Published (News)
As part of a series of fire tests conducted in FRIC, we studied the performance of combustible insulation in timber frame assemblies with fire protective claddings of gypsum boards and plywood boards. The aim was to increase the knowledge on how fire and temperature develop in combustible insulation products and constructions where they are installed, to understand better the fire protection performance of claddings on this insulation, and to study if the fire can spread faster through the transition between walls and roofs. The insulation materials tested were PIR, wood fibre, cellulose, glass wool and stone wool. The results show that the char layer formed on the surface during combustion of PIR, wood fibre and cellulose protects the insulation from the extreme temperatures in the fire. Combustible insulation products, as tested in these constructions with a protective cladding, therefore provide fire protection by slowing down the temperature development inside the insulation and on the surface of the timber structure in the construction.
You may find the full report here (FRIC report D3.1-2025.04):
https://fric.no/en/publications
Direct link to report (pdf):
https://ri.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:2012062/FULLTEXT01.pdf
One Page summary (pdf):
https://risefr.no/media/fric/onepagere/d3-1-2025-04-onepagers.pdf
Collaboration is a key factor to achieve good research. Many of the partners involved in the planning, building and fire testing are included in this picture; representatives from CBI Norway, Hunton, RISE and SINTEF.
The picture shows a specimen which contains both a wall and a roof being lifted off the pilot furnace at RISE Fire Research.
The photo shows the Single Burning Item oven that was used to test wall corners built from lightweight timber constructions with gypsum board cladding. The cavities were filled with the different types of insulation. Two holes were made in the cladding because we wanted to study the effect of damage to the cladding: would it lead to faster burn-through of the walls and fire spread inside the construction?