During the 60's, carpet was an unlimited growth industry although, at the time, commercial carpet was rare. Two infamous fires, one a nursing home fire and the other a hotel fire, resulted in a high number of fatalities. This resulted in a public outcry for regulating flammable interior finishes.
The Hill-Burton Act established testing standards for carpet. Since no specific test existed at the time, the industry was forced to test on the Steiner Tunnel Test (ASTM-E84).
The Steiner Tunnel Test treated carpet in a similar way to wall coverings and thus, the test was generally considered to be worthless, since carpet was almost always on the floor, the last place to burn, and only infrequently, on the walls, which were exposed to heat and flame quickly.
In 1979, the Flooring Radiant Panel Test (ASTM-E648) became the new standard. That test is still in use today.
Flammability issues
There are four flammability issues to consider.
Propensity for burning
Smoke density
Toxicity
Time and speed of flame spread
As most know, carpet is rarely the ignition source for fires and every test currently in use requires that the carpet self-extinguish or the product fails. Carpet is almost always the last interior finish to ignite thus the fire saftey admonition to put your nose "on the floor" and crawl to safety. And remember, sprinklers and smoke detectors will save more lives than any testing we will ever do.
Facts about the Radiant Panel Test
The Radiant Panel is a model of a fully engaged fire in a room which then spreads to a corridor or adjacent rooms. This heating process would presumably bring the carpet in the adjacent rooms and corridors up to a kindling temperature or ignition point. Then, at some point in time, the carpet burns under the door or through a wall creating a point of ignition. This is the basic premise that the Flooring Radiant Panel Test exhibits.
The Flooring Radiant Panel Test is the most reliable and test available at this time.
