FIRE RESISTANT  BUILDING MATERIALS

Fire resistant building materials backed by Geopolymer R&D have experienced huge advancements. High temperature composites are being tested for use in airplanes, rockets, houses and all other fields prone to combustion or needing flame resistance. With it's amazing ability to withstand heat and structural integrity, Geopolymers make the perfect building material. Some products to keep your eyes out for are Geopolymer paints, beams, shingles, panels, cabinets and doors.

FLAME TESTING ON FIRE RESISTANT BUILDING MATERIALS

Here are a couple of tests conducted on Geopolymer fire resistant building materials.

The picture on the left shows a comparison between fire resistant building materials using Geopolymers to the panels currently used in aviation. As you can see the the bottom of the Geopolymer panel is glowing hot while the top has barely changed color. The panel using phenol is certified by the FAA, it is considered a fire resistant building material and in just 21 seconds most of its surface is aflame.

Below you see an interior wall panel for an aircraft. A torch is placed underneath and heats one side to around 970C (1778F). After 10 minutes the temperature above the door is still around 67C (152.6F) and there is minimal damage to anything but the window.

These results where showcased in the  State of Geopolymer R&D 2020, a keynote by Joseph Davidovits. 

Fire Resistant Buildings

With the multitude of fire resistant building materials coming out it is becoming more and more realistic to have a fireproof building.

  • Paints that can protect against forest fires or stop a candle from burning your house down. 
  • Structural beams which can hold their load even under extreme temperature to prevent collapse.
  • Wall panels and doors which can keep stairways safe for an indefinite a mount of time. 
  • Or utilizing construction 3D printers with a concrete extruder you can poor whole homes out of Geopolymer and have them be 100% fire resistant. 
Design for a construction grade 3D printer

Other benifits of geopolymer

https://www.degruyter.com/view/journals/secm/27/1/article-p129.xml

Apart from being able to withstand temperatures reaching 1000C Geopolymer fire resistant building materials;

  • Do not experience thermal expansion 
  • Will keep your house cool in the summer and warm in the winter with minimum energy loss
  • Cold bonds to already cured geopolymer restoring structural integrity
  • Release significantly lower amounts of CO2 than Portland cement
  • They are also safe for humans and if crushed they can be reused again and again
  • Can be made from a wide range of local rocks

Written by Leo Schlesinger

Leo Schlesinger

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