Technical Paper
Advances in Fire Protection for Critical Vehicle Components
2002-12-02
2002-01-3325
Fires are a common occurrence in various forms of transportation, including motorsports, and will continue to be so as long as combustible fuels or materials are employed. Fires result in hundreds of deaths, and thousands of injuries, on American highways each year, yet minimal resources are applied to better understand the threat, improve fire safe designs, or employ effective technology to mitigate the impact of this threat. The motorsports community has typically been a leader in developing and employing advancements in vehicle safety, including fire protection, and it frequently interacts, influences and mutually benefits from military safety and survivability technology breakthroughs. One such example is the development and refinement of reticulated foam for vehicle fuel cells, with joint contributions from both communities.