US2136963A - Fire extinguishing method and medium - Google Patents

Description

i GUISHING' METHOD AND Heinrich Chemnits, or, a ts, to Biihme Fettchemi No Drawing. kpplioalgon l rial No. 753,406. 1938 12 1 Hit This invention relates to fire extinguishing agents and more particularly to the foam producing type of fire extg medium, where-l by the combustible material may be smothered by a blanket of foam. It is the principal object of the invention to provide a medium or this character which is inexpensive to produce and which will be effective for the extinguishing of fire in materials not readily controlled'by fire extinguishing media heretofore developed.

Thus it is a further object of the invention to provide a medium which will foam freely and A which will effectively blanket and smother the combustion of alcoholic fluids. It is a feature of the invention that the medium forms a foam in which the gaseous agent is principally air, prior air foam producing media being rendered ineflective by the alcohols.

It is a more specific object of the invention to provide a fire extinguishing medium comprising a mixture of a fluid with a quaternary high molecular ammonium salt or the corresponding phosphonium and sulphonium compounds. Quaternary high molecular ammonium salts, which contain long aliphatic chains or cycloaliphatic or aromatic radicals as substituents, are found to produce a dense foam film, completely stable to alcohols, and indestructible even when contacted with the hot walls of a tank containing burning alcohol, affording a positive guaranty oi rapid and complete extinction of all fires in liquids an? particularly in liquids of an alcoholic charac er.

The extinguishing of alcoholic fires by chemical foam producing methods, for instance by the development of a foam blanket in which the gas phase of the foam consists of carbon dioxide or other noncombustible gas, are not only defective and dangerous but very expensive. In accordance with the present invention fires can be effectively ext i l by means 01 air foam produced by an ordinary foam generator or foam D D Emmpie I I Battling, Chemmar 18, 1934, Se-

r o-1.1 No 18,

compounds, containing for instance amino groups, halogen atoms, ester groups, or ether groups in the aliphatic chain. Similarly, quaternary ammonium compounds which are not derived from heterocyclic nitrogen bases, but from aliphatic, cyclo-ali'phatic, aromatic, or even mixed tertiary amines, as well as the corresponding phosphonium and sulphonium compounds, may be employed.

While the quaternary high molecular ammonium compounds and particularly those derived from heterocyclic nitrogen bases, such as pyridin for example, are of special importance by reason of the fact that they are readily accessible,

numerous other compounds of the character hereinbefore indicated have been found effective. Thus the following specific compounds, and the fluid mixtures and aqueous solutions thereof, 'will produce a dense blanket of foam suitable for the extinguishing fires of an alcoholic origin: I

Tetr'adecyl, hexadecyl, andocta-decyl pyridinium sulfate, undecenyl, dodecyl, tetradecyl, octadecyl, octadecenyl chinolium sulfate, decyl pyridinium bromide, hexadecenyi chin'olinium iodide,-quaternary ammonium compounds derived from asymmetrical o1eyl-diethyl--.ethvlenediamine by addition of dimethyl sulfate or diethyl sulfate or methyl iodide, decyl phosphonium iodide, dodecyl phosphonium bromide, tetradecyl phosphonium bromide, octadecenyl phosphonium iodide, dodecyl sulphonium iodide, octadecyl sulphoniun /br'omide, heptyl-i-urea bromide, decyli-thiourea iodide, hexadecyl-i-thiourea iodide, the addition products of tetradecyl bromide or dodecyl iodide to hexamethylenetetramine, heptyl guanidine, tolyl guanidine, the quaternary ammonium compound prepared by the addition of the dodecyl ether of a-glycerine bromhydrine "CnHaaCHmOSHaCHOI-LCHaBr to pyridin, the

of fires, especially" quaternary ammonium compound formed by the addition of bromine-acetic acid dodecyl ester Br- CHaCOQCHaCnI-ha to chinoline.

Example 2 A solution of 600 grams of hexadecyl triethyl phosphonium bromide in 100 liters of water mixed with 10 liters of glycerol is discharged by a foam generator onto the burning object.

Example 3 A summon of: 500 grams decyl dimethyl sulfonium iodide in 100 liters of water is discharged by a foam pipe onto the burning object.

Example 4 500 grams of the quaternary ammonium compound prepared by the addition the hexadecyl ether of a-glycerine chlorhydrin to pyridin are dissolved in 500 liters of water and this solution is mixed with 500 liters of carbon tetrachloride.

The mixture is discharged onto the burning object by a foam generator.

Other, preferably non-combustible liquids than water can be mixed with or employed as a solvent for the active medium, for instance carbon tetrachloride, perchlorethane and like halogenated hydrocarbons. Additions 0! alcohols, especially of glycerol, are often suitable for preventing freezing of the fire-extinguishing agents at low temperatures.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A method of extinguishing fire in alcoholic material which comprises covering the burning material with foam produced by a mixture of liquid and a compound selected from the group consisting of high molecular quaternary ammonium, phosphonium and sulphonium compounds.

2. A method of extinguishing fire in alcoholic material which comprises covering the burning material with foam produced by a mixture of water and lauryl pyridinium sulphate.

3. A fire extinguishing medium comprising a mixture of liquid and a compound selected from the group consisting of high molecular quater nary ammonium, phosphonium and sulphonium compounds.

4. A fire extinguishing medium comprising amlxture of water and a compound selected from the group consisting of high molecular quarter'- aisasea nary ammonium, phosphonium and sulphonium compounds.

5. A fire extinguishing medium comprising a high molecular quaternary ammonium compound selected from the group consisting of pyridinium, quinolinium, and isoquinolinium salts.

6. A fire extinguishing medium comprising a solution of a quaternary ammonium salt of the general formula R-NER:

wherein R is an aliphatic radical containing not less than eight carbon atoms in a continuous chain, X is a halogen atom or 0SO:H or NO: and NR: is a pyridine or a quinoline.

'7. A medium for extinguishing fire comprising 4 an aqueous solution of a substance selected from the group consisting of high molecular quaternary ammonium, phosphonium and sulphonium compounds.

8. A fire extinguishing medium comprising an aqueous solution of a high molecular quaternary ammonium compound.

9. A fire extinguishing medium comprising an aqueous solution of a pyridinium salt.

10. A fire extinguishing medium comprising an aqueous solution of lauryl Pyridinium sulphate.

11. A method of extinguishing fire which comprises producing a combustion smothering foam with a mixture of water and a. pyridinium compound.

12. An alcoholic combustion extinguishing mixture comprising water and a foam producing medium including a quaternary ammonium com-.

pound selected from the group consisting of compounds derived from aliphatic, armomatic and mixed tertiary amines.

HEINRICH BERTSCH.