Fire suppression apparatus and method for flammable liquid storage tank rim seal gap area
OwnerAlexandre F Bassechesinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fire suppressant system mounted above the flammable liquid within the rim space between a floating roof and the tank wall that stores solid fire suppressant materials within a container reactant to increased temperature by disintegrating and dropping the fire suppressant material to create an oxygen barrier and retard the spread of a fire.
Claims18
A fire suppressant system for retarding the spread of a fire of a stored flammable liquid in an annular space between a floating roof and a wall of a storage tank surrounding the floating roof comprising:
- the floating roof set off from the wall of the storage tank by a self-centering seal extending over the surface of the stored flammable liquid in the annular space between the floating roof and said wall of the storage tank, said floating roof having a rim circumscribing the floating roof and a top surface;
- a plurality of containers mounted within the annular space at predetermined locations along the rim of the floating roof above the flammable liquid for holding a plurality of fire suppressant bodies, each of said plurality of containers responsive to an increase in temperature caused by combustion of the flammable liquid by rupturing or disintegrating and releasing the plurality of fire suppressant bodies to the liquid surface below;
- said fire suppressant bodies dropping to the flammable liquid surface create an oxygen barrier over the flammable liquid along said liquid surface for suppressing any fire within the annular space.
A fire suppression apparatus for retarding the spread of a fire of a stored flammable liquid in an annular space between a floating roof and a wall of a storage tank surrounding the floating roof comprising:
- a series of containers for holding a plurality of fire suppressant bodies mounted at predetermined locations along a rim circumscribing the floating roof above the flammable liquid within the annular space created between the floating roof and the wall of the storage tank by a self-centering seal extending over the surface of the flammable liquid;
- each of said series of containers being responsive to an increase in temperature caused by combustion of the flammable liquid by rupturing or disintegrating and releasing the plurality of fire suppressant bodies to the liquid surface below;
- said fire suppressant bodies dropping from each disintegrating or rupturing container of said series of containers to the flammable liquid surface creating an oxygen barrier over the flammable liquid along said liquid surface for suppressing any fire within the annular space.
A method for the retarding the spread of a fire within an annular space formed between a floating roof and a wall of a flammable liquid storage tank surrounding the floating roof comprising the steps of:
- providing a series of containers for holding a plurality of fire suppressant bodies mounted at predetermined locations along a rim circumscribing the floating roof above a flammable liquid within the annular space created between the floating roof and the wall of the storage tank by a self-centering seal extending over the surface of the flammable liquid;
- said series of containers being responsive to an increase in temperature caused by combustion of the flammable liquid by rupturing or disintegrating and releasing the plurality of fire suppressant bodies to the liquid surface below;
- dropping said fire suppressant bodies from each disintegrating or rupturing container of said series of containers to the flammable liquid surface creating an oxygen barrier over the flammable liquid along said liquid surface for suppressing any fire within the annular space.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.