• Fire Science and Engineering
• /
• v.31 no.2
• /
• pp.1-8
• /
• 2017

A sandwich panel is a composite material composed of a double-sided noncombustible material and insulation core which is used in the inner, outer walls, and roof structure of a building. Despite its excellent insulation performance, light weight and excellent constructability, a flame is brought into the inside of the panel through the joint between the panels, melting the core easily and causing casualties and property damage due to the rapid spread of flame. The current Building Law provides that the combustion performance of finishing materials for buildings should be determined using a fire test on a small amount of specimen and only a product that passes the stipulated performance standard should be used. This law also provides that in the case of finishing materials used for the outer walls of buildings, only materials that secured noncombustible or quasi-noncombustible performance should be used or flame spread prevention (FSP) should be installed. The purpose of this study was to confirm the difference between the dangers of horizontal and vertical fire spread by applying FSP, which is applied to finishing materials used for the outer walls of buildings limitedly to a sandwich panel building. Therefore, the combustion behavior and effects on the sandwich panel according to the application of FSP were measured through the construction to block the spread of flame between the panels using a full scale fire according to the test method specified in ISO 13784-1 and a metallic structure. The construction of FSP on the joint between the panels delayed the spread of flame inside the panels and the flash over time was also delayed, indicating that it could become an important factor for securing the fire safety of a building constructed using complex materials.