Case Study

The below pictures depict problems after a plant fire and
demonstrate SRE's solutions to correct and prevent future issues.

(Summary is located at the bottom of the page)

          
Image A                                Image B
 

The above picture demonstrates a 12 kV cable fault explosion in an electrical cabinet which resulted in deformed metal covers (Image A).  The fire detection system recorded two simultaneous events; one arc blast on the 1st floor in the electrical cabinet, and a second arc blast in the basement as a result of joint failure (Image B).  *Fire modeling had predicted this substation to be a high risk station, therefore fire protection enhancements had been installed prior to this event taking place.

The above shows how residual heat from the fire, vaporized the
 nuts and bolts securing cables to the plate of the bus bar.

Firestopping

The above picture demonstrates the charring of cable jacketing resulting from a fire in the room below.  The SRE firestop material which had been installed was not dislodged, even though the arc blast was strong enough to deform the steel cabinet. In addition, the SRE firestop at the bottom of the cabinet kept the fire contained preventing further damage.

      
Before Fire                           Firestopping                    After Fire      
 

The picture on the left demonstrates the firestop in the floor opening taken 6 months prior to the cable fault resulting in the fire.  The picture on the right was taken 8 hours after the fire and demonstrates the seal remains in "as new" condition with no degradation after explosion and 45 minutes of water spray exposure.

Power Cable Wrap

SRE had installed the Cable Wrap on the joint and adjacent power cables.  The dark areas identify where the cable wrap absorbed energy from joint failure, helping to protect underlying power cables.  Adjacent control cables were also covered protecting other underlying cables from direct arc blast.  Control cable protection maintained through 45 minutes of sprinkler actuation which were located directly above the cables.  In addition, SRE's fabric allowed clean water to flow through the fire resistant weave.  The basement had a 1.5 foot depth of water when the sprinkles were turned off.

Control Cable Wrap

The SRE Control Cable Wrap protected several control cables from direct arc blast exposure during the fire.

Summary

3 out of 4 Fortifire™ System components were activated and
helped mitigate damage caused by example cable faults:
 

   1. SRE Firestopping contained the fire to the inside of the electrical cabinet.

   2. SRE Power Cable Wrap protected adjacent power cables from impact of joint failure

   3. SRE Control Cable Wrap protected several control cables from direct arc blast exposure.