http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/scitech/SciTechRepublish_778692.htm
Thicker fireproofing may have prevented WTC collapse: expert Thursday, 6 February 2003 Thicker fireproofing insulation on the World Trade Centre girders would have prevented the twin towers from falling so quickly, according to an American fire safety expert. An analysis by Jim Quintiere, of the University of Maryland's Department of Fire Protection Engineering, suggests that the thickness of the insulation is a key to why the towers collapsed after being hit by two hijacked planes on September 11, 2001. About 2,800 people were killed in the attacks blamed on Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda network. "The south tower was the first to fall even though it was hit after the north tower. The insulation on its burning floors was only half as thick (as the north tower)," New Scientist magazine said on Wednesday. It added that according to Mr Quintiere's calculations, if both towers had had insulation 50 millimetres thick, they might not have collapsed at all. A preliminary report of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) stated that the insulation was 19 millimetres thick on the floors of the south tower where the plane hit, half of what it was on the floors struck in the north tower. "The implication of these insulation differences are astounding," the magazine quoted Mr Quintiere as saying. Officials who conducted the FEMA investigation into the disaster believe the dislodging of the fireproofing on the girders was the main reason for the collapse. When the World Trade Centre was built in the 1970s, 19-millimetre fireproofing was used. Doubling it was later recommended but it was only applied to fewer than a third of the towers' girders by September 11 because the work could only be carried out as floors became empty, according to the magazine. "The New York City building code stipulates that the insulation on steel structures should be at least 38 millimetres thick. However, the Port Authority's special legal status means it does not have to comply with the code," New Scientist said. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is the owner of the World Trade Centre. Mr Quintiere admits that more work is needed to prove whether or not his theory is correct. The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which investigates the causes of building failures that cause substantial loss of life, told the magazine it will assess the theory. "We plan to conduct tests at NIST with different insulation thicknesses beginning in February and likely to end in March," an NIST investigator told the magazine. _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
