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How do sparks and embers occur?
Sparks can occur if foreign bodies are present in production and transport systems or if damaged machine parts are operating. Embers can arise from self-ignition or from overheated machine parts, causing critical heating of combustible materials that are stored, processed or transported in the immediate vicinity of the machinery concerned.
Fires and explosions occur when a critical combination of oxygen, combustible material and ignition source is present (see fire triangle below). Explosions require the additional element of an enclosed area where the combustible material can disperse in the form of dust or gas (see explosion pentagon below).
Sparks and embers are among the most frequent sources of ignition for industrial fires and explosions in Danish production plants. This means that fires and explosions in processing, transport and production facilities, as well as storage areas such as enclosed silos, warehouses, storage depots or materials stored in large heaps, are most often caused by ignition sources that cannot be seen with the naked eye or with traditional cameras – and are therefore difficult to detect before the accident has escalated
How a spark extinguishing system prevents fires and explosions:
With a spark extinguishing system, ignition sources are detected at a very early stage. The side of the fire triangle or explosion pentagon that provides optimal protection in the given production plant is then set: Extinguishing agents are used to either cut off the supply of oxygen to the ignition source or remove the heat energy of the ignition source so that a fire cannot develop, and diversion of material flow is used to either remove and isolate the ignition source from the combustible material or cut off the supply of combustible material to the area in which the ignition source is located.
