Question: Natural Gas and Smoke Detectors?
March 5th, 2009
Recently, we received a question from a customer that included the idea of using smoke detectors rather than flame detectors in a natural-gas fire-hazard application. Our answer? When considering the type of hazard detection required in an application, consider the fuel for the flame. In this case: natural gas.
Natural gas by itself will not emit smoke when it burns. In fact, smoke will be created only after the flame has involved combustible material beyond the gas itself, such as some part of the building structure. In this application, by the time the smoke detectors react, it could be too late to avoid catastrophic damage to people or property.
For a natural gas application, and other applications, consider a flame detector that responds to the ignition of the specific fuel source. For example, the Det-Tronics X3301 Multispectrum Infrared (MIR) Optical Flame Detector responds quickly and assures its own operation through optical integrity tests. For more information on matching detectors to fuels and to applications, please refer to this recent RSS posting by Simon Pate.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at rss@det-tronics.com.
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