Contact UsGYPROC SOLUTIONS - Fire Protection
Historically, fire – accidental and unattended, is known to be the greatest destroyer of mankind. Life, property and business get reduced to ashes in a matter of time when faced with the fury of any unchecked inferno. Many a time, materials and matter that define the context of the fire hasten this destruction. Surfaces, walls and ceilings can become virtual death traps if they don't inherently possess fire resistance qualities. Recognising the perils of fire and the consequent importance of using fire resistant materials to minimize damage, the National Building Code (NBC) regulations prescribe stringent fire safety protection norms.
Saint-Gobain Gyproc India through its wide range of GypWall products and systems provide excellent passive fire protection solutions ranging from 1 hour to 4 hours taking care of all 3 elements - the stability, integrity and insulation requirements of the system in equal measure.
METHODS OF FIRE PROTECTION:
- In an event of a fire, the stability of a building is maintained and the spread of smoke within it or to any adjoining building is curtailed.
- Good fire protection engineering design ensures that its effects on the structure be accommodated in the design.
- Beam and Column Encasement — encases all forms of steel beams and columns; joists portal frames and castellated beam sections give greater aesthetics and fire protection to steel members.
- Rapid fire spreads in circulation spaces such as stairways, lifts, escalators, corridors, chutes, ducts and other cavities, requiring maximum protection.
- Compartmentalisation prevents rapid spreading of fire within a building and/or adjoining structures.
- It also provides its occupants easy escape routes, and limits the disruption of business activities.
- Compartments in the form of cavity barriers may be required to inhibit the spread of flame and smoke within horizontal (ceiling) and vertical (partition) sealed spaces.
External Fire Spread
The outer face of buildings can be affected by fire spreading from another building. Fire spread by means of radiation, flying burning brands or flames projecting across the space separation. The design of an external wall has to take into account the fire resistance, resistance to spread of fire over the external surface and the unprotected area on the wall.
WHY GYPSUM IS SO EFFECTIVE IN FIRE
- Gypsum contains approximately 21% water content and about 79 % calcium sulphate which is inert below a temperature of 120° C.
- Solid gypsum and gypsum rock is calcium sulphate hemihydrate, CaSO4.½H2O, produced from dehydration and re-hydration of a mineral crystal.
- The two water molecules are chemically bound with Calcium Sulphate. The bound crystalline moisture content plays a significant role in excellent fire resistance properties.
- When Gypsum is heated in fire, dehydration follows the reaction as solid gypsum starts to degrade, loses its water molecules and is eventually transformed back to the powdery material of calcium sulphate hemihydrates.
- Gypsum is known as a material of limitedcombustibility.
- Gyproc Fireline board is made of a paper liner wrapped around an inner core made primarily from gypsum plaster, the semi-hydrous form of calcium sulphate (CaSO4.½ H2O)
Plaster is mixed with fiber (typically paper and/or fiberglass), foaming agent, various additives that increase mildew and fire resistance, and water and is then formed by sandwiching a core of wet gypsum between two sheets of heavy paper or fiberglass mats.- Three key factors influence the performance of Gyproc Fireline:
- The quantity of gypsum - i.e. board density.
- Board shrinkage - preventing gaps opening betweenboards and board pulling away from fixings.
- Board integrity - preventing boards from falling.
- The inclusion of glass fibres and shrinkage inhibitors of fire-rated products give a much higher fire protection by limiting the board shrinkage and improving the integrity.
- Gyproc Fireline satisfies stringent international standards of fire safety and protection.
- Drywall systems using Gyproc Fireline provide passive fire resistance capabilities upto 4 hours.
Products associated with fire resistance are:
GypWall Fire Resist | Gyproc Fireline board
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