Experts in fire protection

Advantages

Thermolysis gases are released in the event of a fire long before aerosols or smoke particles are even generated. The Oxeo EcoPrevent CS system detects these thermolysis gases and reduces the concentration of oxygen in the affected protected area through the controlled supply of nitrogen to a level that ensures a "fire-proof" atmosphere. Thus the early detection of thermolysis gases is the best way to prevent the outbreak of an open fire. Oxeo EcoPrevent CS protected areas are freely accessible, since the oxygen concentration is only reduced when needed.

Advantages of Oxeo EcoPrevent CS versus inert gas extinguishing systems

  • Less fire damage and consequential damage by preventing the outbreak of an open fire in prevention mode
  • Supplementary inert gas provides time to locate the thermolysis event and to remove its cause
  • Added safety for people through the controlled inflow of inert gas
  • In most cases, the switch to prevention mode is sufficient in the event that thermolysis gas is detected. This results in lower costs for refilling the cylinder battery.

Advantages of Oxeo EcoPrevent CS versus systems with permanent oxygen reduction

  • Prevention of an open fire without the permanent use of energy and maintenance of compressors, compressed air processing units and nitrogen generators
  • Quick supply of inert gas in the event of an unexpectedly high intake of fresh air
  • Additional backup via intervention mode
  • In standby mode, the protected areas are generally accessible without requiring a prior occupational health check
  • Modular extension of the inert gas supply

Design

1
Inert gas nozzle
2
Oxygen sensor
3
Aspirating smoke detector with an extra CO-sensor
4
Cylinderbattery
5
Fire detection and extinguishing control panel
6
On-off control
7
Pressure relief flap
Construction of Oxeo EcoPrevent CS
  1. Inert gas nozzle
  2. Oxygen sensor
  3. Aspirating smoke detector with an extra CO-sensor
  4. Cylinderbattery
  5. Fire detection and extinguishing control panel
  6. On-off control
  7. Pressure relief flap

Function

Graphic of how the Oxeo EcoPrevent CS works

Prevention

An important element of the Oxeo EcoPrevent CS System is the HELIOS AMX5000 aspirating smoke detector with integrated thermolysis gas sensor technology, offering both, thermolysis gas detection and the earliest possible fire detection with mitigated alarm levels. As a rule, thermolysis gases such as carbon monoxide are released in the event of a fire long before aerosols or smoke particles are even generated. Thus early detection of thermolysis gases is the best way to prevent the outbreak of an open fire. If thermolysis gas is detected, the FMZ 5000 fire detection control panel issues a corresponding alarm to a permanently-manned station and triggers a change in status from standby mode to prevention mode in the Oxeo EcoPrevent CS system. In other words, the oxygen concentration in the affected protected area is reduced by adding an inert gas in a controlled manner to create a “fire-proof” atmosphere. In prevention mode, the Oxeo EcoPrevent CS functions similar to a system with a permanent reduction of oxygen: Under these circumstances, the outbreak of an open fire is nearly impossible and fire damage as well as consequential damage is minimized.

Intervention

However, even in the case of permanent oxygen reduction, exceptional events, e.g. a short-circuit generating an energy-intense electric arc, may cause the unexpected outbreak of a fire. For this reason, Oxeo EcoPrevent CS offers an additional safety backup: If the HELIOS AMX5000 detects aerosols or smoke particles, it switches the system to intervention mode via the FMZ 5000; in other words, via additional supply of inert gas, an atmosphere that is conducive to extinguishing the fire is generated. This makes fire protection with Oxeo EcoPrevent CS your safety net to ensure constant availability of your data center. In the protected areas, the oxygen concentration is measured continuously by sensors and their data is then transmitted to the FMZ 5000. This enables the Oxeo EcoPrevent CS system to reduce the oxygen concentration in a controlled manner. An additional safety benefit, compared to inert gas extinguishing systems, where flooding often causes the system to reduce the oxygen concentration to lower levels than necessary.

Inert gas flow

In inert gas extinguishing systems, the oxygen concentration continuously increases again after the flooding due to leakage points in the room. This means that the power supply to the protected area must be switched off again after a few minutes. Oxeo EcoPrevent CS, on the other hand, supplements the inert gas flow in accordance with the measured oxygen concentration. In this way, the prevention mode, and if necessary, the intervention mode can be maintained for agiven extended period of time, defined by the operator. In the event of a fire, this provides enough time to localize the thermolysis event and to remove its cause — a significant advantage!

Applications

Computer/server areas
Computer/server areas

Protection zone

The computer and server areas, including climate brackets, in data centers can cover a surface of several hundred square meters and extend across several levels. The computers and servers are aligned on a vast surface with false floors; and the climate bracket includes a large number of climate cabinets.

Risks

  • High energy density
  • Missing or improper cooling
  • Overheating through hot spots
  • Technical defects, such as short circuits

Fire Protection

Oxeo EcoPrevent systems offer energy efficient fire protection at the highest safety level by using inert gases, such as argon or nitrogen, which are added according to need. They represent availability, flexibility, and Green IT: this makes them the ideal solution for computer and server areas as well as for the associated climate brackets in data centers. The activation of the extinguishing system is operated via a fire alarm system, while the HELIOS AMX5000 smoke aspirating system allows early detection.

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