WEEK - 6

Clean Agents – Part 1

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Lesson Objectives
After completing this lesson, you should be able to
demonstrate a good understanding of the:
 NFPA 2001
 Clean Agents - Halocarbons
 Generic Names and Trade Names
 Properties
 Application Methods
 Design Concentrations
 Basic Calculations

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Clean Agents
What is a Clean Agent?
A clean agent is a volatile or gaseous fire extinguishant that is
electrically nonconducting and does not leave a residue upon
evaporation.
See 3.3.7 (NFPA 2001, 2018 Ed.) for formal definition.

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Clean Agents
Clean Agents - Classification

 Halocarbons
Agents that contain as primary components one or more organic
compounds containing one or more of the elements Fluorine,
Chlorine, Bromine, or Iodine (NFPA 2001, 3.3.15)

 Inert Gases
Agents that contain as primary components one or more of the gases
Helium, Neon, Argon, or Nitrogen. Inert gas agents that are blends of
gases can also contain Carbon Dioxide as a secondary component
(NFPA 2001, 3.3.16)

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Clean Agents
History of Clean Agents

Clean fire extinguishing agents were introduced in response to

international restrictions on the production of certain Halons
under the Montreal Protocol and its amendments.
See NFPA 2001, 1.2.1

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Clean Agents
Governing Standards

NFPA 2001,
Standard on Clean Agent Fire Extinguishing Systems
The most recent edition: 2018
Note: This presentation references the 2018 edition of NFPA 2001

ISO 14520-1
Gaseous media fire extinguishing systems-physical
properties and system design- part 1: General Requirements.
The 2005 Edition

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Clean Agents
The (Zero-ODP) Halon Replacement Clean Agents

 Fluorinated Hydrocarbons
 Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
 Perfluorinated ketones (PFKs)

 Inert Gases (commercially available)

 Nitrogen (N)
 Argon (Ar)
 Mixtures of Nitrogen and Argon (N+Ar)
 Mixtures of Nitrogen, Argon and Carbon dioxide (N+Ar+CO2)
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Clean Agents

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Clean Agents

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Clean Agents
Clean Agents Addressed
in NFPA 2001

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Agents Common Characteristics

 All are electrically nonconductive (1.4.1.1)

 All vaporize readily upon discharge and leave no residue

(1.4.1.1)
 All are stored as liquids or as liquefied compressed
gases (Table 4.2.1.1.1(b))

 All are effective on fires of classes A, B, and C

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Agents common characteristics (cont.)

 All (except HFC-23) use nitrogen super-pressurization for

discharge purposes. See Table 4.2.1.1.1.(b)

 All are less efficient than Halon 1301

 All produce more decomposition products (primarily HF)

than Halon 1301 given similar fire type, size, and the
discharge time

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Agents Differences:
Halocarbons differ widely in areas of:

 Toxicity

 Environmental Impact

 Storage Weight and Volume Requirements

 Cost

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Halocarbon Agents
Application Methods

Total Flooding
 The preferred method of application of halocarbons

 A fixed enclosure shall be provided about the hazard so that:

 Specified concentration of the agent be achieved
within the discharge time
 Specified concentration be maintained during the
holding time

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Halocarbon Agents
Application Methods (cont.)

Local Application

 Shall be used when total flooding is not possible or

feasible.

 The system is designed and the nozzles are arranged

to discharge the agent directly into the fire.

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Halocarbon Agents
Primary Applications (see A.1.4.2)
Typical application of halocarbon agents include, but are not limited to:

 Electrical and Electronic Hazards

 Telecommunications Facilities
 Remote Microwave Sites
 Telephone Switching Systems
 Flammable and Combustible Liquids and Gases Storage
 Computer Rooms and Data Centers

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Halocarbon Agents
Environmental Factors (see NFPA 2001-1.6)

 Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP)

 Global Warming Potential (GWP)

 Atmospheric Lifetime

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Halocarbon Agents
Environmental Factors (cont.)
 Global-warming potential (GWP)

 A relative measure of how much heat a Greenhouse Gas traps in

the atmosphere.

 GWP of CO2 is standardized to 1

 GWP of other greenhouse gases are compared to that of CO2.

 A GWP is calculated over a specific time interval, commonly 20,

100 or 500 years.

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Halocarbon Agents
Environmental Factors (cont.)
Example: the 20 year GWP of Methane is 72.

That means:
 for the same amount of methane and carbon dioxide released into
atmosphere
 methane will trap 72 times more heat than carbon dioxide within 20
years.

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Halocarbon Agents
Environmental Factors (cont.)

 Greenhouse Gases (GHG)

 A gas in the atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the
thermal infrared range.

 The Kyoto protocol (1997), restricts the use of GHGs

because:
 Their concentrations in Earth's atmosphere are rapidly increasing
 They have large GWPs.

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Halocarbon Agents
Environmental Factors (cont.)

Halon 1301 & Some Halocarbon Environmental Factors

Generic Trade ODP GWP Atmospheric
Name Name (100 Year) Lifetime (years)
Halon 1301 Halon 1301 10 6900 65
HFC-23 FE-13 0 12400 264
HFC-125 FE-25 0 3170 32.6
HFC-227ea FM 200 0 3350 34.2
HFC-236 fa FE-36 0 8060 209
FK-5-1-12 NOVEC-1230 0 1 0.01

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Halocarbon Agents
Hazards to Personnel
The discharge of a halocarbon could create a hazard to personnel from

 The Natural Form of the agent

 The Products of Decomposition that result from exposure of the

agent to heat.
 All of the present halocarbon agents contain Fluorine
 The main decomposition product is Hydrogen Fluoride (HF)
 HF has a sharp, acrid odor and create a noxious, irritating atmosphere

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Halocarbon Agents
Hazards to Personnel (cont.)
Other potential hazards are:

 Noise from the system discharge

 Turbulence from the high-velocity discharge from nozzles that

may dislodge objects in the direct path

 Cold temperature. Direct contact with the vaporizing liquid being

discharged from a system may have strong chilling effect on objects
and can cause frostbite burns to the skins

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Halocarbon Agents
Toxicity of Halocarbon Agents

LOAEL: Lowest Observable Adverse Effect Level

The lowest concentration at which an adverse physiological or
toxicological effect has been observed

NOAEL: No Observable Adverse Effect Level

the highest concentration at which no adverse toxicological or
physiological effect has been observed

LC50 : The concentration lethal to 50% of a rat population during a

4-hour exposure. Also referred to as ALC (Approximate Lethal Concentration).

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Halocarbon Agents

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Halocarbon Agents
Hazards to Personnel –Precautions
 Unnecessary exposure to halocarbons even at levels below NOAEL
shall be avoided.
 Means shall be provided to limit exposure to no longer than
5 minutes.
 Unprotected personnel shall not enter a protected space during or
after agent discharge.
 For normally occupied areas, design concentrations up to the
NOAEL shall be permitted. The maximum exposure shall not exceed
5 minutes.
For more information, Refer to NFPA 2001, Chapter 1

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Halocarbon Agents
Extinguishing Mechanisms
Halocarbon agents extinguish fire by:

 Physical means – ~80%

 Heat absorption

 Chemical means – ~20%

 Inhibiting chemical chain reaction of fire

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Halocarbon Agents
Design Concentration Requirements

Flame Extinguishment Concentration

The minimum design concentration (by volume) required to extinguish normal
fires involving several flammable liquids and gases when the conditions for
reflash or explosion do not exist

Inerting concentration
The minimum design concentration (by volume) required where conditions for
subsequent reflash or explosion could exist.

Note: Use Halocarbon Design Factors Handout for Agent Concentrations.

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Halocarbon Agents
Discharge Time (5.7.1.1)

Halocarbon agents discharge shall be substantially completed in a

nominal 10 seconds or, as otherwise required by the AHJ

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Halocarbon Agents
Holding Time
Left for you to find in NFPA 2001.

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 Halocarbon Agents
Determining Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity
The amount of halocarbon agent required to achieve the design
concentration shall be calculated from the following formula:
V C 
W=  
S  100 - C 

where,
W  weight of clean agent lb (kg) 
V  net volume of hazard, calculated as the gross volume minus the volume of fixed structures
S = k1 + k 2 t , is specific volume of the superheated agent vapour at 1 atm. and the temperatute, t ft 3 /lb (m 3 /kg) 
k1 and k 2 are constants specific to the agent and are supplied by the manufacturer
C  agent design concentration (volume percent)
t  minimum anticipated temperature of the protected volume F(C) 
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Halocarbon Agents
Determining Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity (cont.)
Altitude Adjustment
The design quantity of the halocarbon agent shall be adjusted to compensate
for ambient pressures that vary from standard sea level pressure.

See next slide.

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Halocarbon Agents

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity - Example
A telephone exchange room is 10 feet high, 20 feet wide, and 20 feet
long. The room temperature ranges between 70°F and 75 °F. determine
the amount of HFC-227ea required for this room if it is located 500 ft
above the sea level.

Step-1: Calculate the Net Volume of the Room

V H xW x L
V  10 x 20 x 20  4000 ft 3

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity – Example (cont.)

Step-2: Calculate the specific volume of the halocarbon agent at

the minimum anticipated temperature of the protected room.

S  k1  k2t
k1  1.879775
k2  0.0046625 t=70°F
S  1.879775  0.0046625 x 70  2.20615 ft 3 / lb

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity – Example (cont.)

Step-3: Calculate the quantity (weight) of the agent required to achieve

the specified design concentration.
Class A design concentration for HFC-227ea is: 8.5%

V C 
W=  
S  100 - C 
4000  8.5 
W=   = 168.43lb
2.20615  100 - 8.5 

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity – Example (cont.)

Step-4: Adjust the weight for the altitude if needed.

No adjustment is necessary. Why?
Step-5: Calculate the specific volume of the halocarbon agent at
the maximum anticipated temperature of the protected room

S  k1  k 2t
k1  1.879775
k2  0.0046625 t=75°F
S  1.879775  0.0046625 x 75  2.2294625 ft 3 / lb

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity – Example (cont.)

Step-6: Calculate the agent concentration at the maximum anticipated

temperature.

100 SW
C
SW  V
100(2.2294625)(168.43)
C  8.58%
(2.2294625)(168.43)  4000

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Halocarbon Agents
Halocarbon Total Flooding Quantity – Example (cont.)

Step-7: Ensure the concentration calculated at step-6 falls below the

maximum permitted human exposure concentration for 5
minutes.

The maximum permitted concentration for 5 minutes human exposure

for HFC-227ea is 10.5%
The concentration calculated at step-6 is lower than that and therefore,
the design quantity is appropriate.

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Halocarbon Agents
Required Reading

NFPA 2001, the 2018 Ed.

Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5
Annex A

There will be a number of questions from the above chapters of NFPA

2001 in the future tests and/or the final exam. Students should print or
take notes from those chapters and use them as needed.

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THE END

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