FK-5-1-12 extinguishing gas (formerly Novec ā„¢ 1230)

FSH DIRECT uses FK-5-1-12 extinguishing gas because of its unique clean agent properties these include:

  • Electrically non-conducting in both gaseous and liquid state (no consequential damage)
  • Leaves no residue or waste by-product (no cleaning costs)
  • Virtually harmless to people (a residence time of 5 minutes is permissible)
  • Gives the highest margin of safety for humans compared to other Clean Agents
  • Very low environmental impact
  • Excellent extinguishing properties
  • No structural changes required
  • Suitable for fire classes A, B, and C
  • Causes no or little underpressure or overpressure in the room to be extinguished
  • Does not cause any extreme temperature drops such as freezing

Note: 3M, the manufacturer of Novec 1230, has announced that they will cease production of this extinguishing agent by the end of 2025. This decision has been made in light of upcoming restrictions on PFAS, a substance associated with environmental and health risks.

Novec ā„¢ 1230
The Novecā„¢ 1230 extinguishing gas (liquid) from 3Mā„¢ used by FSH DIRECT works on energy extraction from the source of the fire. This extraction of heat from the source of the fire is achieved by molecular enlargement, resulting in an oxygen deficiency in the flame. This effect is also called negative catalytic. A separation therefore takes place in the chemical reaction between combustible material and oxygen.
Novec ā„¢ 1230 liquid extinguishes a fire before it begins by quickly removing heat. In a typical “total flooding system”, the agent is stored as a liquid in cylinders that are under pressure with nitrogen. By mechanical or electrical activation upon detection of a fire, the extinguishing process will take place when the fire is still in its initial phase and is extinguished in seconds.The Novecā„¢ 1230 liquid evaporates 50 times faster than water. In fact, you could soak a stack of paper in a Novec ā„¢ 1230 liquid bath and pick it up again within a minute and it will be dry.

 

Safety Novecā„¢ 1230 fluid:


Not all fire extinguishers are equally safe for the people in the room. You get the best indication of the safety margin of a substance by looking at the permitted limit for people and the extinguishing agent concentration. The NOAEL (No Observed Adverse Effect Level) value indicates the level without any noticeable harmful effect. This is the internationally accepted limit for the various extinguishing agents. The extinguishing agent concentration is the amount of extinguishing agent that is needed to extinguish the fire safely. The safety margin for people is determined by the relative difference between the extinguishing agent concentration and the specific NOAEL value. As the graph shows, Novecā„¢ 1230 offers by far the largest safety margin for people.

From: 3M the Netherlands

For more information: 3M website