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OT: Futuristic Fire Retardant?

Hi All,

My brother recently said he was evaluating security systems for his computer store, and a salesman demonstrating various security products grabbed his cell phone and dropped it into a bucket of liquid that my brother said looks "like a can of Sprite soda". He said he watched in horror as the salesman wiggled the phone around for a while, then pulled it out, shook off the excess fluid, and turned it one with no problems. He said he also poured the fluid over various exposed active electronics and it just rolls off with no problems. Apparently you can immerse a motherboard in it and still run the machine while the fluid protects against fire.

Anyone know what this stuff is?

-Le Chaud Lapin-

Reply to
Le Chaud Lapin
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Distilled water works if the item in question is not too dirty, especially with body salts (grime from hands, etc). Using a large volume as compared to volume of object like cell phone will reduce the net ion concentration after those salts are dissolved into the water. Net result is that the item is cleaner than before. Oven dry; 80F is max recommended due to ratings of cheap electrolytic capacitors.

Alcohols are almost as good except when they evaporate, water is left behind (usually to cooling of surfaces as the alcohol evaporates). Otherwise, same conditions apply except in relation to ionic contaminants do not get activated in alcohol; only in water.

Freon liquids are next in line; virtually nothing dissolves in most of the freons which are good electronic insulators.

Reply to
Robert Baer

Could it be CFC? Googling for "CFC cleaning" generates lots of hits about alternative chemicals with similar characteristics.

Reply to
slebetman

Could it be CFC? Googling for "CFC cleaning" generates lots of hits about alternative chemicals with similar characteristics.

Reply to
slebetman

Could it be CFC? Googling for "CFC cleaning" generates lots of hits about alternative chemicals with similar characteristics.

Reply to
slebetman

So far we have CFC 3, distilled water 1. Any other candidates?

Reply to
Richard Henry

It sounds like a 3M product I've seen accounts of. It was marketed as a 'high tech water'. One of their initial target markets appeared to fire suppression for valuable document storage area since it didn't damage paper.

Unfortunately I don't recall the name.

Robert

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Reply to
Robert Adsett

What about that liquid that lets mammals breathe in it?

Reply to
Homer J Simpson

perfluorocarbon, as in the Abyss film

martin

Reply to
martin griffith

It's a freon, or at least the modern non-chlorinated variety. Liquid freons are very inert.

Before it was banned, Halon was the fire extinguisher of choice for computer rooms. The demo film had a guy sitting in a chair next to a wastebasket full of paper. He set it on fire, the halon gas sprayed down from the ceiling, the fire went out, and he sat there, just fine.

20% halon is breathable and puts out fires somehow.

John

Reply to
John Larkin

I remember a demo years ago that featured a color TV operating while immersed in a large transparent cylinder filled with the stuff. Very impressive.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

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"it's the network..."                          "The Journey is the reward"
speff@interlog.com             Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog  Info for designers:  http://www.speff.com
Reply to
Spehro Pefhany

What was the sound like?

martin

Reply to
martin griffith

Fishy. It would have detuned the RF stuff pretty bad.

John

Reply to
John Larkin

They might have been feeding the video into it, but the HV stuff operating in a liquid was still impressive. It wasn't a total fake.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

--
"it\'s the network..."                          "The Journey is the reward"
speff@interlog.com             Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog  Info for designers:  http://www.speff.com
Reply to
Spehro Pefhany

Methinks he heard you the other two times...

Reply to
Robert Baer

I did mention the alcohols...

Reply to
Robert Baer

That must be one of the freon products (or variants).

Reply to
Robert Baer

I vaguely remember something about a perchlorate???

Reply to
Robert Baer

Related to the perchlorate i vaguely remembered?

Reply to
Robert Baer

"Somehow" is 1) it is heavy and settles down to where fires usually are, and 2) it displaces oxygen therby smothering a fire. One can die from lack of oxygen in such a situation.

Reply to
Robert Baer

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