Flammability Rating
A new flammability rating system for plastic materials based on multiple tests has been proposed by PPG Industries. Presently, a single-test approach is used. Plastic materials would be tested for flame ignition, flame spread, smoke development and toxicity.
It is believed that the multiple tests would give a more accurate test, since materials do not perform the same in a real fire situation as in a single test.
According to Robert E. Park, technical manager of resins at PPG, it is recomended that the E-84 tunnel test be complemented by a room burn test, as is done by Underwriters’ Laboratories. In the second segment of the proposed system, the smoke development rating would come from the E-84 tunnel test because it has a larger test specimen. Toxicity of burning plastics, the third segment, would be tested in small-sample and large-scale tests, using the same materials.
