Page 233 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

210 Cha pte r T e n

Several years ago, 3M embarked on an extensive research pro-
gram that investigated hundreds of compounds to evaluate their
potential as halon replacements. This effort began as a small-scale
project championed by a divisional lab manager but quickly esca-
lated into a major initiative. The team, comprising several disciplines
including laboratory, environmental, and marketing, was assigned
the challenge of determining the “best of the best” from the com-
pounds that made the final list. The team used 3M’s Life Cycle Man-
agement (LCM) process as one of its key tools in selecting a halon
replacement, examining the EHS opportunities and issues at each
stage of the product’s life cycle.
The result was the development of 3M™ Novec™ 1230 Fire Pro-
tection Fluid. This new technology platform, based on fluorinated
ketones, is superior in both extinguishing efficiency and safety. It pro-
vides a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over HFCs,
with a Global Warming Potential of 1 (one), the lowest for any halo-
carbon alternative to halon. It also has an atmospheric lifetime of 5
days, compared to years, decades, or even centuries for other halocar-
bon alternatives. In addition, it is low in acute toxicity and provides a
significant margin of safety at design concentrations, making it ideal
for use in occupied spaces. Unlike most halon replacements, it is a
liquid at room temperature, so that handling and charging of fire pro-
tection systems is easier. Novec™ 1230 fluid is marketed by 3M Elec-
tronic Markets Materials Division.
In addition to being “climate-friendly,” the product is a highly
efficient extinguishing agent that offers both customer and environ-
mental benefits, including:

• Is electrically nonconductive
• Is noncorrosive
• Rapidly vaporizes to gas during discharge
• Leaves no residue
• Does not damage electronics, electronic media, or delicate
mechanical devices
• Can be safely used on energized equipment, helping to ensure
continuity of operations during a fire emergency

Before introducing it into the marketplace, 3M met with repre-
sentatives of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to
demonstrate the product and explain its benefits over first gener -
ation halon replacements. This meeting helped to increase EPA’s
comfort with the new product and to develop additional champi-
ons; the product was subsequently qualified for use by several major
fire protection equipment manufacturers. One global pharmaceutical
manufacturer, Roche, has specified Novec™ 1230 fluid as part of its