Description and Applications
The fire barriers are passive protection systems as they do not act on the fire, but by the mere fact of being present, hinder the spread.
The fire barriers do not have unlimited resistance to fire, but are able to delay the transfer of heat, flames or gases generated by the fire to the protected structure and to the adjacent rooms.
The fire barriers should be of fire which are expressed in classes of resistance, fire resistance is the ability of a component or structure kept for a certain period of time, measured in minutes, its characteristics compared of a fire.
The fire resistance of a fire door or window is expressed qualitatively by a symbol formed by letters and quantitatively by a number.
R represents the mechanical resistance;
E represents the seal to the flame, to vapors and hot gases and the absence of their development on the opposite side to fire;
I represents the thermal insulation.
In these terms, a fire element can be thus classified:
- REI when maintained for a given time, the stability, the sealing and thermal insulation;
RE
- when maintained for a given time, the stability and tightness
- R when maintains, for a given time the stability.
In relation to the requirements shown items are classified by a number that expresses the first minute: 15 – 30 – 60 – 90 – 120 – 180 minutes.
The term fire barriers are usually represented in the following structures:
- Fire doors in metal with one or two doors
- sliding doors Fire in metal
- rated doors with metal glazed windows with one or two doors
- Fire doors made entirely of glass with one or two doors
- doors up and down
Structures
- fire glass
- Closing elements such as handles, panic bars, door closers, electromagnets, etc..