THE STUDY OF THE FIRE-RETARDANT ACTION TIME OF GEL-FORMING SYSTEMS USED FOR EXTINGUISHING FOREST FIRES

Abstract

The article focuses on the peculiarities of using gel-forming fire-extinguishing systems for dealing with forest fires. It aims to explain the choice of the composition of the gel-forming system which will demonstrate the best fireextinguishing and fire-retardant properties when being used on coniferous forest litter. The article also describes the fire-retardant action and properties of the gel-forming system (СаCl2 + Na2O·2,7SiO2) in case of its application to coniferous forest litter. The fire-extinguishing action and fire-retardant properties of the gelforming system have been established by means of the standard methodologies for determining the fire-extinguishing and fire-retardant properties. Taking into consideration the experimental data, the author distinguishes the factors which have an impact on the fireretardant properties of the gel-forming system under investigation, namely, the concentration of the system components, the mass of the coating applied, and the dry-out time. The experiments have been conducted on a laboratory model of the seat of fire consisting of the dry pine litter (size – 10X10 cm, weight – 25 g, height – 5 cm) placed on a metallic grille and hung on a special facility. The relation between the above-mentioned factors and the time of ignition of the forest litter covered with the gelforming system (СаCl2 + Na2O·2,7SiO2) is displayed by means of a regressive equation. The use of the gel-forming systems, including the СаCl2 + Na2O·2,7SiO2 system, for extinguishing and restricting the spread of ground forest fires will be most effective if the solutions of the gel-forming substance and gelforming catalyst are applied separately and subsequently.