Safety glass, be it tempered, laminated or reinforced, does not present any serious obstacle to spreading flame and tends to break within the first minutes of fire. Special fire-resistant glass is the only glass that can act as a flame retardant. This type of glass is classified into three main categories:
Fire-resistant glass provides protection against flame, smoke and other combustion products for a certain period of time, but cannot prevent heat from spreading.
Glass offers higher degree of protection and can protect against flame, smoke and other combustion products, while providing partial protection against spreading heat. Maximum permissible radiated heat – 15 kW/sq. m.
Glass demonstrates the highest degree of protection against flame, smoke and other combustion products and does not conduct heat. Maximum permissible temperature of the glass on the side opposite to the fire is 140 °C. The glass has been designed to ensure its effective performance during fire: after the tempered glass breaks, the fireproof gel between the glass panes starts to act by absorbing the energy and becomes opaque, thus creating a reliable barrier against the spreading fire.
Moreover, due to its structure, FireBlock glass is also classified as class 1/B/1 laminated safety glass.
FireBlock can also be used for exterior applications as part of an insulating glass unit.