Micam EM42 is a highly flame retardant, halogen free, low smoke, low toxic Epoxy laminate, approved by London Underground for use with all now rolling stock. It meets the requirements of UL94V0 fire rating. MICAM EM42 is a filled epoxide resin composite with woven and non-woven Glass reinforcement. EM42 exhibits both excellent reaction to fire and fire resistance. It is a flame retardant, low smoke and low toxic fume, (halogen and phosphorus free) Material when exposed to fire and it will act as a barrier to the passage of fire. It also has exceptional resistance to penetration when exposed to high power DC arcing and will therefore act as an arc barrier. It has good mechanical and electrical Insulation properties, exhibiting a high Comparative Tracking Index and is specifically formulated to ensure excellent Machining characteristics.
EM42 Fire Resistance
Fire resistance is a design/system property and not solely a Material property. EM42 exhibits fire resistance both perpendicular to and parallel to, the laminate plane. At 12 mm it has achieved more than 30 minutes integrity and 15 minutes Insulation in an electrical busbar penetration of a fire partition (Prometheus 7/9/99) and at 100 mm it has achieved over 60 minutes integrity and 60 minutes Insulation (LPC TE 89432). In LPC TE 89432 the test was terminated without failure of the Material. The projected integrity period was too large to estimate but the projected Insulation period was more than 120 minutes.
General Applications
EM42 is suitable for use for electrical/mechanical applications specifically where there is a need for fire or arc performance. It is therefore ideally suited to passenger transport applications and use in enclosed or underground areas. When exposed to fire EM42 leads to low levels of corrosion, (compared to standard flame retardant epoxide systems). The machinability of EM42 is exceptional and it is often used purely for this reason even where there is no fire or arc dimension to the application. Credit – Some Information gathered from Micam Ltd – Advanced Composite Technology ·
