Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
` PCT/DE92/00070 2101~3~l7
E~e e~ n~S~ protecriol~L a~ent
~; an e~ti3lgu~h;i~g agent wate~ e adYa3:L~g~s of hi~ heat
absorbi~Lg capaci~y a:nd there~ore favourable cool~g ac~ion7 ~ ~c
o~ to ic~ compa~ibility with ma~ i3~able materials, ine~en~i-
veness a~d ~ ally a ~sood a~r~;l~ility. It is ~erefore sti~l an
i~oxtant i~re e~ingui~ g age~t.
A known disad~ e o;E water a~ an ~tin~ishi~ ageIIc is its ~.~ly
liq~lid ~ature, so that d~i31g the esti~ishi~g proce~s lar~e quant
itieS flow a~ sed and i~L p~ ca~e ~ece~ ~ter damage~
l~re~ore only a sm211 part of ~he sp~a~ed wa~er has it~ fa~ourable
e:ctingui~hi~ ac~io~ co~si~r-;n~ of cooli~ t~he ~i~g mate~ial.
Tnere~ore ~ero~s attempe~ have been mate to im~rove water as .
fire e ~ inguish ~ g ~ge~t.
Th~s, or e~a~le, the addi~ion of i~bstan~es hav~ been tes~ribed~
which b~ing iabo~t i rise in lt5 viscoisit~, such ias cellulose deri~a~
~i~e~ z~natei3 or w~ter-soluble sy~thei~ic polymer~ ~Gh ~s pol7
acr~ de~ ~se îs lso made o~ ~io~ sDmable mnneral addi~ives
to ~e estl~g~ishi~g water, e~g. w~t~r-soluble i~organic saltsi or
water-in~olt1ble ~terlals such as bentoDitei or a~i pul~i~e (cf~
nllm~n~s ~nzyklopadiei der TechDische~ Chemie, 4th editio~, ~ol.
11, p~569 i~nd ~l ~ s E~c~clopedl~ o~ I~d~strial Che~istrY~ 5th
~di~io~, Vcl. A ll, pp. 114/5).
~`
I~ ~pecial ca~e~, sach as whea fightiDg ore~t ~iles, ~se is e~.
made o~ be~tonit~, a~tayilYi~e ~nd water-soluble sal~ ell as
e~t~ng~ishlng w~t~r ~o~lat~o~ ed wi~ ~ ates ~nd which
af~er special preparat~on are frequentl~ ~jected ~rom aircrat ~cf.
e.g. ~.E. Hardy, Chem~cals ~or Forest Fire Fi8ht~n~7 3rd edition,
~os~o~ . ~e to nmnerous disad~ aged such e~ shin~s
a~e~ts ha~e only pro~ed sion;f~ca~t ~or fight~ 8 orest fires a~d
c~m~u~ be ~sed for g6~eral p~rposes.
:$j~L~
2~19~7
l~e re~so~ e e.g. ~e gener~llY necesSary hi~h Jeight pe~centages
of n~Lneral additive~; in order to ~cbieve a sllfficien ly ~gh le~el
of thicken~ng (e.g. 10 to 20% by wei~ht), the corrosive action of
certai~ sa:Lts such as sulphate~ or chlorides, or the pos~ibility
of ~md~sired en~ironmental i~fluences occur~i~g, e.g. of ~ertili2illg
compo~ents, whose qua~ity application on que~:g a ~ore9t f~e
c~n e~g. be a ~ le ~ rface area of the ~ ilize~ ap~l~ atio~L
in agrlcult~re. The prepara~on of ~ch thicke3~e~ special e~
s~i~g ~g~nts generally regn;res special appara~ d par~ læly
this a~pl~es wit}l res~ect ~co ~he ni~g t~:Lereo~. ~Che~ ~ general
not be ~pplied ~ing convention~l fire e~nis~;ng sy~inges ~nd
e.g. ~ ~e case of algina~e g~ms do not ~aYe 23~ op~imum ~d}lexing
~ction ~o ~e suri~aces follo~i~g s~pray~ng, ~articr~ y ~de~ thé
action of heat, ~he~ freque~tly c~e their use cha~acte~stios
sfter eveIL a shor~ ~torage period a~d, a~l:er d~il~g, sometimes leave
beh.r.d d ~ ficulty removable resid~e~3. .
The prepa~ation of a thicke~ed e~tin~uishin~ water ~ithou~ these
disadva~ta~es, p æ ti~ularly a non-1ammable thickening age~ for
the water in order ~o ;mprove the wa~er e~ti~uishi~ ac~ion9 is
~herefore highly des~rable. A~art rom ~he posit~e e~ects o~
adhesion to soIfaces, e~en i~ the case of e~e~ated temperatures,
the formatio~ o co~esive 8~tin~ulsh~ ag~t ilws with 2 partic
ly high wa~r percen~a~e a~d ~fie~entl~ high stability~ ehem~
ical and phy~iolo~cal ~ompa~ibllity with all dead a~d living mR~er-
~al3 oecurring d~liLn~ th~ extin$uishing proces3, t m~3t mai~taîn
its Use properti9~ eve~ fter prolon8ed storaQe a~d, if ne~es~ry, .
m~ be~;p~e~a~bI~ iQ a rapid, ~^~espen~i~e manner.. b~.m~ ng with .. ... !-'~
ordilu~r~ wat~r nd ~nst be appl_able ~si~g conventionally a~ailable
flre e2tinæ~^shi~g ~qu~pment~ At ~re~ent the~e îs no ef~icie t
fire e~tin~ui~h~3g age~t7 which s~îs~ies all these requ~^rements.
Ce~;n o the requisite cha~ac~eristics such as a broa~ compatibil
îty w~h li~ d dead material are ~.g. f~lfil~ed ~ omo~pho~
. .. -. -. . - . . - . . . - -
A~
2 1 0 ~ 7
- 3
.
~l;ca or s;1icic a~ , so that the l~tter i~; no^c onl~ widely us~d
as a thicke~ ag~t ~cf. U~ln~ns ETlzyklo~adie d~ Tech~ische;~
Ch~e, 4th edit~oIl, Vol. æ, p. 473; 1~ k ~ e~ c~rclopedia
of Chemical Te~hnology, Vol~ 20, p.778j E. Brunner, D. Schut~e,
Chemiker Ztg. 89, 1~5~ pp. 437-40; H~ Fratzscher, Farbe u~a Lack,
75, l~69, pp. 531-53~). It ha~; a pa~ic~la~ly mar~ced t~bicke~
action ~n the form of ~med 3ilica ~re~ed by flame hydrolysis
in non-polar 1ia~id~. In polar l~quid~ such ~s water the ~hickeD~ng
ætio~ of said silic~ is less prouo~c~d, so that it ;q ~ecessary
to ~dd relatively large q~n~ities for obtai~ing a si~nific~t ~hick-
~ning action. It is aS ye ~Ot kno~n ~o use 3;Iicas in ~he ~orm
of an a~eous s~s~e~ion fire e~t~guîshin~ a~en~s. Fumed silica
tæ o~ly described a:3 a pulre~en~ speclal e5~t;ng~isn;ng ~ t for
~ ~ial ~ire s~Ltllations ~EIIB 0339 162 Al ox }~I}B 03~ll 006 ~l). A~
a ~esult o~ its e~:~reme ~ ness7 its general ~se as ~n esti~ui-
shing age t iæ not p~sc~cabls.
I e.g. ~umed c;l~ca is sus~ended in water, mnch ~ore ~an.10% is
~eeessary in oraer to obr?~n a usable th~ckeni~æ ~nd th;s suspension
also beha~es i~ a ~ otropi~ ~anner. This is a ~is2dv~ntage for
u~e with standard fi~e ~tinguishi~ ~qui~ent. ~ e.g. a 5~ su~pel-
slon o fumed sil~ca ~ wat~r ls spr3~ed ~rom di~ferent ~praying
means, li~uids ~ass1n~ thinly out of th~ nozzles are alw~s obtained
~nd th~y ~u~ o~ surface5 i~ the same way æ wate~ a~ti~8u~shi~g
comparison tests o~ gtand~aiz~d ~ises, su~ un~hickesea ~iLica
S~BpellSlOng ha~e no better aCtio~ than water,
. ~ , .
It ~s alsoAk~own~`th~t suspension~ o ~mor~houa~s~h~G~c.,sil~cas
i~ wate~ oves a period o~ tlme (~e~erall~ w~eks or ~o~hs) sl~ly
have ~ te~de~c~ ~o the a~lo~esation of particles 2nd to settli~g
phenoDie~ owe~e~, this n~c~en;r~g effect~ is ullimportan~ fos
the prese~ set proble~ as z resnlt o~ its slowne~s and limited
e~ent. Ihis process, altho~h it can be accelerated so~e~hat
adding electroly~e~, d~es ~o~ sepresent a sol~tion o~ t~e ~re~en~
proble~. S~k suspe~sio~ ~hickened by l~a~ing ~o sta~d also bec~e
` ` 21i ~1~4~
-- 4 --
hi3hly l;q,~id a~2:~L ag ~L res~lt of 9tir~i~g follow~g p~olo~ged
storage, i.e. whe~ aying us~ng conventional fil~ e2ti~guisher
s~r~Lges said tl~o~ropic liq1lef~c~ion ~ aisadvan,,ageous, beca2lse
ea~ly i~rpair~ ~he adhesion of the water e~i~}ce~ed i~ way.
~s shown, an e.g. ~ suspeD~3ion o~ umed silic~ water, followi~g
thick~ as a res~lt of ~to~age, beeome~ highly ~ id ag:~;n on
sprayi~
The ~roblem there:Eore arise~; of ~rov dis~ impro~ed fi:re e~ting~
uish~Dg agent of ~he ty~e o~ a thicke~ed extinguishi~g wster, par~i-
c~larl~ ~a~i~æ an only l~mi~ed ~el~ht perce~tage o.~ s~nthetic amorph-
ous 5ilica or oe~er, ~on-1~mable, broadl~ compatible minerals
~n the ~o~m o~ a 5u~pension in w~r s4 as to ob~n a th~ckenin~,
whi~h takes place ~nsta~taneo~lY and ~ a ~o~rollæble ma~ner,
gives ~ ~ea~y defined a~d s~able fin~l state and ~s not so thi~o-
trop~ed by the spraying process th~ its adhes~o~ ~c~io~ p~i-
red. It must also be ~sabl~ with oonve~tio~a1 ~ir~ e~ guishe~s
and it5 pre~aration must not require 9pe~i21 eq~ipm~n~, whils~ havi~
a g~od adhe~ive action to bo~h ~r~.~.l and dowawa~dl~ directed
smrEaces, espedall~ at elevated temper3tures. I~ particular, its
e~tin~ h~ng action must be far superior to that ~f water.
~ccordin~ to the in~en~io~ this problem is solved in rh~t a th;ck-
ened su~penYlon of amorphou~ gynthetic silica ~n ~ater is prep~red
by misin~ erulent, ~umed sllica with wa~er and 2 compo~nd o~
the tgpe o~ a ~olyethyl~e glycol with a molar mas3 of ~700 to
c600,00n7 deriYati~es o pol~e~h~le~e glycol ~uch 3s e~hers wl~h
fatt~ alco~ol~ stér~ h fatt~ acids, ether~ w~th ~ar~ohydra-
tes of molar masses 300 or blgher, ~s well as ~;th polyethylene
;mine, l~e necessary sil~ca concentration~ in wat r are ~ery low.
The~ only represent a ~r~etion of the amounts ot~erw~se re~uir~d
f~ ~h~cke~ng ~n aq~@ous s~qpensio~, nsmely 1 to 7w compared with . .
~10%~
`` -~ 2~ a~
~e said additi~e~3 ca~ be added to t~e h~ id su~ ion
of Si~iCZL ~ water, to the actu~ ates, bu~ can also be dr~ prPmi~ed
with ~e siliea. In ~11 cases ~ eo~sly ~sable, ~ickened
e~ ;ng w2ter 1~ obtained, which ca~ be ~ her tbickened
i~ co~trol:Led m:lnn~r~ e.~. ~y the shear~g actio~ present ~ a fi:~e
e::tingui~hi3~ pUIlly~ o~t ~y ~pai~ g o.~ the spra~ing ~ acit~.
On t~e ~:on~:r~, as a reslllt of the flow ~ ac~e~istics obtai~ed
o tl~e th~s tbi~kened e;~ ~sh~ng wate~, co~p~red ~rith co~ntional
water7 it~3 s3~ra~i~v cha3~acteristics a~e ~mpro~ed, e.g. wit~ respec~
to l~he range or lo~er :Erietional los~es.
The la:;t process caIL be referred ~o as rheope~ A.~ the additio~
~hiclce~ng ob~i~ed he~e ~ no~ los~ ag~i~ when che ~ea~i~ action
is stopped, refereslce co~ld be ~ade ~o a~ ~irre~ersi~le rheo~e~y".
A~ a result ~e ~3e ~ tlle presently descri~ed ~icls~ned s~spension
of ~morpholl~;, ~ Lthetic silica as . fi~e e~ti~g~shing agellt is
p OE tic~larly sY ecti~e, beca~se 1~ a ~ery shorr ~e with a normal
e~nO~u~sher 12sOe sa~aces can be thickly co~ered with the ~ighl~
ef~icient e~tinguishing ag~nt, no matter ~rom wha~ m~terial they
are made or whicl ~eometrical ~o~it~on they ~e. ~de~ ~he action
of heat ~he~e 1~ no decom~o~itlo~ of 3aid coatin~, such as a sofee-
ning or ~l~pping o~ ~p to the drying of the wa~er.
The wz~er thickened i~ ~he ~bo~e manner bas a n~mbar of essenti.l
advantages~ s~ch as ease of 3pr~yi~ or spr ~ g by means of ~a~i-
0~5 type~ of fire ~tin~oiahing ~mps or ~yTinges in accorda~e
with DIN (b~cket s ~ e/TS 2tS), a~ well as b~ me3ns o a hig~ ~
pres~re pump ~ing 'a working pressule of 100 bar, ~p~l~cability
~rom ~nd f re es~i~gnisher~, ~dhe~ion o ~ven thick e~tinguishi~g
a~e~t layer~ of se~eral ce~tim~tres up to the evaporatio~ or drying
o~ ~erti~al a~d doN~wardly directed surfaces h~ng differe~t Ghara-
ct~ristics a~a mzde fro~ di~e~ent ~ater~alsO ~$ the ead of the
Lire ~iO~hting me~sures the esti~gui9hing s~ent can be e~s~lg ~emoved
in dama~e-ree ma~Yr ~om the s~b~erates ~n questio~J e~8. b~
` ~@1~7
- 6 -
s~raying off with water or by suction ~i~g conrentional ~nduclt~ial
sllction eq~ipment. As ~e t~ickened e~i~ ish~,~,g ~ter i.s uot
los~ thro~gh ~n~ away, it c~ be taken up a~n ~ollowi~g t~e
e~tin~ishinæ process, s~ ~t co~ation of the ~ iro~ment
by produ~ o~ ~ehe f~xe ~lowi~ awa~ with che e2~in~ishi~ water
aIld also ~ater d~mage to b~ildi~s can be l;~n;ted. ~er dryi~g
the ~i1;ca ge~ left b~ d b ~ ~d~orbi~g ch~racteristics, whlc~
~a~ also be ~ræ~tageo~s ~or ~kn'ng up decompositi~n products of
the fire or other con~ auts.
It i~ par~l~ul~ d~a~tageo~ to ~tilize t~hi.s ~oper~ of ~he
fir~ e~ iS~iP~ ~ge~t according to the ln~e~on by sucki~g in
the dry pre~ix o~ the amorphous sili&a with the thickener i~ ~
e~$ing~d~;n~ water flow, ~e desired t~icke~m g taking place ins~an-
tsneously. It is noteworthy that an addition o~ sli~htly more t~n
1~ o~ e.g. ~med silica to th~ ws~el is adequate f~r ~his p~rpose.
For cert~in applic~t~ons i~ ~zn ~l~o be advantageous ~o ~se large~ -
3ilic~ q~ ties ~n ~ater, e.~. in orde~ to form with the e~tingui-
shi~ agent a b3rrier ag~;nst the u~controlled flowing out of l;q~ids
~o~ the ~e areQ or the ~cki~g up ~ction o~ ~he sili~a for a~
cont ~ n~s present~ ~bo~e 7% silica i~ the ~ater w~n usi~g con~e-
ntional e~ing~i3h~rs no lo~er a~plicabl~ pastes form, but these
~a~ be ~sed ~s ~ire protection masse~, beoau~e the~r ~om4geneit~
i~ ret ~ned even w~en there ~s a high water content and a low silica
co~tent. A silica ~el obta~ned f~om water ~lass b~ neutraliz~ug
and washi~g or by ion e~ch~nge and given a pas~y cetting is o~ly
homogeneons for a ~hor~ eim8 after ~r~paratiOn a~d then q~ie~
staxts to gi~e of~ water i~ e~nsiderable ~uantities. Tbe ~ire prote~
ct~on mass prep~red 2ceordi~ to ~he inYention avcid~ ~his ~heno~e~on
in the case o ~ h;~ w~t~r and low solid percent ge. These flre
~rotection masses are s~i~able ~n nmmerous wayæ fcr preve~t2tive
fir~ protection for flammable str~c~res, in fi~e-retarding barrier
ele~ehts or ca~la lines3 p~l~iColarl~ thos~ w~ich are seDsiti~-
- 72~~9~
to corroslo~, fire decom2ositio~ produc~s or o~tflswin~ water.
me "thickeni~g aaa~ es~ used æcord~38 to t~e i~vention are ~qui-
red in ~11 cases i~ only extremel~ ~mall weight co~ce~trations.
~ith the pref~rabl~ ~sed progortio~s of only 0~003 to 0.2%, ~ased
on the total qu~ntity, they 3le soarcely ~oticed. Seqeral o~ the
thick~ng addi~i~es described are con~ent~onalt~ ~lsed 35 emmlsi-
~iera, eOg. f~r ~reases, wa~es or as spe~al sur~a.:tants. The "~loc-
cnla~io~ o~ silica b~ polyglycol is co~sidered usef~l e.g~ for
~ater puri~ io~. It c~Dnot be co~cl~ded ~ro~ P~t;ng teachi~gs
~h~t a suspensio~ of ~ a or bentonite of abo~e 1% i~ water ~aQ
~uaaenl~ be made ~o uniforml~ ~hi~ke~ ~hrou~h the ~dicated compaunds
of ~olye~gle~e gl~col~ o~ h~d~o~y~thy1~ted fat~y a d d, ~att~ alcohol
o~ sug~r derî~ati~e~ or pol~e~hyle~e i~i~e, i~ ~e case of the sDall-
e~ weight percentage~ ~hereoC and ~hat the th~ckeni~g actio~ obtai-- -
~ed c~n be maint?;ned ~or a ~lmo~ unlimlted tim~, so that the
eh~s obtained e2tingnishi~g agents ca~ be s~ored or ~s~d i~ s~atian-
ar~ e~ti~gu~shi~g e~ip~e~t~ o~ tha~t the she~r actions occurr~
a~rin$ e~inguishin~ do no~ act i~ ~he form of a thi~ot~opizl~g
and insee~d prod~ce a type of "irre~ersible rheope~izingn, which
greatly ~a~ours the use as a~ hing ~ge~t by produc~ng sta-
ble, adhering Wat~r layers. Thi~ i~ surprislng beca~se the aore-
me~tioned compo~d~ OEe not o~ the co~ention~l th~ckener ~pe.
It is also indicati~e or the present inve~tio~ the described
thickaning no lo~e:r OCClIr~ a~ co~eeIItratio~ls o~ ~he ~ i.c~cen~ng
addiJGLve~ of the polge~er ~ype ~bo~e c~ lim~r.s t ~ t .5~) or
t~L~ ~e addi~ion of concen~rstions a~ t~ickeni~2; additires of the
polye~ier t~l7e abov~ these v~1nes to already ~c~cened ~pensioLs
brings abo#t ~ r i~nmediate ~d ~e~ent dil~tion o~ thinnin~r
0We~6~, thi9 iS not a problem in ~ractice, be~ 3~ addition
be easily n-~ored.
A~ incre~sed plI-~alue has a simi:Lar action o~ ~he efIec~ of ~h~
pol~ether type ~clcF~n~n~ age~rc. ~$ pE~alues abore 8.6 ~here iæ
-8 2~Q19~7
a reliq~efaccio~ of already t~ickerled suspensio~s, -~ich ~ ~1so
ot ~sad~ eous, because ~or the e ~g handliIu, oi~ the e;cti~
uis4i3~ ageslt the pH~val~e is chose~ as close as possible to the
netltr~l point. C~30ne~ts æ~i~g i~ a hi~ly ~1k~1ine ma~ner can
conse~erltly not be added ~o ~e ~hickened ect~ g a~e3l~ form-
cio:Qs whe~ ~s~g polyosyeth~le3~ derivati~es.
Tr~ the case o~ ether~ hieke ~ g ~dditi~res a~L e~ception is
fonmed ~y compo~Dds h~ViD~ a weak alk~line ~ction suc~ a3 bi~arbo~-
ate~. They are compati~le wi~h the ~hicken~d s~2ensio~s of amor-
phous, sg~thetic ~ilica n a~y 501ibl9 co~c~ntration. For e ~ le,
potassi~m h~dro~e~ carbon~te can be ~dded up to i's saturat~on conce-
~tration o~ appro~ately 34%. Duri~g e~ icarbon-
stes can decompose, accompa~ied b~ ~he rele~se o~ c~rbo~ dio- de,
which incre~ses ~he e ti~iS~iD$ actio~. The suspensioD~ of a~or-
phou~, sy~the~ic ~q~l;ca thicke~ed accord~g to the ~nve~tion ~re
also compat~ble ~ith other, not stroDg alkaline sal-~s, e~g. ~rep2r-
atio~ oan w~t~o~t di~icilty take place wit~ sea ~a~er, or pota~sium
solphate, ammon_um phosgha~e or boric acid ca~ be d~sol~ed i~ the
th~ckened s~S~Pncion~
Wkereas the thicke~ing addi~i~e polyethylene ;m;~e br~g~ sbou~
a stable ~hick~l~n~ action in the squeo~s silica susp~nsion i~
alkaline range~, the~e i~ a reliq~efac~ion in the strong a d d range~
In a~ ca~e, acid conditio~ are a~oided to pre~ent cvrrosio~.
~ow~er, if necessary, a com~ination o~ ~h~ two ~hi~keniDg addit-
ives is po~s~ble a~d then, as desired, ~h~ck~ning can take place
~ ed~ther ~he acid o~ ~e a~cali~e ra~ge~
~ .
T~e described t~ic~ening e~fect is partic~ ly mer~ed With f~med
silica. ~s is shown in the e~amples, i~ the case Oc precipitation
silicas the nece3sarg co~ce~r æio~s for obt2iDin~ æ clear rhick~
2re m~h higher (5 to 15~) and the aah~sic~ actio~ ~s less satisf æ -
tory. ~we~er, precipitætion silicas are less e~pensi~e ~hsn fmmRd
,, , . _ ............................ .. .. .
,.~`.',. - . ' ' ' ':
' ..................... . ' ~ -
`.-.: :' -- . ,
2~01 ~
_ 9 _
silic~:.
e~pensire b2se could be p~o~ided b~ silica 501Q e~g. ~repared
by ne~raliza~on from wa~er glass, ir it was po~sible to pre~are
therefrom w~tho~t grea~ time and ~roc~ss e~pendit~re a homogeneo~sl~
~hlck~ed s~spenslon. Although s~lica sols, if the~ ~e not ~abili-
zed, ha~e a tende~cy to ~elllng~ i.e. to the form~tion of a cohesiye
gelatino~s mas~, the latter ;~ ~ns~ltable ~or ~he presen~ ~et ~rob-
lem, becan~e t~ere iæ a poor ~dhesiPn: to surfaceq a~d o~er a period
of ti~9 it ~eleases the w~er contained ~here~ and grad7~ally also
h~sdens, T~elr ~ ticles ~e ~o~ ~e~erally displaceable agal~st
o~e ~other a~ t~e ti~e of ~o~stio~, i.e~ ~o flow ~haracterl~ic3
e~ist. By d~persi3$ s~ch sil~c~ ~D~l~tinou_ ma~Ds it is ~lso p~sgi
ble eo prep~re thi~ke~ed, aq7teo~s ~lica ~nspensions partl~ suitable
for ~ire e~tl~g~isbi~g purpose~ is ~lso possibl@ to lea~e the
relati~ely lo~ salt co~tent present i~ the ~ase of 2 ~sa~le thi~ke~-
ing in a~cordance wi~h ~he ne~trali a~ion process 2~d this does
not impair the e~tinguish~n~ ac~io~. rhe thic~e~d su~pensi~ns
o sy~thetic, amorpho~s silica prep~red by means ~ neutrali~a~on
processe~ do ~o~ behave ~u rheopectic manner i~ the same way as
~hoqe prapared _rom ~umed ~ilica~ Ihey are suita~le in ~h~se sit-
natio~s, where the ra~d ~ncompli~ated preparation ~n situ or direct
~reparatio~ i~ the fire ~tinguish;ng process is not as decis~ve
as the ~ g o_ ~ire e~tiDgui~e~s or statio~ar~ e~t ~ ishi~
equl~ment.~.
I~ solviog t~e s¢t ~roblem o pro~iding ao ~f'ect~re and w~dely
co~patible ~ire e~tin~9~iDg agent ba~ed on a th~ckened ertingu
sh~g w3~er i~ has been!~o~nd that~ a similar ~n~er ~o the sylthe~
~lc, amorpho~s cillca, b~ntoni~e, sta~ting from a hi~hly lig~id
s~spension iQ w~t~ with ODl~ a limited eoncentrz~io~ can be rapidly
~d d~rably ~:o3l~er~ o ~pr~y2ble, adJ~ re, t~icke~ed 5usper~i-
OD~3. This e~fect wh:~ch immediatel~r occ~rs with rgorous ~ir~g
~s not as pronounced as ~i~ :Eumed si~ he ~chicke~
2 1 O ~ 9 ~ I
. ~ -- 10 --
additi~e~ de~ribed i~ the inve~tion the ben~oDite whi~h in low
co~centrat~ons only produces ~h;n s~spensions can be con~erted in
concentrat~o~ of l.~X in water into thicke~ed su~penslons in water
nsa~le as fire e~tingaighing ~ge~ts and has a good 2dhes~vo action
to sux~æ es. ~owever9 ~he s2me e~ect ca~ot be a~hieved with ~he
k~ow& thicken~rs such 2~ gu~s, pol~a~rylamlde a~d the like wi~h
mol~- ~asses of ~6ao,000, or g~la~i~, at least i~ the prese~tly
described lo~ ben~o~ite conce~tx~tions~
~ithin the 5cope of the inre~tlon the stabi ~ ~ion of the deqcri~ed
fire e~ti~shi~g a~en~s agai~9t frost a~tion by the additio~ o~
cQmpound~ of the glycol or gl~ce~ol t~pe ~s algo fo~nd ~o be advan-
tageo~s~ Co~po~nds e~ecti~e ~or ~rost and oorrosio~ prote~tio~
l~ke borates, c~n, if nece~sarg, be ~sed. It has been ~o~d ~ha~
a sig~ificant atdition of these compo~nds ~o p~o~ect against frost
does not ~m~ir the ~hicheDi~ ~ctio~ or 3tabil~t~ o~ ~he thicke~ed
fire ~tLnguishi~g agents described.
~he ~oUowin~ esanples ~ strate the inyention ~ thout res~ricting . .
the same.
~mple 1 (general preparation e~ample)
~-10~ o~ ~omed oillca ~¢sco~l 200, re~i~tesed tr~d~s~k ~L D~uYsa,
Gesm2ny) were suspended 1~ 190 to 196 ml a water, accompanied by
s~i~ri~. The re~ultlng suspens~o~s sre hig~ly l;qu~d wlth p~ e~
o ~bout 5. If the~ ~re not stron~y s~rred, the~r ou~loN ~l~es
in ~he DIN c~p ~4 mm ~ozzle~ OE~ ~ to 11 seeonds, ~t ca~ be ~p
!.,,~'`,`.,:~'':::,.'~:.' .. '1 ~0 14 se~oads.~f:sli~ht ~gglomer~ion occurs. I~ ~t~rring takes . ~ o~
~l~ce with aQ elect~ical Btirring ~od ~appro~imat~ly 800 ~.p~m~),
the~ become e~ more hi~hlr t;qn^d with a~ out~lcw time o~ 9 ~ecn-
nds, ~om~arabte ~ith ~he ris~osi~Y of water. To ca~d s~s~ensions
are xdded a ~ew drop~ o~ polyo~et~ylene la~ryl e~her of mwl æ mass
3ppro~m~ 380~ or a 50g aqueo~s solution of poly2~h~1e~e ~lycol
210~9~7
of mD~ ~ 4220, or ~ S0,~ aaueous solution OL polyo:~yet~Lylene
so~itan mo~os~rate o~E molær ~ss 2~pro~Da~ly 12G0, or a conce~-
t~a~ed solu.ion o~ ~120 jojo~z aoia and PFG-i~) "o~ob~ ~lcoho7
e cose;ly; or dot:ose~yl ac~d~ l~ohol ro~ ~o~obz oil i;~. ~tho~-
,~lated fo~), or a ~ ?olyeth~le~e imin ~o7~ion (~ol~r~ ~,
registOEed e~rad~-r~c o ~sASi~ I~.~osh~ e~, &er~zn~? ~"d mi~n3
~lace b~ ~ rrirl~ ~ith 2 s~tu~a. .Ir. R11 C~3es ~ere i9 2~.
tely~ elearl~ no~ice~ble thickening to ~ ho~geneo~s~ ~iscous
~usp~:io;i w~. as3 ~ f~ctf.on o~ the si.7,~ por~ion, ~s preel7-
qd ~o ~ ~raryi~g e~ent. ~lo~ t~ of 14 - ~ 35 ~ec~nd~
o~cu~, or past~ ~s~encies a~e pro2uc2~ wh~ not be deter7
~ned ~n the o~"flow cu~, but ha~e a ~ood ~r2,,~rlg or adhesion c2~-
ae~ , OrL accnrate ~ hin~ o t~e necessar~ um, au~ ities
Of ~he ~dicated 2~aiti~e~;, it i~ fo1md t~at e~en 0.007~ ~35 ppm~
æe e~f~i~e, a~d ~.a~ in the ~se o~ ~olyo~e~th~lere com~o~nds
~ere is a~ m;,, ~ ap~ro~imabelv 1.5% in ~he o~e.~l., ~re,
above ~ch r~ e~don oc~srs. If th.e l~.h~s o~t2i~ed, lo~g ter~
~-~able, t~ickened sll~persio3~ of s~lic2 undergo z~ eren brief~
rous stirr~g ~e.~ ~t~ an elee~ ,irrin~ rod?, t~e ~icken~g
sig~i~icantl~ i~c_ eases Pnd re~ins ; n ~-; s 'or;~ t is e~sil~
~o~sib~e ~o spr2:~ these l~boraeor~ c u~n~ 2 s~ e bo-..le
~.ith or wi~out ~n at~zin~ no~zle. On ~ t all ~urf2ces, such
as wood i3~ ~rea~ad or ~ ~shed form, plzstie, rubo~r, 8h8s ~.
metal tm~oblemati~l ~dhesiorl 1~ pa~s~ble~, e~e~ reater layer
knesses~ out anv d~sadvanta~eous ~hange ta~ pl~c~ to
tbe layer ~ ru~ng out. slidi~ o~ or w~ch ~n 2!1~ other wa~
~mp ~Ir~ the ~ire e:~tin~ actlo~ s ~n ~aF~icular ~plie~
to hot 3urf~ces, w~e~e ~ere ~ no sl~ding o~, ~e s~ ed or
-~p~inkled surf'aces dr~ w~thin 12 to 48- hourrs; ~s ~ fu~ction of the - -
layer ~ick~esses a3~d ambien~ con~iti~rls. The dr~, usu~ l~k~
like sil~a le.'~ b~.~d can eesil~ be me~h~n~c2ll~ re~o~ed ~om
the s~2ces z~d c~a e~f~ be seadily b~shed ou~ ~ro~ .abric~.
21 ~9~7
-- 12 --
~a~Dl~ 2 (Ge3lerzl pre~aratiOn e~ample)
4--lOg o~ ~umed silicz ~re ~ed ~th i:~ ea~L c~se 0.3~ of polyo~
ethylene lauryl ether o:r polyeth~ene glycol of ~l~r mas~3 ~0
o~ polyetl:~ylene glg~col sorbita~ mono9te~;3,te (molar 1~1aS9 appro~-
;m~tely 1200~ or PEG-120 ~ojoba acid a~d Pli~-l~O jojo~z ~lcohol9
or polyethylene ~ne, so l~at ~ d~ prem~ oL~ed. For this
pt~rpose po~$ tal~; plae~ o~o 200 ~1 o: wate~, followed by m~
w:Lth arL electric 1 9~g rod (bl~de diameter 3~5 cm~ appros.
80~3 r.p.m.), so th~t pzst~r consisl:encies are obta:ned. 0~ addillg
150 ml oi~ water ~i~C0~:3 mspe~ons axe ob~ed ~ o~l ow
~i~cosity o~ ~4--30 seco~Lds i:n t~le D13!1 ~up (4 mm ~lozzle). The ~ara~
c~ tics of t~e res~lting l;hi~ d sil~ spensio~s, w~
are also di~ectl~ ob~i~ed by add~ the elrti~e 3SO ~1 ~o w~ter,
relre 1 310 dife~e~ces compared with t~he su~pensio~Ls ~bta:~ed i~
comparable concentra~ioDg i~ ple 1..
100~ o:E a dr~ ~re~ of i~umed s~l~ca ~9?g) a~d ~olyo~yethylene la~l
ether (3~) obtai~ea accordin~ to l~bis e~le are fillea ;nto a
stor~ge ~ sel and, u~g a s~ction hose7 whic~ pipe connec-
tion has ~ ~eed i~Lto a ~ ~ater 10w~ is s~lcked by meuls o~
a ~ ht vacuum ~nto s~id wate~ 10w, followed by m:L~i~g ~nd thic~
enia~, so tb~t ~ wator p~ss~g ollt o~ ~ ~lightly narrowed glas~ :
no2le only ~ ew cent~met:res a~ter the ~i~g point ~lrezldy has
a~ escell~ dhesio~ to a g~ss su~ace. Fnr ~cJ~ng in the dry
prend~;, it is al~o po~3sible to ~se the ~et~on side of a water jet
pump ~nd the sur.king ~n of ~e ~lverlllent pre~ can be continned
o~ a long time ~i~chout p:coblems or.blo~ es. 33g a corresporLd~
sion~g of ~he ~u~eiol~ eeds, reg~lating the ~ter ~alltity
and ehe water pre~sure7 ~che ~;c~e~ ~roced~re can be eoll~rolled
~L t~e desired man~ ble thiclceni ng accordi~g to this proce~
dure is e.g. o~ ed ~ith a silica co~eent:~atiOn of oDly 1.3~ i~
water.
_ . , . _ . .. .. ...
21019~7
-- 13 --
:e~3mple 3
~ ddi~ gela~cin solution (which ha~ dy bee~ describad as
predpitant for s~.lica sol, b~t ~ a we~ht ratio of ~lmost 1:1
~y l'h~, Gr~h~m, Philos. Tra~Ls, I~don, 186~, pp. 2~5/6) a l~ keni~g
of the ~med silica suspe~sion similar ~o 13;c2mple~ d 2 is obt~i-
ned with low concentra~ions of e.g. 0~1~ ga1~ , b~t su~ suspens-
ions reveal m:Lc~obi~l co~ ion a~ter a ~ela~-Yel~ ~;hor~ ~iod.
~! t~0mPaXi80n e~ample)
T~e t~c:kened silica slls3~e~dons obts:~ned accordi}Lg to l~am~les
1 a~d 2 were miæed with in each case ~ sodillm ~bonate aIld bora~,
so t}at pE-Y~l~es of 11 or 9.1 ~e obta~ed, ~ere~3 ~Le ~iclce.~g
disappeared im~ed~Ltel~ ~er aaditio~ with 211 ~e pol70~yet~hylene
de~ivati~e~, it rem~i~ed in 1:he case o~ a polyethylene iD~e thidcen-
ed si~ca suspe~
E~le 5 (~omparisop, e~;ample)
The ~bicke~ed silica sllspensio~s obt~;ned accord~$ to }~ample~
1 and 2 were nr~ced with ~n each case smaLl ~mo~Lts of hgdrochlo~ie
acid ~ Lt~ a pE3: o~ 1 was ob~ ed, and ~i~h i~ esch ca~e ~% ci~e
scid o~ a~cor'oic ~id ~ntil ~e~ g a p~ of ~ a~d 3. I~ the case
o a~l pol~o~ethylene co~po~ds the thicke~ing waY ~ta;ned ~n
these add ranges~ Eoweres, when mi~ed with poly~ yle~e imi~e
~ r~liq~e~ ion was obs~rved.
........ ~
le 6 (Prepara~ion and lls~ with a b~cke~ s~ 3e)
~6g of f~med siliaL were sti~red with 11.68 litre3 of w~ter. I~fter
lea~ ng to st2~Ld for one hoar with occ2sional sl;~ ;ng, a viscosity
o 13 seconds was mP~ ured i~ a DIN ou~flow cup. 35g o~ polyo~y-
ethyle~e la~l eehe~ we~e added, acwmp~ed by ~ g, ~co ~is
" 2~al~47
hioj9ly iir~d sus~enslo~. ~ e- e S~:or~ t e ~e ~scosit~ o the
E~eure rose ~o a p2S'C~5 ..ez~''y s~irrable an~ uo~S~e cous~s;e~}c~.
10 lle~es of ~he ~hlls ~-c~en~ e3ri;~ishinc w~;~r-~ere .i~led
into e ~c~c~t sy~ee a^~o~d~ to nI~' 14L.r~5. T~.o resul~ ic'~
er.ed esL;~ g ~d~er p~o~ed ~o ~e sp~a~able ri~h ~ ~ltipurpose
~e~ pipe 1~ ~c~ord:Lr.g to DIN 1~.~3S5, ~ D~inY t:he s~
process there was a cle~, fu~Lher ~hicXeni~g o~ ~e ~teri~1 p~S9i~
ou~ o~ ~ 3~t p~'pe a~ colDpare~ ~iLtn ~ Oduc~d ;-~o ~he btl~k2
syr~nae, ~e s~ra~ea maLe.i~ a ^~ersr goo' adhesio; to a ~OE~i-
cal, ~ai~ed co t:rete ~r~ce ~ d~ng ~n?ll)~ er spra~il~ ap~
~ma~el~ S l;~res~ ~:he re~ in~ ci7e li~r~s lef~ !be~ d 1;~ ~e
buc~et s~ e ~ere ~ ed with h~e same aol~n, Of ~ e by a~,~t~arL
~r~d ~he s~ra~n~ proce~s was ~ontin~ed. ~en with th~s redu~ion
o~ the conce~stratio~ o~ the thicke~ed silica sus?e~sio~, a ~ood
t~ll adhesion on s-or~ stil~ cc~urred~ her s~ in~ ~e~ts
good ~dhesio-~ ~a~ ~o~d ~o ~rdboard, ~iood aDd ~ ftter lea~
ir.~ to st2nd f~r 14 m~nt~s, t.~ s~ a~oidi g eq~poration losses,
no ~ettl~ng o~ -~e ~teri31 tH~S detecte~ z~d ~t co~-la ~ill be r~ad~t
~l~ spr~yed.
e 7 ~repa;zLion ard use t~h 8 P3~LCb1 WOE 31i~)
10 '~8 of fume~ si:L~ca wer~ st~rred i~to lS~ .res o~ water. Th~
r~g~ultln~ sus~ens~on coh~aine~ easily crus~le p~ c~es wi~h a
~a~eter of ~- ~o ~ ~, w}lich slowl~ sedimented on the ~o~.tom on
lea~g to s~and. T~e sUpe~at~nt sus~ ion no longer l~ad ~y
~articlss and had ~Lhe c~a~acteris~Li~s o~ a clol,;~ silioa sol, uh~ch
st~ on~a~ed 3 s~ ter lea~i~g. to :star& . ' or- 6 ~eecs t~alri-- . .. -: .~. --metric de~er~atio~ af~e~ dryi2g and 'æ~). The ri3co~ty of
the sed~e~ted sil.ica sol w~s a secon~s in ~Lhe I;3:h' ou~ow cu~ a~t2r
6 t,Teelcs stor ge, but 11 s~conas ~i~ec-l~ fQlk~ ?reæ~a~io~,
i,e, ~r-t1~ ~e ~ti~ s~s~ended ~ar~-cle~. S ~les c~ ~.~ sol cl~i-
fieâ or p~ied ste~ s~t-1:~8 and thos2 q'C~ end.~d
.
..
~la~7
matter w~re co~vertable wlth the additives ~eferred to i~ E3ample
1 and i~ the co~ce~trations give~ therel to a th~ckened silica
s~speDsion. The still unthickened suspension wa~ stirred wit~ a
padd~e mn~er a~d the res~ltis$ 200 litres were sepa~ated into two
ide~tir~l pærts. ~he part was stored ln se31ed ~orm w~tho~t f~r~her
addi~i~e~ far obserYin~ the lo~g term beba~iour. Over a twal~e
month period rh~re was a slo~ ~hickening and ~ettli~g o~ ~he hottom
oa lea~ing to stand o~ said ~ ca s~p~sion ~ot p~o~ided wi~h
the iDdicated addi~ives. Eowever, it was still miable ~nd spray
sble tbro~æh ~o Y-le~ a~d b~came highl~ liq~id ~aiQ by thi~otr~p-
i2i~g. It co~ld be thickened by the additi~es r~erred to i~ ~a~ple
1 a~d conv~r~ed into a thicke~ed, aq~e4~ 9ilic~ ~c~speDsio~ bl~
as a~ adhe ~ fire e~ti=~cish;~g age~t. The oth~r par~ o~ the
mis~re w~s mixed wi~h 250g of polyo~ye~hylene lauryl ether immediat~
ely ~ollo~in~ prepara~ion a~d stirred with a paddle ~dser, which
led wlthin appro~ately 30 seco~ds to the ~ni~or~ icke~i~g of
the eIItire s;~ usp~sio~.
The ~h~.~ thicke~ed eYtiDg~ishin~ water wa~ sprayed in proble~-free
ma~ner as both a ~11 iet an~ as a spray jet ~siQg ~ portable po~er
pump TS 2~5 accord~ng to DI~ 14410 with a mnltipurpose ~e~ pipe
C accordin~ to DI~ 143~, part 1~ ~s In E~ample 7, there was a
d ~ar further ~ckeni~ of ~he e2tinguishing w~ter by the pumping
and 9~ra~iD~ proce~s~ Good ranges ~nd an e~cellent wall ~dhe~lon
to ~ertical s~rfaces we~e obtz~d. ~s l~ Example 7, i ~ece~ry,
further ~hlnni~g With watflr wa~ pos~ble Nhi1st maint~1nlnv the
c ~ acteri~tics.
Ate~ se,:.the t4ickened, s~raged e~ting~ishi~g:::wate~ ~o~ld be taken~p ag~ln b~ shovelll~g or sactio~, so that ~ ir~ re3~lti~g p~od~-
cts contal~ed therein only passed t~ a limi~ed e~t-~t, if at ~11,
nto the so~l.
The eg~in~uishi~ ~ater ~rom ~his ~i~t~re ~hioken~l ~y ~d~;ng
2101!~17
-- lo --
polyo~yle3le lauryl e:ster, like the silica suspP~sio~ withou~
the additive, w~s let to sWd for 12 mont~s. ~ re wa~ b~
tially no chan~;e ~o its llse be~our aIId ~o se~di~8 of residues
c~ ~e bot~osll of the vessel. Withoul: preservative sl~reS, there
were ~o cle~ar b2cteri~1 conta~i~R~cion phe~Lo~e~a ænd it mU5~ be ~o;n-
ted out tha~ ~ sa~le used iIl an e~guis~ g test, which was COllt-
nnn~ted b~ a cert~i~L amo~nt o:~ soil had, on the basis o~ its s
bee~ conta~ated 8:Eter a ~ [owe~sr, ~o s~e~l pre~3er~
tio~ me~es ~re reqtl~red ~ he c~3e oi~ cle~ stora~se~
~e e~t~ishin~ test)
1~ tes~ re wi~h solid ~}elg o:~ fire Class A ~woo~ien cri~, 40~40
cm, 7 l~ye~s, ~reb~g ~e 4 m;n.) was e~lin~s~ed ~ith a ~pra~
iet ~ 7n~c7~ened e~ ;hi~g water, prepared æcordi~g to E~as;r
ple 7 ~nd set to 2.5 aD~I 3% SîO2 coneeP.t. Co7~ ed with the ex~-
g~.s7hi~4s te:~ ~th ~ater, fo~ ~guishi:n~ p7;~o~es oD3~y lJ4 of
~he e~ting~i~hin$ a~e~t ~ua~tity was con~ned ~d the Ilumbe~ o~ ~ ~
rei~tions decre~sed to l/4. ~thP ~dher:~ layer of thi~ened e~
gUi6h:1143 ~ates del~yed or preve~n~ed f~re ~ropaga~orL and i~ition
of those p~ o:E the flammable ~erlal ~ot affec~ed by t~ fire.
The l~r~e allso~ of 5~eam fo~med reYeals t~ he r~;ckeled ~
ap~lied is al~ot3t ent~ely a~aîlable ~or eool~g and e~gt~ g
R~cse~, beca7~se it doe~s ~ot ru~ o:E~ the b7~able 7~rts and ~nto
~h8 8ro7~d. l~e 8~3ent î~3 suitable fo~ es~7~g~ing f~am~able ma~er-
ials s~ch ~ woad, pla~3tic7 ~bber, wooden m~ter~als, t~stile-s ~qnd
othes orgaIIict :solid mBtf~i.al5.
(Fi~e OEt~i~ test) ~~ `: -`
13-A fi~e ~ccording to RFS ~423) was e~ci~;~ed ~ h an e~ctls~g-
g wate:r form~latio~ pre~ared with ~ ~% thic~e~Led qil.ica su~pen-
s~o~ accordi3lg ta F.~ample 7. e e~ gni.qh;ng a~en~ ~eo3~ io~
~ to co~plete es~ was only 1.? kg. O~ly 50~ of s~.l;ca
~, ... : . :: , .. ;. " ~ , .. . . .
2 ~ 7
-- 17 --
~e~e co~ med for comple~e e~g~ishing o the fire. The qua~tity
o~ i~ewood ~l3ed ~, by its ~er~ ure1 co~r~;n a m~ltiple o~
t~s silica g~ity is i~s a~.
lQ (Com~arisoll e~ample~
Ly liq~d s~speDsio~ o~ 4% ~msd ~ilica iIL ~ate~ ~tho~t ~he
described ~icl~e~g additi~es was nsed for ~t:~s~ing a ces~
fi~e of l~ A Cl~e 13sa~le 8). Com~red wi~h w;a~ loIIe~ only
htly le~ kened ~3~;pe~io~ W ~33ed ~n orde~ tv ac~hie~e
the sa~e e~i~gui~i~g ~esult. ~he ~mbe:r of reignitio~ obtained
was co~arable ~eo ~hat witih ~ aloIIe. T~i~ shows ~ ~che ~ood
e~iT~ sh~g e~ect i~ depe~deD~ on the ~reseslee of a Jchicke~ed,
aq~ ~sio}~ o~ amorpho~, sy~t:he~ s~l;ca.
E~le 11
500 ml of a~ appro~cel~ 32 gilica sol was prepared ~rom a sodi~m :
s;~ sollrciorl by ~re~lrin~ w~l:h a stso~g, add cat:lon e;s~a~er. ~ -
The pEt o~ the. sol ~as appro~tel~ 5 and ~ e~posed ~o a ~;he~
action i~ a blenae~ for ~ ~tes~ uffered nv ~i~ib1e cha~ges~
~tar adding 2Sl of a 202 go1~et~y1e~e i~e solu~-lo~ er ar~
~e ~1endi~ there wa~ te thic~ g of ch~ 1;ca so1,
~ithou~ so~ gi~g to a gela~i~ous mass, had a ~iscod~ of 20
9~coD~d~3 in the o~tflow ~ y5 ~emiqlned sprayab1e a;lld adhered to ~r-
~es. ~ er reyeated sheæ~i~ in ~e bleD.d~ l:he ~scosl~ ~2s
~til1 14~ èconds. l~here would co~sequent1y ap~eae~to b~ ~ s~ht
t~ot:co~y, b~t -~ is not ~sadYasL~Lgec~s ~or ~pra~
:
500 }D1 o~ ppro~ 7~ si~ca sol ~ELS prepared ~roD~ a s~di~m
s~cate so1ution by t:reat~g ~ a st~o~g, ac~d c~ion e~ ger.
l~e pE o~ ~e sol was app~o~imatel~ 5 The sil;ca sol was le~
- l2~9~7
to s~d i~ order to ~;el a~d the resull:l~g gel ~s stored for 2
we~ 3Z sus~esLSion ~ wa~e~r was t~en prepased isl a bl~nder,
which wa~ ~prayable and ~ad ~ood adhe~ion actiosl. Its ~nscosit~
was 18 seconds in the D:~ cup with 4 m~ nozzle.
~'Pa~
A ~uspensio~ ~ o ~-1 a~pro~ely 2.5% ~i3ic~ conte~t b~ diln~i~g
from an app~o~llatel~ 3% ~tlspellgion of amorpho~s si},~ca 1n wa1:er
}~d ~ olltflo~r lriscosity o appro~tely 14-15 seco d~;. This 8n~-
en~3ion ~as u~ed for ~ a stalldasd ~ire of C:_a~ A. Tne
n~:eæ3~y e~b~g ~gellt quantity 7~s 1/3 of ~a~ of water
~sed ~.c the com~ on e~i~ g agent alld t:he n~nber of rei~
T-;$io~s ~?C hal~ed comp~red with w~Lter. Ther;e~ore l:he a~tlon i~;
m~ch better tb~ wzter, ~ o~ quite as good as ~hæt of a ~hicke~ed
a s~pension S~ to 2.5g a:E~d prep red from ~ f~med silic~ accn- ~:
rd~ to E~amp~e 7 ~red~ctlo~ of ~e e~g~is~g age~Lt ~ ity
com~ared with ~at~r to appro~ l4, rei~t~ons 1/4 co~ sed wi~h
wa~er) .
,
A ~spe~rion of 8g o Aero9il 200 ~as prepared i~ 150 ml o water
a;~d of this 80g ~e m~:~ed wlth 35g of pro~lene glycol (~ d . ~:
69g ~ h 46g of propylene gl~c:ol ~B). A 2~d ~ were ~ e~ case
t lcke~ed b~ ~dd~g ~ r droys of polyo;~ye~ e la~ryl ether.
Bo~h ~e ~o~ed or 4~ ho~rs i~ ~he rei~OEator at -12C, B appe-
ari~g thic3c~va~le ~nd ~ tl~ck-l3gruPY. Ai~ 5 ehe t~icke~i~g
obtailled ~ter addin~ the ~e3~ e ~me as ~eore freez~g~
l~a m:L o~ a t~kened ~spe~sion af 3~g ~ilica iD ~ter accordi~
to E~le 1 were ~aced ~h 5~ of ~odil~m hgdrogen ca~bo~ate. l'he
o~lo~ viscosi~ ~s ~0 ~eco~ds ~ ~e ~)IB C~Lp ~4 mm). 0~ spra~g
2101~7
-- 19 --
on~o hot s~rfaces, this ~;~ture re~ealed good ad~es~on character-
istics. On e~aporati~g t~e w~er there was a strong gas e~olution
of ~~ner b~b~le ~t~re th~n i~ ~he ~ase o~ the e~ting~ishin~ agen~
wi~hout sodinm h~drogen c rboDate. ~fter add ~ potassiu~ hyd~oge~
carbonate a simil æ resul~ was found a4~ due to the hi~her solu~ility
up to 34~ co~ be di~sol~e~ he s~spe~sio~. The o~t~low ~i9cos-
ity in ~he DIN cup waS 35 seconds. The p~ o~ theqe ~ ules was
8.o. It was fo~nd ~hat t~ sprs~ed o~ larers re~ined moist or
a lo~ger t~e.
6g of Aero~ll 200 we~e s~E~e~ded i~ a sol~tlon o~ lOg o~ ~otassi~m
sulp~te i~ 1~5g o~ water a~d the res~lti~g higbl~ liq~id s~spension
was mised wi~h z few drops of pol~o3yethyleQe laur~l e~hes and stir-
red. The resiltin~ ~hi~ked ~g led ~o ~n o~lo~ Yiscosit~ 0~ 20
se~onds i~ ~he DI~ ~up ~4 mm).
~ith regards to the additi~es in sa~t fonm described i~ Examples :~
15/1~, it is pointed out tha~ these mist~res do not act ~ rheopec-
ti~ maD~er~ bn~ ehat with ~i~o~ous s~ear~ng are not ~hîsotro~zed
to snch an egte~t tha~ ~he a&es~ ~ctio~ t~ ~rfaces i~ sig~ifica~-
tly impaired. ~owe~er, on ~rayi~ on walls ~here wa~ mose marked
ing wi~h th~e mi~t~re~.
~ '.
83g of water ~re blended ~ith 7g o $~med silica a~d O.lg o~ poly-
ethylene ~m~ne (or the sa~e qua~ti~y o~ fat*y ~lcohol poly~lyeol
ether o~ molecalar weight ~00, f~tty a~id pol~lycol e~te~ of
molecolar wei~ht ~3~0, polyo~yethyle~e sorbitan mono-~atty add
ester, or polyeth~len~ glycol of mole~ular we~ght ? 70~ and m~xed
by s~irri~ he resul~ing p2~e was ~ ed ~n~o ~ plas~ic bag.
The ~ickness of the ~h~ pr~d~ced ~u~h~on w~s ap~ro~mately 8 m~
: . . , . ~
'-- 202la~7
~n~ the dimension~ were appro5imatel~ 10~10 ~m. Cable ~ortio~
of dif~erent diame~er~ were placed o~ the cushion. A horizontal,
3 cm ~de! ~ap was colrere~ by said c~hioll. The gap was ~hen s~b~ect
to flame ac~io~ rom below wi~h a ~as b~r~er. Tem~erzture~ of ~pp~
ro~. 700 & OCCU1Led on the ~der~ide of the c~h;on~ After a~pro~.
20 ~l~o flame a~pli~a~ he cables were undamaged.
~ .
cnshion as desc~i~ed ~n E~ample 17 was prod~ced ~ith an insert
~rom ~ pla~tic ~rati~g. The cus~io~ ~as pso~ided with ~el~ro strl~
clo~nres ~t thR ~d~. The resulti~g ~Qshion was placed ro~nd a
polypropyle~ pipe wi~h a di~meter of 40 mm accordin~ to DI~ 1~5~0
z~d closed in the man~er of a slee~e ns;ng the ~elcr~ b~nd. The
th~s protected pipe pa~t ~as ~ject to ~ ame action from below
by a petrol-produced firP, so that the flames mo~ed passed both
sides o~ ~he pipe o~ sleeYe~ Ihere was ~o damage or so~ening of
~he pipe ~ter 20 mi~teS~
~ample 19
A c~hion, as de~crlbed i~ E~amp~e 17 was ~illed w~ a ~aste ~ving
a~ additio~ of lOg of s~ar di~solved in water~ The ~ushio~ w3s
~n~ u~ verti~ally and ~ubject tc thc ae~ion of a gss burner from
the ~ront. ~ cable loc~tsd bebind it was undama~ed afte~ 20 ~ tes.
A falli~g apart of the c~s~ion a5 i~ the c2se ~itho~t a su~a~ addi-
tion, did ~o~ occ~r due ~o th~ carbo~ ~keleto~-fo~m~g 3u~ar.
E~mple 20
10~5 ~ of a precipi~atio~ silica were suspended ;n 150 ~1 of wa~r.
0.2g o~ pol~eth~lene iml~ie were added to ~his highl~ l;quid suspe~-
sio~, followed b~ vigoro~s ~tirring~ The s~s~e~sion -~^~ckened ia~d
had a~ o~Low YiS~osi~ o 18 seco~ds.
.. _ . . _ _ . . .... ... .
..... ~ .. . . . , . , . ,,
., , ; ; . ~ . , ., . - , , ~ ,
r.: ~ :
2:l~19~7
- ~1
-~ele 21
5g o~ be3l~o~e (Eor~ 33:-~ or ~: 129-:E[, t~ademark o~ Ambe::ger
~aol;nwerke, ~mberg, Ger~a~y, or ~entoni~e D~B g) w2re s~spended
iQ 2~0 ml of water, accompa~ied by stirri~g with an electrical g~ir-
rinæ rod. ~o this highly li~id ~spen~og ~ith a viscosity of
11 seconds ~n ~he DIN c~ (4 ~m~ WOEe added ~.7g of a 20~ polyethy-
lene ~mi~e ~ol~on i~ watPr, follow~d by stirring with t~e ~tirri~g
rod~ ~he o~t~low time i~ the 4 mm DIN cup was then 14-15 secc~ds
anh the spraying and adheslan beh~v~o~r wa~ ~ood. 0~ hea~ the
~pr~yed sJr~ees no ~dhesion problems occurTed ~nd a large 2mo~t
of steam wa~ ormed.
~!æa!~
As ~ample 21, b~t ~siD~ 3g o~ beQto~ ~e. The out~low time was
13 seconds a~d the O~p~ay~g behavio~r good, the adhes~on behavio~r
~o cold sur~aces satis~a$tory a~d o~ hot sur~ae~3 goot.
~ZE~ Z~ ~COmp~rison e~ample)
~ike ~ample 21, bnt accom~an~ed b~ ehe addition of 20 ml of 2
mi~ture of 1~ of ~nar O~o~ ;n 100 ml of water. There was only a
ht thi~ken~ng ~ction and 8 dea~ a~eous phase separated on
~he bot~om of the cup~ Guar xmm alone does ~ot act a~ a thicke~er
i~ the case o~ the pre~e~ lo~ benton~t~ con~ent~aeion~.
... , .. ~
.
