ISO 10093:2020

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 10093
Third edition
Plastics — Fire tests — Standard
ignition sources
Plastiques — Essais au feu — Sources d'allumage normalisées
PROOF/ÉPREUVE
Reference number
ISO 10093:2020(E)
©
ISO 2020

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ISO 10093:2020(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2020
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
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Published in Switzerland
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction .vi
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 3
4 Ignition processes . 6
5 Characteristics of ignition sources . 7
6 General principles . 7
6.1 Flaming ignition sources . 7
6.1.1 Diffusion flame ignition sources . 7
6.1.2 Premixed flame sources . . 7
6.1.3 Issues associated with flaming ignition sources . 7
6.2 Non-flaming and flaming ignition sources . 8
7 Smouldering (cigarette) ignition sources . 9
7.1 Traditional cigarettes . 9
7.2 Non-reduced ignition propensity cigarettes .10
8 Non-flaming electrical ignition sources .10
8.1 Glow-wire ignition .10
8.2 Hot-wire ignition .11
9 Radiant ignition sources .13
9.1 Conical radiant ignition sources .13
9.1.1 General.13
9.1.2 Cone calorimeter ignition source .13
9.1.3 Smoke chamber conical heater .16
9.1.4 Ignition source from periodic flaming ignition test . .19
9.2 Other radiant ignition sources .20
9.2.1 Glowbars ignition source .20
9.2.2 Lateral ignition and flame spread test (LIFT) radiant panel heater. .21
9.2.3 Setchkin ignition .22
10 Infrared heating system .23
11 Diffusion flame ignition .24
11.1 Needle flame ignition .24
11.2 Burning match .25
11.3 Burners generating 50 W or 500 W flames .27
12 Premixed burners .29
12.1 Premixed burner for 1 kW flame .29
12.2 Burners for vertical cable tray tests.30
12.2.1 Venturi burners for 20 kW vertical cable tray tests .30
12.2.2 Burner for vertical riser cable tests .32
12.3 Burner for large scale horizontal tests .32
12.4 Burners for room corner tests .33
12.4.1 Burner for ISO 9705-1.33
12.4.2 Alternate burner for room corner test .34
12.5 Burners for individual product heat release tests .35
12.5.1 Burner for single fuel package calorimeter .35
12.5.2 Square tube propane burner .35
12.5.3 T-shaped propane burner .35
12.5.4 Dual T-shaped propane burner .36
13 Other ignition sources .37
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

13.1 Wood cribs .37
13.2 Paper bags .37
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/ directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/ patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www .iso .org/
iso/ foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 61, Plastics, Subcommittee SC 4, Burning
behaviour.
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition (ISO/TR 10093:2018), which has been
technically revised.
The main changes compared to the previous edition are as follows:
— mandatory information have been added throughout the document;
— referenced standards have been deleted from the bibliography and moved to the normative
references clause (see Clause 2).
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/ members .html.
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

Introduction
Fires are caused by a wide range of possible ignition sources. Statistical analysis of fires has identified
the major primary and secondary sources, especially for fires in buildings. The most frequent sources
of fires have been found to be as follows:
a) cooking appliances;
b) space-heating appliances;
c) electric wiring, connectors and terminations;
d) other electrical appliances (such as washing machines, bedwarmers, televisions, water heaters);
e) cigarettes;
f) matches and smokers' gas lighters;
g) blow-lamps, blow-torches and welding torches;
h) rubbish burning; and
i) candles.
This list covers the major primary ignition sources for accidental fires. Other sources can be involved
in fires raised maliciously. Research into causes of fires has shown that primary ignition sources
(e.g. glowing cigarettes or dropped flaming matches) can set fire to waste paper, which then acts as a
secondary ignition source of greater intensity.
When analysing and evaluating the various ignition sources for applications involving plastics
materials, it is important to answer the following questions on the basis of detailed fire statistics.
1) What is the significance of the individual ignition sources in various fire risk situations?
2) What proportion is attributable to secondary ignition sources?
3) Where does particular attention have to be paid to secondary ignition sources?
4) To what extent are different ignition sources responsible for fatal fire accidents?
The laboratory ignition sources described in this document are intended to simulate actual ignition
sources that have been shown to be the cause of real fires involving plastics. Laboratory ignition
sources are preferred over actual ignition sources due to their consistency, which results in greater
data repeatability within a laboratory and greater reproducibility between laboratories.
These laboratory ignition sources can be used to develop new test procedures.
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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 10093:2020(E)
Plastics — Fire tests — Standard ignition sources
1 Scope
This document describes and classifies a range of laboratory ignition sources for use in fire tests on
plastics and products consisting substantially of plastics. These sources vary in intensity and area
of impingement. They are suitable for use to simulate the initial thermal abuse to which plastics are
potentially exposed in certain actual fire risk scenarios.
This compilation of standard ignition sources describes the ignition sources used by different
standards development organizations and contained in standard test methods, specifications, or
regulations used to assess the fire properties or plastics and of products containing plastic materials.
The ignition sources described in this document are associated with flaming and non-flaming ignition.
This document describes the relevant ignition sources and references the associated standard.
This compilation of ignition sources does not discuss the application of the standard referenced in any
specific clause in which the ignition source is described, and this compilation is likely not to be a fully
comprehensive list of ignition sources.
This document does not address detailed test procedures.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 871, Plastics — Determination of ignition temperature using a hot-air furnace
ISO 5657, Reaction to fire tests — Ignitability of building products using a radiant heat source
ISO 5658-2, Reaction to fire tests — Spread of flame — Part 2: Lateral spread on building and transport
products in vertical configuration
ISO 5659-2, Plastics — Smoke generation — Part 2: Determination of optical density by a single-chamber test
ISO 5660-1, Reaction-to-fire tests — Heat release, smoke production and mass loss rate — Part 1: Heat
release rate (cone calorimeter method) and smoke production rate (dynamic measurement)
ISO 8191-1, Furniture — Assessment of the ignitability of upholstered furniture — Part 1: Ignition source:
smouldering cigarette
ISO 8191-2, Furniture — Assessment of ignitability of upholstered furniture — Part 2: Ignition source:
match-flame equivalent
ISO 9705-1, Reaction to fire tests — Room corner test for wall and ceiling lining products — Part 1: Test
method for a small room configuration
ISO 11925-2, Reaction to fire tests — Ignitability of products subjected to direct impingement of flame —
Part 2: Single-flame source test
ISO 12136, Reaction to fire tests — Measurement of material properties using a fire propagation apparatus
ISO 12863, Standard test method for assessing the ignition propensity of cigarettes
ISO 12949, Standard test method for measuring the heat release rate of low flammability mattresses and
mattress sets
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

ISO 13943, Fire safety — Vocabulary
IEC 60332-1-1, Tests on electric and optical fibre cables under fire conditions — Part 1-1 Test for vertical
flame propagation for a single insulated wire or cable — Apparatus
IEC 60332-1-2, Tests on electric and optical fibre cables under fire conditions — Part 1-2: Test for vertical
flame propagation for a single insulated wire or cable — Procedure for 1 kW pre-mixed flame
IEC 60332-3-10, Tests on electric and optical fibre cables under fire conditions — Part 3-10: Test for vertical
flame spread of vertically-mounted bunched wires or cables — Apparatus
IEC 60695-1-21, Fire hazard testing — Part 1-21: Guidance for assessing the fire hazard of electrotechnical
products – Ignitability — Summary and relevance of test methods
IEC 60695-2-10, Fire hazard testing — Part 2-10: Glowing/hot-wire based test methods — Glow–wire
apparatus and common test procedure
IEC 60695-2-11, Fire hazard testing — Part 2-11: Glowing/hot-wire based test methods — Glow-wire
flammability test method for end-products (GWEPT)
IEC 60695-2-12, Fire hazard testing — Part 2-12: Glowing/hot-wire based test methods — Glow-wire
flammability index (GWFI) test method for materials
IEC 60695-2-13, Fire hazard testing — Part 2-13: Glowing/hot-wire based test methods — Glow-wire
ignition temperature (GWIT) test method for materials
IEC/TS 60695-2-20, Fire hazard testing — Part 2-20: Glowing/hot-wire based test methods — Hot wire
ignition test — Apparatus, confirmatory test arrangement and guidance (withdrawn)
IEC/TS 60695-11-2, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-2: Test flames — 1 kW pre-mixed flame — Apparatus,
confirmatory test arrangement and guidance
IEC 60695-11-3, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-3: Test flames — 500 W flames — Apparatus and
confirmational test methods
IEC 60695-11-4, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-4: Test flames — 50 W flame — Apparatus and
confirmational test method
IEC 60695-11-5, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-4: Test flames — Needle-flame test method — Apparatus,
confirmatory test arrangement and guidance
IEC 60695-11-10, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-10: Test flames — 50 W horizontal and vertical flame
test methods
IEC 60695-11-20, Fire hazard testing — Part 11-20: Test flames — 500 W flame test method
ASTM D635, Standard Test Method for Rate of Burning and/or Extent and Time of Burning of Plastics in a
Horizontal Position
ASTM D1929, Standard Test Method for Determining Ignition Temperature of Plastics
ASTM D3874, Standard Test Method for Ignition of Materials by Hot Wire Sources
ASTM D5025, Standard specification for a laboratory burner used for small-scale burning tests on plastic
materials
ASTM D5424, Standard Test Method for Smoke Obscuration of Insulating Materials Contained in Electrical
or Optical Fiber Cables When Burning in a Vertical Cable Tray Configuration
ASTM D5537, Standard Test Method for Heat Release, Flame Spread, Smoke Obscuration, and Mass Loss
Testing of Insulating Materials Contained in Electrical or Optical Fiber Cables When Burning in a Vertical
Cable Tray Configuration
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

ASTM D6194, Standard Test Method for Glow-Wire Ignition of Materials
ASTM E84, Standard Test Method for Surface Burning Characteristics of Building Materials
ASTM E136, Standard Test Method for Behavior of Materials in a Vertical Tube Furnace at 750 °C
ASTM E662, Standard Test Method for Specific Optical Density of Smoke Generated by Solid Materials
ASTM E906/E906M, Standard Test Method for Heat and Visible Smoke Release Rates for Materials and
Products Using a Thermopile Method
ASTM E1321, Standard Test Method for Determining Material Ignition and Flame Spread Properties
ASTM E1354Standard Test Method for Heat and Visible Smoke Release Rates for Materials and Products
Using an Oxygen Consumption Calorimeter
ASTM E1537, Standard Test Method for Fire Testing of Upholstered Furniture
ASTM E1590, Standard Test Method for Fire Testing of Mattresses
ASTM E1822, Standard Test Method for Fire Testing of Stacked Chairs
ASTM E1995, Standard Test Method for Measurement of Smoke Obscuration Using a Conical Radiant Source
in a Single Closed Chamber, With the Test Specimen Oriented Horizontally
ASTM E2058, Standard Test Methods for Measurement of Material Flammability Using a Fire Propagation
Apparatus (FPA)
ASTM E2187, Standard Test Method for Measuring the Ignition Strength of Cigarettes
ASTM E2257, Standard Test Method for Room Fire Test of Wall and Ceiling Materials and Assemblies
ASTM E2574/E2574M, Standard Test Method for Fire Testing of School Bus Seat Assemblies
NFPA 260, Standard Methods of Tests and Classification System for Cigarette Ignition Resistance of
Components of Upholstered Furniture
NFPA 261, Standard Method of Test for Determining Resistance of Mock-Up Upholstered Furniture Material
Assemblies to Ignition by Smoldering Cigarettes
NFPA 262, Standard Method of Test for Flame Travel and Smoke of Wires and Cables for Use in Air-
Handling Spaces
NFPA 265, Standard Methods of Fire Tests for Evaluating Room Fire Growth Contribution of Textile or
Expanded Vinyl Wall Coverings on Full Height Panels and Walls
NFPA 270, Standard Test Method for Measurement of Smoke Obscuration Using a Conical Radiant Source in
a Single Closed Chamber
NFPA 286, Standard Methods of Fire Tests for Evaluating Contribution of Wall and Ceiling Interior Finish to
Room Fire Growth
NFPA 287, Standard Test Methods for Measurement of Flammability of Materials in Cleanrooms Using a
Fire Propagation Apparatus (FPA)
NFPA 289, Standard Method of Fire Test for Individual Fuel Packages
UL 1666, Standard for Test for Flame Propagation Height of Electrical and Optical-Fibre Cables Installed
Vertically in Shafts
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 13943 and the following apply.
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at http:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
afterflame
flame (3.8) that persists after the ignition source has been removed
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.11]
3.2
afterflame time
length of time for which an afterflame (3.1) persists under specified conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.12]
3.3
afterglow
persistence of glowing combustion after both removal of the ignition source and the cessation of any
flaming combustion
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.13]
3.4
afterglow time
length of time for which an afterglow (3.3) persists under specified conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.14]
3.5
combustion
exothermic reaction of a substance with an oxidizing agent
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.55, modified — note has been omitted.]
3.6
ease of ignition
measure of the ease with which a test specimen can be ignited, under specified conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.212]
3.7
exposed surface
surface of a test specimen subjected to the heating conditions of a fire test
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.106]
3.8
flame, noun
rapid, self-sustaining, sub-sonic propagation of combustion (3.5) in a gaseous medium, usually with
emission of light
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.159]
3.9
flame, verb
produce flame (3.8)
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.160]
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

3.10
flaming debris
burning material separating from a burning item and continuing to flame (3.9) on the floor, during a fire
or fire test
Note 1 to entry: Alternatively, flaming debris can be burning material, other than drops, which has detached
from a test specimen during a fire or fire test and continues to burn.
Note 2 to entry: Compare with the terms flaming droplets (3.11).
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.176]
3.11
flaming droplets
flaming molten or flaming liquefied drops which fall from the test specimen during the fire test and
continue to burn on the floor
Note 1 to entry: Compare with the term flaming debris (3.10).
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.177]
3.12
glowing combustion
combustion (3.5) of a material in the solid phase without flame (3.8) but with emission of light from the
combustion zone
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.197]
3.13
ignitability
measure of the ease with which a specimen can be ignited (3.14), under specified conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.212]
3.14
ignite, transitive verb
initiate combustion (3.5)
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.215]
3.15
ignite, intransitive verb
catch fire with or without the application of an external heat source
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.214]
3.16
ignition
initiation of combustion (3.5)
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.217]
3.17
ignition source
source of energy that initiates combustion (3.5)
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.219]
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

3.18
ignition time
duration of exposure of a test specimen to a defined ignition source (3.17) required for the initiation of
sustained combustion (3.5) under specified conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.220]
3.19
irradiance
ratio of the radiant flux incident on a small but measurable element of surface containing the point, by
the area of that element
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.236]
3.20
minimum ignition temperature
minimum temperature of a material at which sustained combustion (3.5) can be initiated under
specified test conditions
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.327]
3.21
primary ignition source
first applied ignition source (3.17)
3.22
punking
propagation of a smouldering combustion (3.5) front after removal of the ignition source (3.17)
3.23
secondary ignition source
heat source which is activated following ignition (3.16) from a primary source
3.24
sustained flaming
flame (3.8), on or over the surface of a test specimen, which persists for longer than a defined
period of time
Note 1 to entry: Compare with the term transitory flaming (3.25).
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.380]
3.25
transitory flaming
flame (3.8), on or over the surface of a test specimen, which persists for a defined short period of time
Note 1 to entry: Compare with the term sustained flaming (3.24).
[SOURCE: ISO 13943:2017, 3.408]
4 Ignition processes
4.1 When plastics are exposed to thermal energy, flammable vapours are often generated from their
surface. Under suitable conditions (especially high temperatures), it is possible for a critical concentration
of flammable vapour to form and spontaneous ignition to result. If a flame is present as the sole energy
source, or as a supplementary source, the ignition process is then assisted; this mechanism is sometimes
known as piloted ignition.
4.2 A specimen of plastic is regarded as ignited when flames appear on the surface of the plastic or
when glowing combustion is evident.
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ISO 10093:2020(E)

4.3 After ignition has occurred, some burning plastics create additional fire hazards by forming flaming
debris or drips. If this flaming debris falls on to combustible material, it is possible for
...