Patricia Cahill

The Federal Aviation Administration oil burner round-robin fire tests were conducted on aircraft seat cushions to determine the status of the test facilities that perform the tests. Two sets of fire-hardened foam and one set of fire-blocked foam test seat cushions were evaluated. The data showed that the weight loss and burn lengths were generally consistent in each individual laboratory. The most significant difference among all the laboratories was seen in the weight loss and burn lengths of the fire-blocked foam seat cushion. For two of the cushions there were a significant number of the laboratories that passed and failed the 10% average weight loss criteria.

Timothy R. Marker

Laboratory- and full-scale fire tests were conducted on a number of different types of aircraft seat cushion materials to determine the applicability of the current weight loss criteria specified in Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 25.853(c) Appendix F Part II (herein referred to as Appendix F Part II) to new, very lightweight cushion designs. Cushion samples were initially tested in accordance with the current standard, and if they exceeded the 10% weight loss criteria, they were evaluated under full-scale fire test conditions. The full-scale tests were conducted with a modified narrow-body fuselage test article exposed to an adjacent fuel pan fire to simulate a severe but survivable postimpact cabin fire. Four triple-seat frames used to mount the cushion samples were installed inside the test article. Aircraft-grade honeycomb sidewall, ceiling panels, and carpet were also installed in the vicinity of the seat frames to simulate a realistic aircraft cabin.

Laboratory-scale tests were completed on one set of standard fire-blocked cushions that met the current Appendix F Part II requirement, in addition to four lightweight materials. The standard fire-blocked cushions were then run under full-scale conditions to provide a baseline of the current level of fire safety, followed by full-scale tests of the four lightweight materials. Results indicated that several of the lightweight seat materials that failed the weight loss criteria specified in Appendix F Part II did not result in greater fire hazards than the baseline materials when tested under realistic full-scale conditions. A conservative adjustment to the current weight loss criteria was developed to allow the use of very lightweight seat cushion materials that exhibit acceptable fire performance.

Harry Webster

This report documents the findings of a series of tests conducted to determine the flammability characteristics of rechargeable lithium-ion cells and the dangers associated with shipping them in bulk form on commercial transport category aircraft.

Steven M. Summer

While it is well established that the shipment of a large quantity of flameless ration heaters poses a significant fire safety risk, this report examines the potential hazard associated with the use of these flameless ration heaters in an aircraft cabin and with the accidental activation of them in a confined area aboard an aircraft, such as in overhead storage bins or a cargo compartment.

Tests were performed both with individual Meals, Ready-to-Eat containing flameless heaters in an open environment and multiple Meals, Ready-to-Eat in a confined space to examine their potential hazard. Temperatures in excess of 215°F and violent ignition events were observed. It is evident from the tests performed that the release of hydrogen gas from these flameless ration heaters is of a sufficient quantity to pose a potential hazard on board a passenger aircraft.

Dave Blake

This report documents the development and testing of a standardized fire source for cargo compartment fire detection systems. Note that currently, these fire sources cannot be used in actual certification flight tests. The intent of this work was to define a fire source in terms of heat release rate, mass loss rate, and smoke and gas species production rates, and then devise a safe method to simulate whichever aspect of the fire signature that the particular detection system was designed to respond to in the certification tests. This could be done singly or in some combination with smoke generators, heat guns, and the controlled release of actual or surrogate gas species. This report discusses how this fire source is used in a computational fluid dynamics model to predict the transport of smoke, gases, and heat throughout a cargo compartment. The testing concluded that the fire source used in a simulated smoldering fire mode does not produce a fire signature that would be useful in developing multicriteria fire detectors with a better capability to resist false alarms. This report also documents the amount of smoke that would be detectable in various size cargo compartments and the resultant responses of currently in-use aircraft smoke detectors from the simulated smoldering and flaming fires.