Control and extinguishment of LPG fires. Final report

Approximately 100 fire control and fire extinguishment tests were run on free-burning liquefied petroleum gases (LPG) pool fires from 25 ft/sup 2/ to 1600 ft/sup 2/ in area. The LPG was contained in concrete pits, and the pit floors were allowed to cool before the fires were ignited so that the burning rates were not influenced by boiloff from the warm floor. High expansion foam was used for fire control. The foam was applied from fixed generators located on the upwind side of the pit. Fires were controlled after foam application of less than a minute to about 10 minutes, depending on the application rate. Fires were extinguished with dry chemical agents applied through fixed piping systems with tankside nozzles and by manual application using hoselines and portable extinguishers. Fires could readily be extinguished in times ranging from a few seconds to about half a minute, depending on the application rate, system design, and ambient conditions. Additional tests were conducted in 1-ft/sup 2/ and 5-ft/sup 2/ pits to determine the boiloff rates for LPG spilled on concrete, a sand/soil mix, and polyurethane foam substrates. Burning rates for free-burning LPG pool fires from 1 ft/sup 2/ to 1600 ft/sup 2/ inmore » area are also reported.« less