Low Areal Density Passive Fire Insulation

The US Navy is seeking improved fire protection systems with the primary goal to reduce the areal density based on the current 1 lb/sq ft baseline value. Recent tests with intumescent coatings were largely unsuccessful. Passive fire protection systems are preferable due to their relatively inert nature during a fire event. New thermal concepts are needed to lower areal density of passive fire protection systems. This Phase I proposal aims at developing a unique and innovative passive fire protection system that exploits new avenues for limiting transport of thermal energy. The goal is to achieve equivalent or better performance than the current state of the art (backside temperature rise of 139C) while providing reduction in areal density of at least 50% at minimal additional cost, if any. The concept is designed with consideration of limitations in cost, installation and attachments, qualifying protocols, and other related factors. Phase I effort will include cost analysis, material development effort to fabricate small panels for structural and thermal characterization using modified UL-1709, for 30 minutes. In Phase II, the development effort will be expanded to include further material property optimization and preliminary assessment of a suitable low-cost manufacturing technique.