Development of a novel dry-water fire extinguishing agent containing additives

Dry water (DW) is a relatively new type of fire extinguishing material with a nuclear shell structure. It is advantageous because it contains both dry powder and water mist—which are effective for extinguishing fires—and has extensive research prospects. DW contains a considerable amount of water, and research on the stability of its core shell structure is crucial. Different additives can also be incorporated into DW to improve its fire extinguishing efficiency. This study prepared six distinct DW samples, some of which had various additives. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to confirm the shapes and structures of these DW samples. The study determined the fundamental characteristics of the DW samples by examining their bulk densities and particle size distributions. Centrifugation tests and thermogravimetric analyses were conducted to examine the stability and water content of the DW samples. The study also performed a fire extinguishing experiment in a semiopen space to test the fire extinguishing effectiveness of the DW samples. The results revealed that the stability of DW samples was enhanced by gel additives and that their fire extinguishing efficiency could be improved by the various additives.