New Materials Flammability Laboratory
A new fire research and teaching laboratory in Smith Hall on the UNC Charlotte campus is helping the Fire Safety Engineering Technology program expand its undergraduate teaching facilities and increase its research capabilities for graduate-level studies and research.
Funding from the State of North Carolina made the new Materials Flammability Laboratory possible. Design and renovation of the space, with its extensive ventilation and safety features, cost about $200,000. An additional $200,000 went into new equipment for the lab.
“It’s great to see the state so supportive of our research and education in fire safety,” said Fire Safety Assistant Professor Aixi Zhou. “Building a laboratory with these capabilities is a fantastic asset for our program.”
Equipment and capabilities of the new lab include:
- a Cone Calorimeter for measuring reaction-to-fire properties of materials at the bench scale
- a Smoke Density Chamber for smoke analysis at the bench scale
- an FTIR Gas Analyzer for combustion species and toxicity studies
- a UL 94 Flame Chamber for flammability of plastic materials
- a Temperature Chamber for conditioning specimens
- two additional hooded areas and two portable steel cabinets for various small-scale fire experiments.
“The facility will be used for teaching the lab portion of three undergraduate courses and a graduate course in Fire Testing and Measurement,” Dr. Zhou said. “It will also be used for state-of-the-art materials flammability and toxicity research associated with our Master’s of Fire Protection and Administration degree program.”
For more information contact Dr. Zhou.