of textile membranes, the advantages include translucency and architectural possibilities. A common disadvantage, however, is the fire property of textile materials, which highlights the importance of fire safety assessments for building application of such materials. The work presented in this paper was conducted within the European project contex-T, ‘Textile Architecture – Textile Structures and Buildings of the Future’. This paper presents the results of reaction-to-fire tests required for European Standard (EN) 13501–1 classification conducted with a number of textile membranes. The classification results are compared for a selection of these membranes with the information gained from a large-scale reference test that was designed within the project. The reference test was based on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9705 room test. It was seen that the reference test could separate the performance of the different types of membranes investigated and the repeatability of duplicate tests performed was acceptable. However, the classification of the materials by test results from the Single Burning Item (SBI) test (EN 13823) and the small flame test (EN ISO 11925–2) did not reflect the performance of the membranes in the large-scale test properly in all aspects important for fire safety. Most significantly, the ‘burn-through’ and the associated opening of a hole in the polyvinyl chloride/polyester membranes tested ventilated the hot smoke gases out of the reference room that resulted in limited flame spread and heat production. This mechanism is not modelled correctly by the SBI test, which leads to a discrepancy between classification and large-scale behaviour. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A number of large-scale fire experiments with detailed quantitative analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) including PAH congener distribution have been conducted by SP. This data is reviewed here and is further assessed with regard to toxicity applying a Toxic Equivalency Factor (TEF) model for estimation of cancer potential. The PAH yield data from the large-scale fire experiments is also compared to emission factors from other combustion sources. The study shows that full-scale fire experiments with different products exhibit a large variation in total PAH yields. Fires with products containing flame retardants were shown to produce the highest yields and generally a more toxic mixture of PAHs than fires with non-flame retarded products. The distribution of individual PAH congeners is generally quantitatively dominated by low molecular weight PAHs, whereas a small number of medium to high molecular weight PAHs are most important in determining the toxicity of the PAH mixture. The large-scale fire experiments indicate that fires normally produce orders of magnitudes higher yields compared to, e.g. modern residential combustion devices. The relative distribution of individual PAHs, which determines the toxicity of the PAH mix, is similar for the fires and open burning data studied, in that benzo(a)pyrene and dibenz(a,h)anthracene dominate the toxicity of the mix as a whole.

Gaseous fire effluents contain a mixture of components, some of which are present in toxicologically significant proportions, together with water vapour and particulate matter, representing a significant challenge to the analyst. The most useful information is obtained from fire gases at about 180 °C where water and most organic species are volatile. Despite this, it is often necessary to sample and measure fire effluents for prediction of fire toxicity, estimation of the environmental impact of fires, and to understand their behaviour. Gas phase Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy has the potential to measure almost all volatiles on a continuous basis during fire. This paper considers the key parameters, which must be carefully measured and controlled in order to obtain reliable calibration data. It evaluates a number of techniques designed for calibrating an FTIR spectrometer for use in fire gas analysis with conclusions on the best system for use for each species and for specific fire tests or experimental scenarios. As few molecules in the gas phase infrared spectrum obey the Beer-Lambert law, a full set of infrared spectra at different concentrations must be obtained for each target analyte, for the actual spectrophotometer—gas cell configuration in use. In some cases, stable standard mixtures are available, and these only have to be quantitatively diluted. In other cases reactive gases such as hydrogen halides must be generated quantitatively in situ, or vapours must be generated from volatile liquids under controlled conditions, in order to obtain calibration spectra. In each case, care must be taken in the design of the sampling line and calibration system, paying particular attention to the temperature, pressure and gas flow. Gas phase FTIR is a powerful analytical tool, but requires a significant investment in time and equipment before quantitative analysis can be undertaken. Unless care is taken to ensure constant temperature and pressure in the sample lines and gas cell, significant errors will result.

Thermal breakdown products from four different fire extinguishing agents have been analysed. The agents studied were: bromotrifluoromethane (Halon 1301), pentafluoroethane (HFC 125), heptafluoropropane (HFC 227ea) and dodecafluoro-2-methyl-pentane-3-one (C6F-ketone). In the tests, the studied agent was introduced into a propane flame in a diffusion flame burner. The combustion products were analysed using both conventional IR-techniques and FTIR. It could be concluded that for all four extinguishing agents that the extinguishing agent takes part in the combustion process resulting in production of CO and CO2, which was also confirmed by the increase in smoke production with increasing amounts of agent introduced into the flame. Production of HF and COF2 was found in experiments with all four extinguishing agents. In experiments with Halon 1301, the production of HBr was also determined. It was found that the main fraction of fluorine ends up as HF for HFC 227ea and HFC 125 at lower relative application rates. When approaching extinguishing concentrations, the fraction recovered as COF2 increases, but the total recovery of fluorine, including HF and the remaining part of the fluorine, is found in various organic breakdown products. The recovery of fluorine as HF and COF2 for the C6F-ketone is lower compared to HFC 227ea and HFC 125. There is a clear difference in the recovery of fluorine for Halon 1301 where an almost quantitative recovery as HF or COF2 is found. Halon 1301 additionally contains bromine, which, to a large extent, is recovered as HBr.

The aim of the present paper is to share our experience in battery safety testing and risk analysis from a recent project called BLIXT, which had the objective to speed up the progress of the paradigmatic shift toward electric vehicles (EV). The batteries in question have been three different configurations of lithiumion batteries (LiFePO4). The tests have involved fire, crash tests and sort circuit.

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The emissions from deep-seated fires in domestic waste have been investigated. The gas phase yields of PAH, PCDD/F, PCB, HCB, particles, and metals associated to the particulate matter were analysed during a series of simulated deep-seated fires. The method of extinguishment was varied and in cases where water was used for extinguishment, the runoff water was analysed for PAH, PCDD/F, PCB, hexachlorobenzene, and metals. In total six tests were performed. In four of the tests, samples of the fire residue were analysed for PCDD/F, PCBs, and chlorobenzenes.

The steady state tube furnace has been developed from BS 7990 into the first internationally recognized standard for assessment of fire gas toxicity, ISO TS 19700. The apparatus has been shown to reliably replicate different fire stages, and is capable of generating toxic product yields as a function of the equivalence ratio φ. Work is reported from 5 laboratories currently using the steady state tube furnace where it has been used to assess the toxic product yields from a range of generic polymer materials, as a function of equivalence ratio. For the polymers tested, (LDPE, PP, PVC, Nylon, and PS) a high degree of reproducibility is observed across the range of ventilation conditions. In particular, the carbon monoxide yield, which is most susceptible to fire conditions shows consistent behaviour, which is independent of a particular laboratory.

The combustion and melt dripping of poly(ethylene-co-butyl acrylate) (EBA), EBA blended with polypropylene (EBAePP) and poly (ethylene-co-methacrylic acid) (EMAA), each blended with calcium carbonate and polydimethylsiloxane, were studied. In situ measurement of the temperature gradient in the cone calorimeter were combined with infrared spectroscopy measurements on specimens withdrawn and quenched at different times of the experiment. The reactions that govern the degradation at the high heating rates met in the combustion could be determined and the gap to analytical techniques such as thermogravimetry bridged. The interplay of mechanical char integrity and heat feedback by the flame determined how much time the specimen dwells in temperature range of 300 to 420 C where char expansion due to calcium salt formation is effective and thereby affects the heat release rate strongly. Vertical cone calorimeter and vertical flame testing were used to assess melt dripping and char stability under flaming combustion. Plateeplate rheological measurements proofed to be of limited use to compare the effect of different degradation atmospheres on the melt viscosity. The EMAA formulation had the most effective intumescent process with a low heat release rate and good char stability even in vertical configuration. Electron-beam irradiated EMAA specimens with different levels of cross-links were tested in the cone calorimeter in order to understand the role of cross-links for the intumescent process.

The mass of dioxins, PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and VOC (volatile organic compounds) emitted from fires to the atmosphere in Sweden per year has been estimated. The estimate is based on the number of fires in buildings, vehicles, waste and forest fires in Sweden in 1999. It is estimated that the total emission of dioxins from fires is in the range 0.5–1.4 g TEQ. The total emissions of PAH and VOC are in the ranges 2–12 ton and 13–200 ton, respectively.

A series of tests including seven different materials and products have been conducted using a controlled equivalence ratio tube furnace test method. The main objective of the tests was to determine yields of fire-generated products at defined combustion conditions. The tube furnace test method was set up and run in close agreement with that described in BS 7990:2003. At the time of experimental work the new tube furnace method was in the process of becoming an international standard. It was thus of interest to make an assessment of the capability of the method for determining production yields of important toxic fire products from different types of materials and products. The test series included solid wood, flexible polyurethane (PUR), fire-retarded rigid PUR, a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) carpet, a high-performance data cable with fluorine-containing polymer matrix, a PVC-based cable sheathing material and fire-retarded polyethylene cable insulation material. Duplicate tests were generally conducted at both well-ventilated and vitiated combustion conditions with these materials. The smoke gases produced from the combustion were quantified for inorganic gases by FTIR technique in all tests. A more detailed analysis of the smoke gases was conducted for some of the materials. This extended analysis contained a detailed assessment of organic compounds including, e.g. volatile organic compounds, isocyanates, aldehydes and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The analysis further included measurement of the size distribution of fire-generated particles for some of the materials. The quantification of toxic inorganic gases produced by combustion at both well-ventilated and vitiated conditions was successful regarding repeatability and stability. Typical yields for the two fire stages investigated were determined for a wide range of materials and products. The detailed analysis of organic compounds further corroborated that the new tube furnace method can replicate defined combustion conditions. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An arson fire in a Swedish psychiatric detention clinic led to the death of two patients and injuries to many more. Rescue personnel were quick to go into the building on fire but had difficulties finding their way due to a very heavy smoke. The reconstruction made, indicates that a too easily ignitable mattress provided heat and radiation enough to ignite a PVC flooring material that then became the main source for fire and smoke. Analysis of soot from the fire site and measurements during the reconstruction show that the fire smoke contained large amounts of irritants that might have had an impact on the tragic outcome. In fact, comparing the toxicity of smoke gases produced during the reconstruction, based on different "toxicity indicators", suggests that irritants in the fire smoke were as dangerous as or even more dangerous than the common asphyxiate type of gases present, CO and HCN.Another suggestion from the reported work is that the importance of flooring material for enclosure fire development might be overlooked. The reconstruction clearly demonstrates that the tragic fire would not have happened if the requirements for the flooring material had been the same as for the walls and ceiling materials.

The emissions from automobile fires have been investigated. The main gas phase components were analysed in small-scale tests with representative material from an automobile. A more detailed investigation of full-scale simulated automobile fires was also conducted, including the characterisation of gas phase components, particulates and run-off water from extinguishing activities. Three separate full scale fire tests have been characterised: a fire ignited and developed in the engine compartment; a fire ignited inside the coupé, that was extinguished in the early stages; and a similar fire ignited inside the coupé that was allowed to spread until the entire vehicle was involved in the fire. The quantitative analysis of the smoke gases from the full-scale fires showed that emissions with a potentially negative impact on the environment, or chronic toxic effect on humans, were produced in significant quantities. These emissions included HCl, SO2, VOCs (e.g. benzene), PAHs, and PCDDs/PCDFs. Analysis of run-off water indicated that it was severely contaminated, containing elevated levels of both organic compounds and metals. Comparison with data from other vehicle fires found in the literature shows that contamination by lead, copper, zinc, and antimony appears to be significant in water run-off from these types of fires.