ASTM E2061-09a
(Guide)Standard Guide for Fire Hazard Assessment of Rail Transportation Vehicles
Standard Guide for Fire Hazard Assessment of Rail Transportation Vehicles
SIGNIFICANCE AND USE
This guide is intended for use by those undertaking the development of fire hazard assessments for rail transportation vehicles and products contained within rail transportation vehicles.
This guide provides information on an approach to develop a fire hazard assessment, but fixed procedures are not established. Any limitations in the availability of data, of appropriate test procedures, of adequate fire models, or in the advancement of scientific knowledge, will place significant constraints upon the procedure for the assessment of fire hazard.
A fire hazard assessment developed following this guide must specify all steps required to determine fire hazard measures for which safety thresholds or pass/fail criteria can be meaningfully set by responsible authorities. It is preferred that such exercises have input from various sources.
Outcomes: Use and Application. A fire hazard assessment developed as a result of using this guide should be able to assess a new product being considered for use in a certain rail transportation vehicle and reach one of the conclusions listed in 4.4.1-4.4.4.
New Product Safer than Product Currently in Use. The new product is safer, in terms of predicted fire performance, than the one in established use. In this case, the new product is desirable, from the point of view of fire safety.
New Product Equivalent in Safety to Product Currently in Use. There is no difference between the predicted fire safety of the new product and of the one in established use. In this case, use of the new product provides neither advantage nor disadvantage, from the point of view of fire safety.
New Product Less Safe than Product Currently in Use. The new product is less safe, in terms of predicted fire performance, than the one in established use. In this case, a direct substitution of products would provide a lower level of safety and the new product would be undesirable, and should not be used, from the point of view of fire safety, without oth...
SCOPE
1.1 This is a guide to developing fire hazard assessments for rail transportation vehicles. It has been written to assist professionals, including fire safety engineers, who wish to assess the fire safety of rail transportation vehicles, during or after their design (see also 1.6). This guide is not in itself a fire hazard assessment nor does it provide acceptance criteria; thus, it cannot be used for regulation.
1.2 Hazard assessment is a process that results in an estimate of the potential severity of the fires that can develop under defined scenarios, once defined incidents have occurred. Hazard assessment does not address the likelihood of a fire occurring. Hazard assessment is based on the premise that an ignition has occurred, consistent with a specified scenario, and that potential outcomes of the scenario can be reliably estimated.
1.3 Consistent with 1.2, this guide provides methods to evaluate whether particular rail passenger designs provide an equal or greater level of fire safety when compared to designs developed based on the traditional applicable fire-test-response characteristic approaches currently widely used in this industry. Such approaches have typically been based on prescriptive test methodologies. The following are examples of such lists of prescriptive tests: the requirements by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) (Table X1.1), the former guidelines of the FRA, the requirements of NFPA 130 (Table X3.1), and the recommended practices of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Selective use of parts of the methodology in this guide and of individual fire-test-response characteristics from Table X1.1 (or any other set of tests) does not satisfy the fire safety objectives of this guide or of the table. This guide shall be used in its entirety to develop a fire hazard assessment for rail transportation vehicles or to aid in the design of such vehicles.
1.4 This guide includes and appli...
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An American National Standard
Designation:E2061–09a
Standard Guide for
1
Fire Hazard Assessment of Rail Transportation Vehicles
This standard is issued under the fixed designation E2061; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision.Anumber in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
INTRODUCTION
The traditional approach to codes and standards is the specification of individual fire-test-response
requirements for each material, component, or product that is found in a given environment and is
deemed important to maintain satisfactory levels of fire safety. This practice has been in place for so
long that it gives a significant level of comfort; manufacturers know what is required to comply with
the specifications and specifiers simply apply the requirements. The implicit assumptions are not
stated, but they are that the use of the prescribed requirements ensures an adequate level of safety.
There is no need to impose any change on those manufacturers who supply safe systems meeting
existing prescriptive requirements; however, as new materials, components, and products are
developed, manufacturers, designers, and specifiers often desire the flexibility to choose how overall
safety requirements are to be met. It is the responsibility of developers of alternative approaches to
state explicitly the assumptions being made which result in a design having an equivalent level of
safety. One way to generate explicit and valid assumptions is to use a performance-based approach,
basedontestmethodsthatprovidedatainengineeringunits,suitableforuseinfiresafetyengineering
calculations, as this guide provides.
This fire hazard assessment guide focuses on rail transportation vehicles. Such a fire hazard
assessment requires developing all crucial fire scenarios that must be considered and consideration of
theeffectofallcontentsanddesignswithintherailtransportationvehicle,whichwillpotentiallyaffect
the resulting fire hazard. The intention of this guide is that rail transportation vehicles be designed
either by meeting all the requirements of the traditional prescriptive approach or by conducting a fire
hazard assessment, that needs to provide adequate margins of error, in which a level of safety is
obtained that is equal to or greater than the level of safety resulting from the traditional approach.
1. Scope 1.2 Hazard assessment is a process that results in an
estimate of the potential severity of the fires that can develop
1.1 Thisisaguidetodevelopingfirehazardassessmentsfor
under defined scenarios, once defined incidents have occurred.
rail transportation vehicles. It has been written to assist
Hazard assessment does not address the likelihood of a fire
professionals, including fire safety engineers, who wish to
occurring. Hazard assessment is based on the premise that an
assess the fire safety of rail transportation vehicles, during or
ignition has occurred, consistent with a specified scenario, and
aftertheirdesign(seealso1.6).Thisguideisnotinitselfafire
that potential outcomes of the scenario can be reliably esti-
hazardassessmentnordoesitprovideacceptancecriteria;thus,
mated.
it cannot be used for regulation.
1.3 Consistent with 1.2, this guide provides methods to
evaluate whether particular rail passenger designs provide an
1
ThisguideisunderthejurisdictionofASTMCommitteeE05onFireStandards
equal or greater level of fire safety when compared to designs
and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E05.17 on Transportation.
developedbasedonthetraditionalapplicablefire-test-response
Current edition approved Oct. 1, 2009. Published October 2009. Originally
characteristic approaches currently widely used in this indus-
approved in 2000. Last previous edition approved in 2009 as E2061–09. DOI:
10.1520/E2061-09A. try. Such approaches have typically been based on prescriptive
Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.
1
---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
E2061–09a
testmethodologies.Thefollowingareexamplesofsuchlistsof 1.9 Thisfirestandardcannotbeusedtoprovidequantitative
prescriptive tests: the requirements by the Federal Railroad measures.
Administration (FRA) (Table X1.1), the former guidelines of
2. Referenced Documents
the FRA, the requirements of NFPA130 (Table X3.1), and the
2
recommended practices of the Federal Transit Administration
2.1 ASTM Standards:
(FTA). Selective use of parts of the methodology in this guide
C1166 Test Method for Flame Propagation of Dense and
and of individual fire-test-response characteristics from Table
Cellular Elastomeric Gaskets and Accessories
X1.1 (or any oth
...
This document is not anASTM standard and is intended only to provide the user of anASTM standard an indication of what changes have been made to the previous version. Because
it may not be technically possible to adequately depict all changes accurately, ASTM recommends that users consult prior editions as appropriate. In all cases only the current version
of the standard as published by ASTM is to be considered the official document.
An American National Standard
Designation:E2061–09 Designation:E2061–09a
Standard Guide for
1
Fire Hazard Assessment of Rail Transportation Vehicles
This standard is issued under the fixed designation E2061; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision.Anumber in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
INTRODUCTION
The traditional approach to codes and standards is the specification of individual fire-test-response
requirements for each material, component, or product that is found in a given environment and is
deemed important to maintain satisfactory levels of fire safety. This practice has been in place for so
long that it gives a significant level of comfort; manufacturers know what is required to comply with
the specifications and specifiers simply apply the requirements. The implicit assumptions are not
stated, but they are that the use of the prescribed requirements ensures an adequate level of safety.
There is no need to impose any change on those manufacturers who supply safe systems meeting
existing prescriptive requirements; however, as new materials, components, and products are
developed, manufacturers, designers, and specifiers often desire the flexibility to choose how overall
safety requirements are to be met. It is the responsibility of developers of alternative approaches to
state explicitly the assumptions being made which result in a design having an equivalent level of
safety. One way to generate explicit and valid assumptions is to use a performance-based approach,
basedontestmethodsthatprovidedatainengineeringunits,suitableforuseinfiresafetyengineering
calculations, as this guide provides.
This fire hazard assessment guide focuses on rail transportation vehicles. Such a fire hazard
assessment requires developing all crucial fire scenarios that must be considered and consideration of
theeffectofallcontentsanddesignswithintherailtransportationvehicle,whichwillpotentiallyaffect
the resulting fire hazard. The intention of this guide is that rail transportation vehicles be designed
either by meeting all the requirements of the traditional prescriptive approach or by conducting a fire
hazard assessment, that needs to provide adequate margins of error, in which a level of safety is
obtained that is equal to or greater than the level of safety resulting from the traditional approach.
1. Scope
1.1 This is a guide to developing fire hazard assessments for rail transportation vehicles. It has been written to assist
professionals, including fire safety engineers, who wish to assess the fire safety of rail transportation vehicles, during or after their
design (see also 1.6). This guide is not in itself a fire hazard assessment nor does it provide acceptance criteria; thus, it cannot be
used for regulation.
1.2 Hazardassessmentisaprocessthatresultsinanestimateofthepotentialseverityofthefiresthatcandevelopunderdefined
scenarios, once defined incidents have occurred. Hazard assessment does not address the likelihood of a fire occurring. Hazard
assessment is based on the premise that an ignition has occurred, consistent with a specified scenario, and that potential outcomes
of the scenario can be reliably estimated.
1.3 Consistent with 1.2, this guide provides methods to evaluate whether particular rail passenger designs provide an equal or
greaterleveloffiresafetywhencomparedtodesignsdevelopedbasedonthetraditionalapplicablefire-test-responsecharacteristic
approaches currently widely used in this industry. Such approaches have typically been based on prescriptive test methodologies.
The following are examples of such lists of prescriptive tests: the requirements by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)
(Table X1.1), the former guidelines of the FRA, the requirements of NFPA130 (Table X3.1), and the recommended practices of
the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Selective use of parts of the methodology in this guide and of individual
fire-test-response characteristics fromTable X1.1 (or any other set of tests) does not satisfy the fire safety objectives of this guide
or of the table. This guide shall be used in its entirety to develop a fire hazard assessment for rail transportation vehicles or to aid
in the design of such vehicles.
1
This guide is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E05 on Fire Standards and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E05.17 on Transportation .
Curren
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