Students from an Anna Maria College Fire Protection Systems course set cars, trees and tires on fire in the college's parking lot as they tested the use of FireIce, a fire extinguishing product.
PAXTON – Students from an Anna Maria College Fire Protection Systems course set cars, trees and tires on fire in the college’s parking lot as they tested the use of FireIce, a fire extinguishing product.
FireIce, created by Florida-based GelTech Solutions, has been used in wildfires across the country and lately it is has been used by Massachusetts fire departments in Boston and Acton, according to representatives of FireIce who were part of the demonstration Wednesday. Representatives from the Worcester Fire Department were on hand to see how the product works.
The product starts off as a powder, but when mixed with water the potassium-based co-polymer turns into a gel. To show how FireIce is resistant to fire, one representative, retired Acton firefighter Bruce Stone, coated his hand in the substance and then turned on and placed a 3,000-degree blowtorch on his hand.
His hand wasn’t burned.
Michael Matros, the professor of the Fire Protection Systems course, said FireIce has been on the market for a few months for municipalities. His students used thermal-imaging cameras, laser thermometers and other items to test the product while battling tire fires, car fires and other types of fires.
“This is a water-based gel that turns into a gel and puts fires out by cooling it and by essentially eliminating all the heat and eliminating all the oxygen by smothering it,” said Matros, who is a Sudbury firefighter.
The product can be used on large fire hoses, thrown out of buckets and used in canisters. Representatives from FireIce and students at Anna Maria College said the product puts out different fires quicker than just using water.
Stone also said the product is safe for the environment.
“And it’s edible,” Stone said, licking some of the FireIce off his finger. The gel cannot be used for fires involving flammable liquids. 
Source: MassLive Worcester http://masslive.com/news/worcester
