An effective and practical fire-protection system

A high-performance sandwich-type fire protection system comprising a steel outer sheath and insulation combined in various configurations is described. An inherent advantage of the sheath system over coatings is that it eliminates problems of weatherability, materials strength, adhesion, and chemical attack. An experimental comparison between the protection performance of state-of-the-art coatings and the sheath system is presented, with emphasis on the protection of certain types of steel tanks for fuel storage and transport. Sheath systems are thought to be more expensive than coatings in initial implementation, although they are less expensive per year for sufficiently long applications.