Active substances study in fire extinguishing by water mist with potassium salt additives based on thermoanalysis and thermodynamics

Abstract The active substances during the process of fire extinguishing by water mist with potassium salt additives was studied. The minimum extinguishing concentration (MEC) experiment results showed that K 2 CO 3 have the most benefit in improving the fire extinguishing efficiency of pure water with the improving rate of 37.6%, 47.2% and 64.8% which the mass percent was 1%, 2% and 5%, respectively. Other potassium salt additives followed the order by: K 2 C 2 O 4  > CH 3 COOK > KNO 3  > KCl > KH 2 PO 4 , and the reason attributed to the different active substances decomposed from flame temperature by different kinds of potassium salt additives. Thermoanalysis and characterization of the pyrolysis products of potassium salt solutions at flame temperature were analyzed through TG-DSC, XRD, and SEM, the results showed the KOH was the main product in the high extinguishing performance of potassium salts in flame chemical reactions. Thermodynamics analysis by HSC CHEMISTRY showed the K 2 CO 3 could provide 4.85% KOH in equilibrium substances, which well above other potassium salts, and other active substances good for fire extinguishing benefited from the intermediate product during the process of the KOH reacted with the flame free radicals.