News You Can Use

RTA NEWS YOU CAN USE
August 18, 2015

A FOLLOW UP REGARDING ONE OF OUR RECENT MEMOS
ABOUT CHAMBER FIRES

The Following Article Was Sent To Us By Our Member Multi Seal Corporation
And We Present It For Your Reading Interest

Mr. Brodsky,

We're reaching out to you in response to the "memo" you distributed to RTA members regarding chamber fires and the unfortunate death of a young man resulting from a tire-related incident. 

The young man's death is extremely unfortunate and after having read the entire "memo" we failed to see the connection between the incident and chamber fires.  Despite the fact that the incident was completely unrelated to chamber fires it may have led some readers to conclude otherwise.  As is often the case, tragic events provide excellent opportunities to reflect, evaluate and learn. Thus, we want to provide a little technical information to your readers to help them more clearly understand the relationship between chamber fires and tire sealants.  

As a disclaimer, the information we are providing is not anecdotal hyperbole, but is scientific fact available from a number of sources.

The Myth of Chamber Fires & Tire Sealants:

The "fire triangle" describes the three prerequisites that must be present in order to ignite and sustain fire.  Remove any one of the three and the fire will not ignite and cannot be sustained. The three prerequisites are:

1. Heat
2. Fuel
3. Oxygen (Oxidizing agent)

What is the significance and how do these three prerequisites relate to chamber fires and tire sealants specifically?  First, not having knowledge of other tire sealant formulations, we cannot in good conscience comment on them.  However, most reputable tire sealant manufacturers are aware of the chamber fire/tire sealant myth and are very conscientious of the potential safety hazards associated with downstream exposure.  For example, MULTI SEAL does not currently, and has never in its 30+ years manufacturing tire sealants, included materials in its product formulations that could contribute in any quantifiable measure to any of the three prerequisites listed in the fire triangle. 

On the topic of dust particulates, which was included as a significant contributor to the chamber fire issue described in the "memo", we would be remiss not to draw attention to OSHA 3371-08 2009 entitled "Hazard Communication Guidelines for Combustible Dust."[i]  The relevant text in OSHA 3371-08 2009 is:

"Five elements are necessary to initiate a dust explosion, often referred to as the "Dust Explosion Pentagon". The first three elements are those needed for a fire, i.e., the familiar "fire triangle":

1. Combustible dust (fuel);
2. Ignition source (heat); and,
3. Oxygen in air (oxidizer).

An additional two elements must be present for a combustible dust explosion:

4. Dispersion of dust particles in sufficient quantity and concentration; and,
5. Confinement of the dust cloud.

If one of the above five elements is missing, an explosion cannot occur."

As elements 1 through 3, as related to tire sealants, have already been addressed we will now look at elements 4 and 5.

Element 5 (Confinement of a dust cloud) is an unavoidable situation in a chamber.  However, element 4 (Dispersion of dust particles in sufficient quantity and concentration) is a completely controllable element. Through proper training of employees and implementation of appropriate procedures, as outlined in OSHA 3371-08 2009, the probability and likelihood of a chamber fire resulting from dust particles can be largely eliminated. Whether the source of dust be from a low quality tire sealant or extremely combustible rubber dust generated during the retreading process, it is important to understand ALL variables that can impact the safety of our people.

Finally, there is the issue of using flammable and combustible solvents on tires—which seems to have been largely ignored as the major contributing factor in the original "memo", despite the fact that numerous professional and governmental organizations have acknowledged the associated risks. Based on the contents and comments within the "memo", it seems it is an accepted practice to retread tires that have indications they have been exposed to flammable solvents.  Until the tire industry acknowledges the risks of such choices, blame for chamber fires will continue to be incorrectly placed on tire sealants and an opportunity to improve safety practices will be missed.

We at MULTI SEAL invite any and all questions concerning the safety of our products and more specifically how and why they contribute in no way to the possibility of igniting or sustaining a chamber fire.

Regards,

David MacRae, PhD
VP Operations
dmacrae@multiseal.us

&

Don Webb
President
dhwebb@multiseal.us