SUPDET presenters discuss Halon alternatives for U.S. Air Force

Presenters at today's Suppression, Detection and Signaling Research and Applications Conference (SUPDET) In Orlando highlighted how the U.S. Air Force has developed replacements for the fire suppression agent Halon 1301 to protect "hush houses," or jet engine noise suppressor systems. The need to find an equivalency to Halon 1301 appears to be an environmental one--the agent is classified as an ozone-depleting substance. (The European Union discontinued use of Halon for noncritical applications in 2003.) SUPDET speakers Juan Font with the U.S. Air Force and William Meyring of 3M also outlined the steps taken to phase out the cleaning agent and...