Gaseous Fire Suppression Systems
Gaseous fire suppression systems (also referred to as clean agent systems) are utilised to protect high value assets such as computer server rooms, PLC control rooms, storage of irreplaceable artefacts where a high level of fire protection is required and the use of water or other suppressant agents would be damaging to the protected equipment.

Gaseous fire suppression systems extinguish fires using a gaseous agent that is able to permeate into cabinets and obstructed areas to ensure complete extinguishment. The gaseous agents are non-conductive and non-corrosive making them safe to use around live electrical equipment. The gaseous agents leave no residue so there is no clean up following a discharge and business is able to be quickly resumed.

Gaseous Fire Suppression Agents
Argus offers a range of gaseous fire suppression agents to meet a variety of challenges. These gaseous agents are described below.

HFC-227ea (FM200®)

FM200® is safe for people and can be used in normally occupied spaces. FM200® is designed to provide rapid suppression and is suited to the protection of high value assets such as:

• Computer server rooms and data processing centres
• PLC control rooms
• Telecommunications and switch rooms
• Tape and record storage vaults.

NOVEC^TM 1230

NOVEC^TM 1230 is a new generation clean agent with superior environmental properties. NOVEC^TM 1230 has zero ozone depletion potential, a short atmospheric lifetime and a low global warming potential of 1. NOVEC^TM 1230 is safe for people at extinguishing concentrations and is ideally suited to the protection of high value assets such as:

• Computer and electronic equipment
• PLC control rooms
• Telecommunications and switch rooms
• Tape and record storage vaults
• Museums
• Libraries
• Marine vessels and offshore platforms
  

Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

Carbon dioxide is a tried and proven clean gaseous suppression agent. Due to its asphyxiating nature CO2 is best suited to use in unoccupied areas such as:

• Engine rooms of marine vessels
• Printing presses
• Dip tanks
• Turbine driven generators

Proinert™

Proinert™ is a mixture of inert gases naturally found in the atmosphere that extinguishes fires by lowering the oxygen levels in the protected enclosure below the level that supports combustion. Proinert™ is safe for people with short exposure times and has no adverse environmental impact. Proinert™ is suited to the protection of assets such as:

• Computer and electronic equipment
• PLC control rooms
• Telecommunications and switch rooms
• Tape and record storage vaults
• Museums
• Libraries

Firetrace

Firetrace systems provide cost effective, stand alone, automatic fire suppression systems for your critical equipment, electrical/technical systems and various types of enclosures.

A Firetrace system can be utilized anywhere that a fire poses a risk and it is flexible enough for virtually any industrial equipment, storage compartments, control cabinets or various types of remote installations.

How Do Gaseous Suppression Systems Work?
A gaseous fire suppression system consists of the gas cylinders filled with the suppressant gas and connected to calibrated discharge nozzles within the protected space by a pipework array.

The operation of the gaseous fire suppression system is controlled by a control panel connected to smoke detectors (or other detector types for more specialised environments) spaced throughout the protected enclosure to detect fire and audio / visual warning devices to warn occupants of the systems operation.

The gaseous suppression system provides both automatic and manual detection as described below.

Automatic Operation
On operation of the first smoke detector the control panel is placed into a first stage condition, the FIRE ALARM portion of the audio / visual warning sign is illuminated and the sounder emits a warning tone conforming to AS2220.

The gaseous fire suppressant agent is not released on first stage. First stage operation is intended to give the occupants the opportunity to investigate the cause of the alarm and take action if it is safe to do so.

On operation of a second smoke detector the control panel is placed into a second stage condition, the DO NOT ENTER portion of the audio / visual warning sign outside the enclosure is illuminated, the EVACUATE AREA portion of the audio / visual warning sign inside the enclosure is illuminated and the sounders emits an evacuation tone conforming to AS2220.

Once in second stage the gaseous suppression system shuts down equipment such as air-conditioning and power (if required) and starts a time delay (typically 30 seconds to a minute) at the end of which the actuators fitted to the gas cylinders are energised and the suppressant gas is released.

Manual Operation
The gaseous fire suppression system can be manually activated and the gas released by pressing the MANUAL RELEASE button on the remote control station.

The remote control station can also be used to prevent discharge of the suppressant gas up until the point where discharge has started by pressing the AGENT INHIBIT button.

A further manual override is possible by directly operating the actuator fitted to the gas cylinders.