A Comparison of the Three Most Common Fire

Suppression Clean Agents – Inert, Novec 1230,

and FM-200
Posted February 13, 2018 by Koorsen Fire & Security

When most people think about fire protection in a building, fire sprinkler

systems immediately come to mind. Sprinkler systems have long been used to protect
buildings and the people that use them. However, sprinkler systems are designed to
protect the building, not its contents. And, in many settings, they can be a very costly form
of fire protection because of the damage that water can do and the clean-up required
after they are used. Clean agent fire suppression systems are an ideal supplement to
sprinkler systems to protect any type of assets that could be damaged by water.

Clean agent fire suppression systems disperse an inert gas or halocarbon gases to
suppress a fire in its incipient stage before reaching the flame/heat stage that would
activate the fire sprinkler system. The clean agent systems do not create a health risk for
people, they are highly effective, electrically non conducting and leave no residue upon
evaporation.

While clean agent systems are rarely required by building or fire codes, businesses and
other institutions and organizations are increasingly turning to clean agent fire
suppression as a more effective way to protect assets such as:
 Computer systems including servers, and other electrical components
Telecommunications systems
Record/file repositories and libraries – anything with paper that must be protected
Digital data repositories
Cultural assets such as historical buildings, museums, and artwork
Flammable liquid storage for which sprinkler systems may not provide proper
protection
Subfloors with critical building infrastructure that can be damaged with exposure to
water
Laboratory and medical equipment

The three most common clean agents on the market today are Inert gas (Inergen,
Nitrogen, Argonite), Novec 1230, and FM-200, which has been a mainstay of fire
suppression systems for more than 20 years. This article provides a comparison of these
three popular clean agents to help you decide which might be best for your needs.

How Clean Agents Work

Novec 1230 and FM-200 are clean agent fire suppression compounds made of synthetic
chemicals in liquid form and are converted to gas in the discharge process. Both work to
extinguish fire and prevent re-ignition by removing the necessary elements of combustion
– heat. Unlike Novec 1230 and FM-200, Inert is a gaseous clean agent made up of a
mixture of various inert type gases. Inert gas systems work by reducing the oxygen in the
space to below that required for combustion.

Clean agents are stored in cylinders and are discharged through a fixed piping system at
concentrations calculated based on the area they are intended to protect. All three
agents,Inert, Novec 1230, and FM-200 extinguish Class A, B, and C fires, are electrically
non-conductive, and will not short-out electronic equipment or thermally shock delicate
circuitry. The table below provides some general information for each clean agent.

  Inert Gas Novec 1230 FM-200

A mixture of the
A fluorinated A hydrofluorocarbon
inert gases:
Type of nitrogen, argon,
ketone containing (HFC) compound
Compound and carbon
carbon, fluorine, containing hydrogen,
and oxygen fluorine, and carbon
dioxide (CO2)

Storage Stored as a liquefied 

Stored as a gas Stored as a liquid
compressed gas 

Discharge 60 seconds 10 seconds 10 seconds

Time
Clean Up None None None

 
Logistical Considerations
When choosing a clean agent fire suppression system, the logistics of the space you are
trying to protect is an important consideration. All three of these systems store the clean
agent in pressurized cylinders. But, the quantity of suppression agent they can hold
depends on the type of agent they use.

Inerts are stored as a gas and discharge as a gas, which requires more agent than
halocarbon clean agents, Inert systems will require more cylinders – and more space to
store them in – than Novec 1230 and FM-200, which are stored as liquefied compressed
gas. Inert gas systems, can be located further away the protected space due to the
pressure of each cylinder. Novec 1230 and FM-200 generally must be within or close to
the protected space.

In addition to the amount of space required, you also have to consider where that space
has to be located relative to the area to be protected space. This is due to how the
halocarbon agents converts the liquid into gas as it flows through the system.

With FM-200 and Novec systems, the clean agent is stored as compressed liquid inside
the cylinder and is pressurized with dry nitrogen to push the clean agent through the
piping system. It is the friction created as the liquid flows under pressure through the
discharge piping that turns it into a gas. Compressed liquids don’t flow as well as inert
gases, and the pressure at which they flow through the pipe is lower than that of inert
gases. As a result, the length of the discharge piping for the FM-200 and Novec systems is
more limited than that of the Inert gas systems.

In contrast, the higher pressure in inert gas systems through the discharge piping system
and over greater distances. So, while the Inert gas systems requires more cylinders, they
can be located further away from the room to be protected. Another advantage of the
Inert gas system is that it can be used to protect multiple areas through the use of selector
valves, which can also reduce the number of cylinders needed for multiple spaces.

The table below summarizes some of the key differences between these systems that
should be considered when choosing a clean agent fire suppression system for your
business.

Novec 1230 and FM-

  Inert Gas Systems
200 Systems

Proximity of Must be located within or

Can be located further
Cylinders to away
very near the space to be
Protected Space protected
 Novec 1230 and FM-
  Inert Gas Systems
200 Systems
Requires more cylinders
Requires fewer cylinders
for the same area
for same amount of space
Number of Cylinders protected than Novec
to be protected – less
1230 and FM-200 – more
storage space than Inert
storage space but can
gas systems and also less
protect more than one
piping required
area using selector valves

Pressure only, no need to Agent containers weight

weigh cylinders but and pressure must be
Weight of Cylinders pressure must be checked checked. Could require
on each cylinder with a removing containers and
calibrated gauge placing on scale

Ventilation Room pressure venting Typically no special

Requirements may be  required ventilation required

Potential Health Effects of Clean Agents

The “clean” in fire suppression clean agents means that they are safe to use in an occupied
area and contain no substances that are toxic to humans.

The likelihood of exposure to the clean agent in the fire suppression system is minimal if
the proper warning and alarm systems are in place to give occupants sufficient time to
evacuate. With ample training for personnel and understanding of how the clean agent
systems operates, the risks are minimal.

But, even with clean agents, too much of a good thing can be dangerous. Novec 1230, FM-
200 and Inert gas systems all have concentration limitations. Proper design flow
calculations are necessary to ensure the amount of agent is discharged for the cubic
volume will result in a safe concentration for whatever agent you’re using.

Testing and certification laboratories assign different types of values to indicate the
relative safety of clean agents and to guide proper engineering of the systems that use
them. The table below compares Inerts, FM-200, and Novec 1230 in the following terms:

Design Concentration – Concentration of agent in the protected space that are safe
for occupied spaces to extinguish Class A, B or C type fires.
The No Observable Adverse Effects Level (NOAEL) – The highest concentration at
which adverse toxilogical or psychological effect has been observed.
Safety Margin – The margin of safety for a clean agent is calculated based on the
NOAEL and the use concentration. The less agent you have to use (design
concentration) relative to the concentration at which adverse effects are observed
 Lowest Observable Adverse Effect Level (LOEAL), The lowest concentration at
which an adverse psychological or toxicological effects have been observed.

  Inert Gas Novec 1230 FM-200

Use Concentration 34.2-42% 4.0-6.0% 6.7-8.7%

No Observable
Adverse Effects Level
43% 10% 9% 
(NOAEL)

Environmental Considerations
Historically, the main environmental concern with clean agent fire suppression systems
has been their effect on the Earth’s ozone layer. When the problem of ozone depletion
was discovered in 1985, the fire safety industry began looking for alternatives to the
Halon-based compounds used in clean agent fire suppression systems at the time.

Halon is a Monobrotrifluoromethane with very high ozone depletion properties. Its

production was banned in 1994 under the Clean Air Act. While it is still legal to purchase
and use recycled Halon, eventually, the diminishing supply will require businesses with
halon-based fire suppression systems to replace their Halon systems with systems that
use readily available alternatives such as Inert gas, Novec 1230 and FM-200.

FM-200 – a hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) – was the first replacement for Halon that promised
no impacts to the ozone layer. It is important to note that there are no regulations against
using FM-200. It is still manufactured and widely used in clean agent fire suppression
systems. However, the increasing concern over global warming has given rise to newer
alternatives such as Novec 1230 – the first clean agent on the market to boast no impact
to the ozone layer or global warming – and Inerts.

  Inert Gas Novec 1230 FM-200

Ozone Depletion
None None None
Potential (ODP)

Global Warming 1 (equivalent to

Potential (GWP) None that of carbon 3500 
dioxide)
   Inert Gas Novec 1230 FM-200

Atmospheric
Lifetime (years) None 0.014 36.5

Clean Agent Fire Suppression Systems

Maintenance
The NFPA 2001 Standard on Clean Agent Fire Extinguishing Systems requires that your
system as a whole must be inspected annually. The cylinders must be checked for weight
and/or pressure every six months to ensure they have the required quantity of clean agent
and that they are properly pressurized.

Whether you are contemplating an upgrade to your current fire protection system or are
already enjoying the peace of mind that a clean agent fire suppression system provides,
Koorsen can assist. Koorsen’s fire suppression experts can answer all your questions
about clean agent fire suppression systems and can design a cost effective system that will
meet your unique needs. Call us or contact online below to talk with a Koorsen Fire
Suppression expert today.