Soap-water Fire-extinguisher

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A fire engine equipped to extinguish fires with foam.
The foam is made by mixing soap water with air and water.

(Morita Corp.)

Benefits of using soap water

Putting out a fire with foam made from soap water uses just one-seventeenth as much water as putting out a fire with just water. (Thanks to the detergent in the soap, the foam contains water, which increases its fire-extinguishing power.)
By using nature of surfactant in soap water effectively, there is no need to add artificial chemicals.
The constituents of soap are neutralized when they flow into rivers or the sea, so there is no damage to the natural environment. Neither is there any harm to the plants and animals that live in the water.

As well as being an effective way to put out fires, soap water is also environmentally friendly!

Further research is being conducted to see how soap water can be used to fight the forest fires that have been breaking out around the world.

The research is a joint initiative between industry, academia, and the local government in the city of Kitakyushu. The Kitakyushu City Fire Department and the University of Kitakyushu are working together on this project with several companies, including the soap manufacturer Shabondama Soap Co. and the fire-engine manufacturer Morita Corp.

(Updated in July 2008)

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