ASTM D3014-19a

This document is not an ASTM standard and is intended only to provide the user of an ASTM standard an indication of what changes have been made to the previous version. Because
it may not be technically possible to adequately depict all changes accurately, ASTM recommends that users consult prior editions as appropriate. In all cases only the current version
of the standard as published by ASTM is to be considered the official document.
Designation: D3014 − 19 D3014 − 19a
Standard Test Method for
Flame Height, Time of Burning, and Loss of Mass of Rigid
Thermoset Cellular Plastics in a Vertical Position
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D3014; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
1. Scope*
1.1 This is a fire-test-response standard. This test method covers a small-scale laboratory screening procedure for comparing
relative extent and time of burning and loss of mass of rigid thermoset cellular plastics. This test method is to be used solely to
establish relative burning characteristics.
1.1.1 This test method shall not be used for materials that drip or melt under the test conditions.
1.2 During the course of combustion, gases or vapors, or both, are evolved which are potentially hazardous to personnel.
Adequate precautions shall be taken to protect the operator.
1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility
of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of
regulatory limitations prior to use. A specific precautionary statement is given in 1.2.
1.4 This standard is used to measure and describe the response of materials, products, or assemblies to heat and flame under
controlled conditions, but does not by itself incorporate all factors required for fire hazard or fire risk assessment of materials,
products, or assemblies under actual fire conditions.
1.5 Fire testing is inherently hazardous. Adequate safeguards for personnel and property shall be employed in conducting these
tests.
NOTE 1—There is no known ISO equivalent to this standard.
1.6 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization
established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued
by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
2. Referenced Documents
2.1 ASTM Standards:
D883 Terminology Relating to Plastics
D1622 Test Method for Apparent Density of Rigid Cellular Plastics
D5025 Specification for Laboratory Burner Used for Small-Scale Burning Tests on Plastic Materials
E176 Terminology of Fire Standards
E456 Terminology Relating to Quality and Statistics
E691 Practice for Conducting an Interlaboratory Study to Determine the Precision of a Test Method
E2935 Practice for Conducting Equivalence Testing in Laboratory Applications
2.2 ISO Standard:
ISO 13943 Fire Safety—Vocabulary
3. Terminology
3.1 Definitions—For definitions of terms relating to plastics, the definitions in this test method are in accordance with
Terminology D883. For terms relating to fire, the definitions in this test method are in accordance with Terminology E176 and
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D20 on Plastics and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D20.30 on Thermal Properties
Current edition approved Aug. 1, 2019Dec. 1, 2019. Published August 2019January 2020. Originally approved in 1973. Last previous edition approved in 20182019 as
D3014 - 18.D3014 - 19. DOI: 10.1520/D3014-19.10.1520/D3014-19A.
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM Standards
volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on the ASTM website.
Available from American National Standards Institute (ANSI), 25 W. 43rd St., 4th Floor, New York, NY 10036, http://www.ansi.org.
*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standard
Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959. United States
D3014 − 19a
FIG. 1 Critical Dimensions of Chimney
ISO 13943. In case of conflict, the definitions given in Terminology E176 shall prevail. For terms relating to precision and bias
and associated issues, the terms used in this test method are in accordance with the definitions in Terminology E456.
4. Summary of Test Method
4.1 The specimen is mounted by positioning the specimen in a vertical chimney with a glass front and ignited with a bunsen
burner for 10 s. The height and duration of flame and the mass percent retained by the specimen are recorded.
5. Significance and Use
5.1 Tests made on rigid cellular materials in accordance with the conditions described by this test method can be of considerable
value in comparing their burning characteristics.
5.2 This test method has been applied to flexible cellular materials and other plastics, but no detailed studies have been
conducted to determine its general applicability to these materials.
5.3 In this procedure, the specimens are subjected to one or more specific sets of laboratory test conditions. If different test
conditions are substituted or the end-use conditions are changed, it is not always possible by or from this test to predict changes
in the fire-test-response characteristics measured. The results are therefore valid only for the fire-test-exposure conditions described
in this procedure.
6. Apparatus
6.1 Test Chimney, conforming to the dimensions in Fig. 1. The body of the chimney shall be made of non-corroding metal.
Fastened into the chimney is an insert made of 0.025-mm thick aluminum foil. The insert shall be held in place by a stainless steel
channel that carries three pins to support the specimen. A heat-resistant glass panel forms the front wall of the chimney (see Figs.
D3014 − 19a
FIG. 2 Critical Dimensions of Specimen Support
2 and 3). A scale, in millimeters, graduated at 10-mm intervals shall be provided at one side of the glass panel for determining flame
height (see Fig. 1 and Fig. 4). The scale shall begin from a height of 51 mm above the bottom of the chimney.
6.2 Timer, capable of measuring to the nearest 0.1 s for determining the duration of burning.
6.3 Burner—A standard gas burner with a 9.5-mm inside diameter barrel capable of producing a flame with an inner cone
temperature of 960 6 5°C is required to ignite the specimens. See Specification D5025 for burner construction.
6.4 Balance, capable of weighing to the nearest 0.01 g for weighing the specimen.
6.5 Test Chamber—A relatively draft-free laboratory hood. The fan shall be switched in the off position during the test, but
turned on immediately following the test to remove products of combustion.
7. Test Specimens
7.1 Six specimens shall be cut from a material of uniform density. The specimens shall be 254 6 1 mm by 19 6 0.5 mm by
19 6 0.5 mm and shall be free of dust, and the cut edges shall be smooth.
7.2 If any single specimen varies by more than 20 % from the average density of the six specimens (see 9.1), the sample shall
be considered unacceptable for testing by this test method.
8. Conditioning
8.1 Condition the specimens for a minimum of 24 h at a temperature of 23 6 2°C and a relative humidity of 50 6 10 %.
8.2 The specimens shall remain in the temperature- and humidity-controlled atmosphere until immediately prior to testing. For
convenience, the specimens can be stored up to 1 h in closed polyethylene bags after conditioning and prior to testing.
9. Procedure
9.1 Determine the density of each specimen in accordance with Test Method D1622.
9.2 Weigh and record the mass (M ) of each specimen to the nearest 0.01 g.
9.3 Weigh and record the mass (S ) of the specimen support to the nearest 0.01 g.
9.4 Ignite and adjust the burner so that the inner blue cone is 25 to 35 mm high. Further adjust the burner until the temperature
at the top of the inner cone is 960 6 5°C.
NOTE 2—To obtain 960°C, it will be necessary to use a burner with propane gas, or natural gas. In order to minimize the time and frequency required
for t
...