How can cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire ensure power supply for evacuation and firefighting in high-rise building fires?
Release Time : 2026-01-21
In modern urban building systems, high-rise buildings, due to their complex structures, dense populations, and long vertical evacuation routes, place extremely high demands on fire safety. In the event of a fire, the power system is not only the lifeline for critical equipment such as emergency lighting, smoke exhaust fans, fire pumps, and elevator emergency landings, but also the fundamental support for ensuring safe evacuation and effective firefighting operations. Against this backdrop, cross-linked polyolefin insulated wires, with their halogen-free, low-smoke, and flame-retardant properties, have become the preferred material for fire protection and emergency power lines in high-rise buildings due to their excellent fire resistance and environmental safety characteristics, providing a solid guarantee for the "golden escape time."
1. Flame-retardant performance: Delaying the spread of fire and maintaining circuit integrity
One of the core advantages of cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire is its excellent flame-retardant capability. Unlike traditional PVC insulation materials, which are prone to melting and dripping when exposed to fire and promote combustion, XLPO materials form a three-dimensional network structure through chemical or irradiation cross-linking, significantly improving thermal stability and flame resistance. In the high-temperature environment of the initial stage of a fire, this conductor is not easily ignited. Even when exposed to open flames, it effectively inhibits the spread of flames along the cable, meeting the high-level bundled burning test requirements of IEC 60332-3 Category A. More importantly, when subjected to a 950℃ flame and combined with a fire-resistant layer design, some models can maintain circuit integrity for more than 180 minutes, ensuring continuous power supply to critical loads such as fire pumps and emergency lighting, buying precious time for rescue.
2. Low Smoke Halogen-Free: Improved Visibility and Reduced Toxic Hazards
The main cause of death in fires is not the flame itself, but rather suffocation and disorientation caused by dense smoke and toxic gases. Traditional halogen-containing cables release large amounts of corrosive and toxic gases such as hydrogen chloride and dioxins when burning, severely damaging the human respiratory system, corroding electronic equipment, and reducing visibility. Cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire, however, uses a halogen-free formula, producing no hydrogen halides during combustion and exhibiting extremely low smoke emission—its light transmittance is typically above 60%, far superior to ordinary PVC cables. In enclosed stairwells, underground parking garages, or equipment rooms of high-rise buildings, this characteristic significantly improves visibility of evacuation routes, helping personnel quickly identify safety exits while protecting firefighters' breathing safety and ensuring the normal operation of on-site communication and monitoring equipment.
3. High-Temperature Resistance: Ensuring Continuous Power Supply Under Extreme Conditions
High-rise building fires can quickly reach temperatures exceeding 800°C, causing ordinary electrical wire insulation to rapidly carbonize and fail. Cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire has a long-term operating temperature up to 125°C, and its electrical performance is less affected by short-term overloads or initial ambient temperature increases during a fire. Its cross-linked structure maintains a certain level of mechanical strength and insulation resistance at high temperatures, preventing short circuits or power outages due to insulation breakdown. This thermal stability ensures that emergency power systems can reliably supply power to equipment such as evacuation indicator lights, fireproof roller shutters, and positive pressure ventilation systems before the fire is fully under control, preventing secondary disasters.
4. Perfectly Suitable Application Scenarios: Designed Specifically for Lifeline Engineering
Due to the aforementioned characteristics, cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire is widely used in high-rise residential buildings, hospitals, subway stations, large commercial complexes, and other locations with stringent public safety requirements. It is used not only in the power supply circuits of active fire protection facilities such as fire pumps, sprinkler systems, and smoke extraction fans, but also extensively deployed in passive safety systems such as emergency lighting, evacuation guidance, and elevator emergency control systems.
With its four core characteristics of flame retardancy, low smoke, halogen-free, and high-temperature resistance, cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire constructs an invisible yet crucial safety barrier in the extreme scenario of high-rise building fires. It not only protects the last mile of the power system but also directly relates to whether the lives of hundreds or thousands of people can be sustained in critical moments. With the deepening of green building and smart fire protection concepts, this type of high-performance, high-safety-level cable will undoubtedly play an even more critical role in the future urban safety system.
1. Flame-retardant performance: Delaying the spread of fire and maintaining circuit integrity
One of the core advantages of cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire is its excellent flame-retardant capability. Unlike traditional PVC insulation materials, which are prone to melting and dripping when exposed to fire and promote combustion, XLPO materials form a three-dimensional network structure through chemical or irradiation cross-linking, significantly improving thermal stability and flame resistance. In the high-temperature environment of the initial stage of a fire, this conductor is not easily ignited. Even when exposed to open flames, it effectively inhibits the spread of flames along the cable, meeting the high-level bundled burning test requirements of IEC 60332-3 Category A. More importantly, when subjected to a 950℃ flame and combined with a fire-resistant layer design, some models can maintain circuit integrity for more than 180 minutes, ensuring continuous power supply to critical loads such as fire pumps and emergency lighting, buying precious time for rescue.
2. Low Smoke Halogen-Free: Improved Visibility and Reduced Toxic Hazards
The main cause of death in fires is not the flame itself, but rather suffocation and disorientation caused by dense smoke and toxic gases. Traditional halogen-containing cables release large amounts of corrosive and toxic gases such as hydrogen chloride and dioxins when burning, severely damaging the human respiratory system, corroding electronic equipment, and reducing visibility. Cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire, however, uses a halogen-free formula, producing no hydrogen halides during combustion and exhibiting extremely low smoke emission—its light transmittance is typically above 60%, far superior to ordinary PVC cables. In enclosed stairwells, underground parking garages, or equipment rooms of high-rise buildings, this characteristic significantly improves visibility of evacuation routes, helping personnel quickly identify safety exits while protecting firefighters' breathing safety and ensuring the normal operation of on-site communication and monitoring equipment.
3. High-Temperature Resistance: Ensuring Continuous Power Supply Under Extreme Conditions
High-rise building fires can quickly reach temperatures exceeding 800°C, causing ordinary electrical wire insulation to rapidly carbonize and fail. Cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire has a long-term operating temperature up to 125°C, and its electrical performance is less affected by short-term overloads or initial ambient temperature increases during a fire. Its cross-linked structure maintains a certain level of mechanical strength and insulation resistance at high temperatures, preventing short circuits or power outages due to insulation breakdown. This thermal stability ensures that emergency power systems can reliably supply power to equipment such as evacuation indicator lights, fireproof roller shutters, and positive pressure ventilation systems before the fire is fully under control, preventing secondary disasters.
4. Perfectly Suitable Application Scenarios: Designed Specifically for Lifeline Engineering
Due to the aforementioned characteristics, cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire is widely used in high-rise residential buildings, hospitals, subway stations, large commercial complexes, and other locations with stringent public safety requirements. It is used not only in the power supply circuits of active fire protection facilities such as fire pumps, sprinkler systems, and smoke extraction fans, but also extensively deployed in passive safety systems such as emergency lighting, evacuation guidance, and elevator emergency control systems.
With its four core characteristics of flame retardancy, low smoke, halogen-free, and high-temperature resistance, cross-linked polyolefin insulated wire constructs an invisible yet crucial safety barrier in the extreme scenario of high-rise building fires. It not only protects the last mile of the power system but also directly relates to whether the lives of hundreds or thousands of people can be sustained in critical moments. With the deepening of green building and smart fire protection concepts, this type of high-performance, high-safety-level cable will undoubtedly play an even more critical role in the future urban safety system.