Safety of construction products. "Reaction to fire" classification.
The "Reaction to Fire" classification, called the Euroclass of the product, characterizes the fire safety of construction products. It provides information on the behavior of these elements under the influence of fire, determining their ignitability, fire spread with their participation, heat release, formation of burning drops and smoke production. All these phenomena are very important in the event of a fire, determining its further course.
The principles of classification in terms of reaction to fire and the standardized test methods used are common to all European Union countries. They are listed and described in the PN-EN 13501-1 standard, which is the Polish version of the European standard with the same number.
In accordance with the above-mentioned standard for construction products, 7 basic classes of reaction to fire have been distinguished, indicating whether and how the material contributes to the development of fire. These are the classes: A1, A2, B, C, D, E, F (from the highest A1 to the lowest F). The safest product is class A1, followed by A2 and B. Additionally, two additional classes have been introduced for smoke emission (s1, s2 and s3) and for the occurrence of burning drops/particles (d0, d1 and d2).
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Classification of reaction to fire of PVC-U and PVC-C pipes and fittings
NIBCO PVC-U pipes and fittings have been classified in terms of reaction to fire: B – s2, d0. This means that the fire properties are rated at class B, smoke production at S2 and burning drops at d0. The classification report for PVC-U NIBCO was issued by the Fire Research Department of the Building Research Institute on the basis of product tests carried out at the Fire Research Laboratory of the ITB in Pionki.
PVC-C FlowGuard pipes and fittings have been classified as class B - s1, d0. They differ from PVC in terms of smoke emission, rated at s1. The classification was made by the French Research Institute LNE (Laboratoire national de métrologie et d'essais), also based on research.
Class B means that the product may contribute to the development of fire only to a very limited extent and, according to Polish regulations, it is non-flammable. There is no flashover phenomenon in this class. When tested on a natural scale, even with a fire source with a thermal power of 300 kW, a product belonging to this class does not emit enough energy to cause flashover. Flashover is defined as the rapid transition from a growing fire to a fully developed fire.
The designation s1 means a small amount of smoke emitted under the influence of fire, while s2 gives information about the average gas emission from combustion. Supplementary class d0 means that PVC-C and PVC-U systems do not produce burning drops or particles that could spread fire and cause burns.
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Fire reaction tests for PVC-C and PVC-U NIBCO pipes and fittings
In order to assign a construction product to one of the reaction to fire classes, a series of tests must be carried out in accordance with the test standards specified in the PN-EN 13501-1 classification standard. Each class requires a different set of tests corresponding to different levels of fire exposure. The higher the reaction to fire class, the more stringent the test conditions and the more stringent the criteria to be met.
In the case of PVC-C and PVC-U NIBCO pipes and fittings, in order to qualify for class B products, it was necessary to carry out two tests: small flame ignitability test and SBI test and achieve the results strictly specified in the standard. The results of these tests, containing specific values and charts of qualification parameters of each tested sample, were presented in test reports and reaction to fire qualification reports issued by research institutions.
The small flame ignitability test regulated by the PN-EN ISO 11925-2 standard consisted of applying a standardized flame to the test surfaces of six representative product samples for 30 s. The SBI (Single Burning Item Test) test, regulated by the EN 13823 standard, is a kind of simulation. fire that may occur inside the building. The study assesses "the potential contribution of the product to the development of a fire in a fire situation simulating a single burning object located in the corner of a room and close to the product." SBI PVC tests were performed on 6 samples. Each sample consisted of a corner made of plasterboards to which an installation of pipes and connectors with an outlet on a wider wall was mounted. The samples prepared in this way were exposed to fire from burners for 1260 seconds. During the test, the behavior of the test elements during combustion was observed (flame spread, occurrence of falling burning particles and drops) and various types of data regarding the released heat and smoke were automatically recorded on measuring devices.
The results of the above tests conducted by two research institutes ITB and LME allowed the classification of PVC-C and PVC-U NIBCO pipes and fittings with a high class reaction to fire: B-s1-d0 for PVC-C and B-s2-d0 for PVC-U . This class confirms the excellent fire-resistant properties of NIBCO systems and translates into fire safety for both the user and the building itself.
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