What Hollywood Can Teach Us About Ship Navigation Audit Assessment

The need for pure water is compelling. But before it can arrive to its very pure state, it undergoes several steps of purification process. Because of this complicated process of purification, it must be stored appropriately so that it retains its pure state. This is basic. No matter how clean and purified the water is if it is stored in unsuitable containers, it will become contaminated. ™

Deionized water does not have ions. Therefore, it is an aggressive solvent. It readily captures ions from the surroundings. When this happens, the water itself gets re-ionized and all the purification procedure is useless. This is why proper storage of DI water is imperative.

Containers with tin-plating withstand the corrosive properties of ion-free pure water. Hence, tin-plated ceramic or metallic container can be used as containers. When tin undergoes auto-oxidation it forms a surface that resists ion leaching.

Other manufacturers of pure water recommend the use of glass to serve as container for ultra pure water. Glass has negligible solubility index and it is extremely unlikely that molecules in glass would contaminate it at any rate.

A lot of pure water manufacturers use plastics as containers because these are basically cheaper than any other material. However, unlike other types of materials, chlorine may leach into the water from the plastic. Thus, after a long storage time, it may contain some levels of chlorine.

Storage is a crucial stage because all the efforts to purify water become forfeited without appropriate storage procedures. Even the purest, most sterile water can get unsuitable for hygienic and biological applications when the storage vessel is contaminated. Storage compartment may contain bacteria or viruses. Therefore, it is imperative that containers are sterilized before they can be appropriate for use as storage containers. This is possible through a process called ozonation, which kills microorganisms on surfaces of containers.

Storage of water is a necessary stage because immediately after production of pure water, contaminants from the air, such as dust, gases like carbon dioxide, and particulates, can get into the liquid. Note that water devoid of solutes and impurities readily acts as an aggressive solvent, acting as a sponge to take as many impurities as it can. Impurities can easily alter the chemical nature of the liquid solvent. For instance, upon exposure to open air, water gains some acidity due to the dissolution of carbon dioxide, which reacts with water to form carbonic acid.

The quality of deionized water depends as much on storage as on purification process. The term deionized says much about the quality of the water. After all, when it loses its purity, it can no longer be branded deionized or DI water. Meaning, DI water stays that way for as long as it is secured to stay that way. Note that upon introduction to a contaminated container, ultra pure water suddenly loses its ultra pure quality, defeating all the complex processes it has gone through.

Because of the intricate process of deionization, it is only proper that demineralized water is stored and handled appropriately. The pure and deionized quality of DI water makes it an important aspect in the manufacture of many goods and products ranging from cosmetics to pharmaceuticals. It is also widely used in many industries. In laboratories, the unadulterated state of DI water makes it extremely suitable for experiments requiring precision in measurement. It is also extremely necessary in the cleansing and rinsing of laboratory glasswares due to its deionized nature. However, this cleansing property is also exploited in many cleaning operations such as car washing and window cleaning because it leaves surfaces stain-free and spot-free. Nonetheless, DI water is just one of the many types of pure water ever produced by water companies. Pure water can come by many names like EP water, laboratory water, analysis water, autoclave water, and even distilled water.

Its not worth the candle!

A B2 Fire Rating on a product does not mean that product can be used for fire stopping or fire proofing.

When we do a fire risk assessment we often make comment on fire stopping. On one recent job we commented that additional fire stopping was needed. The client employed a contractor who used Soudafoam. On the tin its says the product is 'B2 Fire Rated in accordance with DIN 4102'.

Our client then asked us to up date our fire risk assessment as these works had been done..

Before signing this off we did some further research to establish what a 'B2 Fire Rating in accordance with DIN 4102' meant. Din 4102 is the European Classification of building materials in accordance with their flammability. The Classes range from A1 100% non combustible to B3 Easily combustible. This is what we found:

Rating Degree of flammability Examples

A1 100% noncombustible (nichtbrennbar)

A2 ~98% noncombustible (nichtbrennbar)

B1 Difficult to ignite (schwer entflammbar) intumescents and some high end silicones

B2 Normal combustibility wood

B3 Easily ignited (leichtentflammbar)

As you can see from this a B2 rating is not acceptable as a fire stopping material and either a B1, A2 or A1 classification is needed. The contractors' supplier had thought that classification B2 indicated a 2 hour fire rating and had sold the material to many other contractors who had been looking for a fire stopping material.

Looking for further information on Soudafoam on the website we found a list of the suggested uses; heat insulation, sound insulation and several other uses are recommended there are no comments on fire insulation.

The statement B2 Fire Rated is obviously correct but looking on the web for Soudafoam and coming across an advertisement like this

Soudafoam 1Kb2 Fire Rated Aerosol Foam

I think most people would assume Ship Navigation Audit Assessment that the product does have good fire proofing values.

To make the matter more annoying foam with the right A1/A2/B1 classification is no more expensive that the Soudafoam Product.

To sell something as 'B2' Fire Rated whilst factually correct is very misleading. ��I posted this comment as a discussion within the 'Fire Risk Assessors and Consultants Group UK' on LinkedIn. I got a very interesting reply from Gordon Alexander of Gordon Alexander Associates which I copy in full:�

Be very aware of the use of PU foams. They must be tested to BS 476: Parts 20/22, BS EN 1366-4 in the case of linear gaps and BS EN 1366-3 for service penetration seals. There is a very big difference between Reaction to Fire PU Foams such as B1 B2 etc and Fire Resistence to Fire PU Foams. Have a look at the ASFP Advisory Notice on Using Polyurethane Foams and ensure that they are applied as they were tested. I have had many an issue with this - in particular Fire Door Installations. Using penetration foam for sealing doors is not a compliant installation... and vice versa of course. When used on door installations the backing should, in many cases, be mineral wool topped off with at least 10mm of intumescent sealant and all as per manufacturers instructions and installed as per test data. You cannot just 'bang in' a load of foam - in particular B2.

I hope these comments are useful and help make sure the right materials are used in the right circumstances.