ARFF: airports transition to environmentally friendly firefighting foams

In case of fire emergency at airports, every second counts. Aircraft Rescue Fire Firefighters (ARFF) have to be effective in a short time to save people lives in a burning aircraft. The firefighting foam must be quickly efficient.

The move from AFFF to FFF at airports

The world of firefighting is quickly moving toward fluorine-free foam products, getting away from PFAS-containing products (AFFF and AR-AFFF foams). The industry challenge was to provide efficient fluorine-free foams with the same performance of fluorinated products.

Fluorine-free foams (FFF) that meet ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) specification are available in the aviation market. Some international airports are changing or have already changed to fluorine-free foam onboard fire trucks or in aircraft hangar fire safety systems.

New fluorine-free foam dedicated to aircraft fires: ECOPOL A+

Thanks to its long experience in environmentally friendly foams and aircraft fire safety, BIOEX launched ECOPOL A+ fluorine-free foam: a high-performance FFF dedicated to aircraft fire extinguishment.

This fluorine-free foam quickly extinguishes a wide range of hydrocarbon fuel fires faced at airports, such as kerosene, jet A1, gasoline and heptane. ECOPOL A+ meets International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) certification and European Standard EN1568 Part 3 v2018 certification.

ECOPOL A+ forms a stable and thick foam blanket which flows rapidly above burning fuel to seal vapours and cut off oxygen supply, to quickly extinguish fire and prevent from reignition. ECOPOL A+ is a viable alternative to AFFF foams and offers equal or better performance than traditional AFFF foams. The foam adheres to vertical surfaces to cool aircraft parts, providing long thermal insulation and allowing passenger evacuation.

Formulated without PFAS-components, this fluorine-free foam is an environmentally friendly solution for airport fire protection. ECOPOL A+ meets environmental concerns balanced with high fire safety performances. ECOPOL A+ is fully biodegradable, fluorine-free and silicone-free.

A+ foam application

ECOPOL A+ can be used in low or medium expansion depending on the fire scenario (landing gear, engine, fuel line fires). Contained within the ARFF vehicle, the foam concentrate can be applied directly by the airport fire truck monitor. Fires that cannot be reached by the aircraft fire vehicle can be put out with fixed or mobile foam proportioning and foam discharge devices.

The foam concentrate is available in 3% and 6% versions. Firefighters can use it with fresh, brackish and sea water.

BIOEX aviation foam concentrates are tested and approved by many international airports such as Paris airports, Geneve airport and Ottawa airport.

ECOPOL A+ compatibility with ARFF equipment

In terms of viscosity, ECOPOL A+ is Newtonian, that is to say liquid. It facilitates the replacement of existing AFFF foam, without any setting or replacement.

This aviation foam concentrate is compatible with all fire trucks and fire suppression systems. ECOPOL A+ is non-corrosive and suitable for normal foam equipment.

BIOEX can help airports in their transition to FFF and for AFFF foam disposal. The fluorine-free foam concentrate can be tested in existing foam equipment proportioning and discharge equipment. BIOEX’s team of experts is available worldwide to support airports in their transition to FFF.

For more information, go to www.bio-ex.com