Sponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory, the one-year contract will enable ADA to define, design, build and test a prototype to validate the performance of a fine water mist fire suppression system in a test environment representative of hush houses. “ADA’s goal is to produce a cost-effective and efficient fine water mist fire suppression system that provides superior fire protection to high-value aircraft,” said Jim Butz, ADA vice president.

ADA’s Fine Water Mist fire suppression technology was developed as an inexpensive and highly-effective method of extinguishing specialized fires, such as those that could occur on spacecraft and civil aircraft. The technology uses patented and patent-pending ADA hardware to generate water droplets of the size found to be most effective for fire suppression.

Fine water mist does not cause water damage to structures and, because it uses only inert chemicals, water and nitrogen, the technology does not pose a health or environmental hazard like commonly used halon and carbon dioxide suppressants.

Historically, halon fire suppressant systems have been used to protect the 152 hush houses worldwide. However, because halons are Class I Ozone Depleting Substances, they have been banned from manufacture by the Montreal Protocol and by the end of 2010 will be banned from commercial purchase by the U.S. government.