Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A62—LIFE-SAVING; FIRE-FIGHTING
  • A62D—CHEMICAL MEANS FOR EXTINGUISHING FIRES OR FOR COMBATING OR PROTECTING AGAINST HARMFUL CHEMICAL AGENTS; CHEMICAL MATERIALS FOR USE IN BREATHING APPARATUS
  • A62D1/00—Fire-extinguishing compositions; Use of chemical substances in extinguishing fires
  • A62D1/0071—Foams
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L81/00—Compositions of macromolecular compounds obtained by reactions forming in the main chain of the macromolecule a linkage containing sulfur with or without nitrogen, oxygen or carbon only; Compositions of polysulfones; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers

Definitions

• ABSTRACT A foam-forming flame-extinguishing composition containing an aqueous solution of a water soluble alkylpolyalkoxy-sulfates, preferably in combination with a polyoxyethylene resin and advantageously, with symmetrical-d1bromotetrafluoroethane.
• Our present invention relates to foam-forming flameextinguishing compositions and, more particularly, to flame-extinguishing compositions particularly adapted to quench, extinguish or confine fires fueled by hydrocarbons.
• foam-forming flame-extinguishing compositions have been inadequate for extinguishing fires fueled by hydrocarbons as may develop at industrial installations, refineries, tank farms and with the like, and burning hydrocarbons on water.
• a flame-extinguishing foam-forming liquid composition which contains one or more fluorobromoalkanes in addition to the substances commonly provided in flame-extinguishing foams.
• fluorobromoalkanes included water, emulsifying and foam-stabilizing surface active agents, propellants and foaming agents, antifreezing agents capable of lowering the freezing point of the composition, buffering agents, corrosion inhibitors and thickening and carrying agents.
• the surface-active agents have been found to be most suitable as the organic sulfonates and sulfates, alkylarylpolyethyleneglycol ethers, esters of alcohol such as sorbitol with higher fatty acids such as lauric, stearic, palrnitic acids, sodium or ammonium salts or sulfocarboxylic acids such as dialkylsulfosuccinic acid with up to eight carbon atoms in each alkyl group.
• composition can be improved by associating with the bromofluoroalkane a foaming agent of the ammonium alkylpolyalkoxysulfate type to produce a binary combination with the bromofluoroalkane.
• the binary combination used as an aqueous solution or dispersion, provided markedly improved results.
• alkylpolyalkoxysulfate in the form of water-soluble salts constitute excellent flame-extinguishing substances in their own right, especially when dispersed as a foam upon a hydrocarbon fire.
• the alkylpolyalkoxysulfate is used as an ammonium salt, possesses ethoxy groups in a chain of two to 30 ethoxy groups and has an alkyl group with eight to 22 carbon atoms, preferably 12-14. Best results are obtained with ammonium]aurylpolyethoxysulfate.
• ammoniumlaurylpolyethoxysulfate acts synergistically or symbiotically with water-soluble high molecular weight polyoxyethlene resins in creating flame-extinguishing foams under the action of a blowing agent or propellant.
• the fire-fighting properties of a water-soluble surface active substance capable of generating foam under the action of a blowing agent, especially the ammoniumalkylpolyalkoxysulfate are greatly improved by the addition to the solution of the water-soluble high-molecular weight polyoxyethylene resin.
• compositions of the present invention may also contain propellants, dispersing agents and other conventional adjuvants, such as corrosion inhibitors and anti-freezing agents, in the amounts and of the type described in the aforementioned copending application.
• a preferred subgroup of water-soluble alkylpolyalkoxysulfate is the ammonium salts of alxylpolyethoxy sulfuric acids in which the alkyl radical contains 12 to 14 atoms in the main chain and the number of ethoxy groups is two to 30 as noted earlier. Because the ammoniumalkylpolyalkoxysulfates generally have peculiar foaming characteristics, it has been found to be advantageous to use the ammonium salt of lauryltriethoxysulfate, commonly in the form of a water solution containing 10 percent by weight of the active substance.
• the polyoxyethylene resin is a polymer having 7,000 to 200,000 oxyethylene units per molecule, an average molecular weight of 250,000 to 8,000,000, and a viscosity of 5,000 to 8,000 cps in an 0.5 to 5 percent aqueous solution.
• the liquid composition of the present invention may comprise the three active components individually or in combination, together making up 2 to 70 percent by weight of the composition, the balance being water and adjuvants as noted earlier.
• ammoniumlauryltriethoxysulfate and the polyoxyethylene are used together, they are present in a ratio by weight of 2 to 0.5 while dibromotetrafluoroethane may be employed in an amount of 3.5 to 35 times the total weight of the ammonium salt and the polyoxyethylene resin.
• the flame-extinguishing material has the following composition:
• composition of the present invention may be projected onto the fire site with conventional foam-throwing apparatus to which the components of the composition are fed separately and are combined at the nozzle under the action of the propellant or blowing agent. It has been found that, for practical use in mobile fire-extinguishing installations,
• a mixture containing an aqueous solution of ammoniurnlaurylpolyethyoxysulfate and the polyoxyethylene resin should be provided in one tank while the dibrotetrafluoroethane is supplied in another tank, the contents of the tanks being fed to the foam-projecting nozzle together with a blowing agent such as carbon dioxide or one of the other propellants set forth in the above-identified co-pending application.
• a blowing agent such as carbon dioxide or one of the other propellants set forth in the above-identified co-pending application.
• the fuel was ignited and pennitted to burn; after 60 seconds of precombustion, a single operator began to extinguish the fire with an aqueous foam-forming composition. The fire was completely extinguished within 60 seconds.
• Example II was repeated, but with a mixture of 400 liters of gasoline and liters of kerosene as the fuel. The fuel was ignited and let burn for 60 seconds; after this precombustion period, the fire was put out within 23 seconds, using the following liquid composition:
• EXAMPLE lV a) l ,Z-dibromo- 1 l ,2,2-tetrailuoroethane kg8 b) aqueous solution of the two components cited in Example 111, 1:1 by volume kg2.2 c) water kg22 extinguished the tire within 22 seconds (expansion ratio, as previously defined, 1:10).
• a flame-extinguishing foam-forming composition comprising as active fire-extinguishing components, 1 ,2-dibromotetrafluoroethane, ammoniumlauryltriethoxysulfate and a polyoxyethylene resin, in aqueous solution, of an average molecular weight of 250,000 to 8,000,000.
• composition defined in claim 2 wherein said polyoxyethylene resin has a viscosity in 0.5 to 5 percent aqueous solution of 5,000 to 8,000 cPs.
• composition defined in claim 4 consisting essentially of l to 10 percent by weight of a 10 percent aqueous solution of arnmoniumlauryltriethoxysulfate, 1 to 10 percent by weight of a 0.5 to 5 percent aqueous solution of said polyoxyethlene resin, 2 to 70 percent by weight 1,2-dibromotetrafluoroethane, and 10 to 98 percent by weight water.
• a method of extinguishing a hydrocarbon fire comprising the step of projecting the foaming composition defined in claim 5 thereupon.

Landscapes

• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Medicinal Chemistry (AREA)
• Polymers & Plastics (AREA)
• Organic Chemistry (AREA)
• General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
• Emergency Management (AREA)
• Fire-Extinguishing Compositions (AREA)
• Pharmaceuticals Containing Other Organic And Inorganic Compounds (AREA)
• Liquid Carbonaceous Fuels (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=26327322

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Cited By (9)

Citations (7)

• 1971
  • 1971-01-21 NO NO00217/71A patent/NO130299B/no unknown
  • 1971-01-21 NL NL7100798A patent/NL7100798A/xx unknown
  • 1971-01-25 US US109620A patent/US3684018A/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1971-01-25 BE BE762012A patent/BE762012A/xx unknown
  • 1971-01-26 DE DE19712103385 patent/DE2103385A1/de active Pending
  • 1971-01-27 FR FR7102693A patent/FR2077046A5/fr not_active Expired
  • 1971-04-19 GB GB2029471A patent/GB1311602A/en not_active Expired

Patent Citations (7)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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