American National Standard

for
Testing Filters Used in Clean
Room Facilities

ANSI/FM Approvals 4920-2014

Approved December 15, 2004

December 2014

© 2014 FM Approvals LLC. All rights reserved.

 Foreword
NOTE: This forward is introductory only and is not part of American National Standard FM 4920.

This Standard is intended to verify that the product as described will meet minimum specific and stated
conditions of performance, safety and quality useful in determining the potential suitability for end-use
conditions of these products. It describes minimum performance requirements for materials that are used as
filters in cleanroom facilities by evaluating the ability of the materials and, in turn, the system components to
limit fire spread and smoke damage resulting from a cleanroom environment.

This American National Standard has been developed according to the essential requirements of due process
for standards development of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). FM Approvals is an ANSI-
accredited standards development organization (SDO).

Approval of an American National Standard requires verification by ANSI that the principals of openness and
due process have been followed and that a consensus of those directly and materially affected by the standard
has been achieved. Consensus requires that all views and objections be considered, and that a concerted effort
be made towards their resolution. Consensus is established when, in the judgment of the ANSI Board of
Standards Review, substantial agreement has been reached.

The American National Standards Institute does not develop standards nor will it in any circumstances give
an interpretation of any American National Standard. Requests for interpretations of the test standard should
be addressed to FM Approvals.

ANSI regulations require that this American National Standard shall be revised, reaffirmed or withdrawn
within five years of the date of publication.
 Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Purpose................................................................................................................................ 1
1.2 Scope................................................................................................................................... 1
1.3 Basis for Requirements ....................................................................................................... 1
1.5 Applicable Documents ........................................................................................................ 1
1.6 Definitions .......................................................................................................................... 1
2 GENERAL INFORMATION .................................................................................................... 2
2.1 Product Information ............................................................................................................ 2
3 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS ................................................................................................ 2
3.1 Review of Documentation .................................................................................................. 2
3.2 Physical or Structural Features ........................................................................................... 2
4 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS ..................................................................................... 3
5 PARALLEL PANEL FIRE TEST ............................................................................................ 3
5.1 Purpose................................................................................................................................ 3
5.2 Parallel Panel Test Arrangement ........................................................................................ 3
5.3 Conduct of Test ................................................................................................................... 5
APPENDIX A: UNITS OF MEASUREMENT ......................................................................... 11
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1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Purpose

This standard states test requirements and procedures for the evaluation of materials used to
manufacture filter assemblies for use in cleanrooms. Filter assemblies are used by the
semiconductor industry, food preparation industry and pharmaceutical industry to filter incoming
air in to the room. Filter assemblies fabricated from materials that do not
meet these requirements are considered to be a fire and smoke hazard and require special
protection for potential fire scenarios.

1.2 Scope

1.2.1 This standard applies to filters assemblies for use in clean room facilities. The purpose of this
stanadard is to test the filter assembly for the potential of flame spread and the amount of smoke
being released during the Fire Exposure Test. The filter assembly typically consists of frames,
filter media, gaskets, sealing gel material and potting compounds.

1.2.2 The standard does not assess the filter assembly’s ability to filter contaminates during normal
operation or in a fire situation.

1.3 Basis for Requirements

The requirements of this standard are based on experience, research and testing and/or the standards of
other organizations. The advice of manufacturers, users, trade associations and loss control specialists was
also considered.

1.4 System of Units

Units of measurement are U. S. customary units. These are followed by their arithmetic
equivalents in International System (SI) units enclosed in parentheses. Appendix A lists the selected units
for qualities dealt with in testing these products; conversions are included. Conversion of U.S.
customary units is in accordance with ANSI/IEEE/ASTM SI 10-10, Standard for Use of the
International System of Units (SI): The Modern Metric System.

1.5 Applicable Documents

The following standard, test methods, and practices are referenced in this standard:

American National Standard for Testing Filters used in Clean Room Facilities.

1.6 Definitions

Pack Height- The height of the filter media housed in the filter frame

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2 GENERAL INFORMATION
2.1 Product Information

The clean room filter assemblies are normially made from pleated fiberglass or polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE)
media and housed within a frame. The filter media is secured and sealed to the frame with an adhesive. The
folded portion of the media is typically held in position at the apex of the fold maintaining the pleat spacing
by adhesive. The finished filter assembly can be used in the clean room in either a horizontal (ceiling) or
vertical (wall) position. In either position, the filter assembly is held in postion using a grid system. The
filter is sealed against the grid system with either a gasket or silicone gel material. The filters are supplied in
a variety of pack heights and widths to fit the application and room size.

Pre-filter assemblies are used upstream of the finished clean room filters and are positioned within the
duct work of the air stream. Normally, there are two stages of pre-filtration. The first stage of pre-filters are
constructed with a low cost filter media assembled in disposal frames. These filters are located at the intake
of the air stream. The second stage pre-filters use a fiberglass media and is secured in a non-metallic frame.
Within the air stream, the second stage filters are located downstream of the first stage air filters.

3 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
3.1 Review of Documentation

During the initial investigation, and prior to physical testing, the manufacturer's specifications and details
shall be reviewed to assess the ease and practicality of installation and use.

3.2 Physical or Structural Features

3.2.1 The sides and ends of the filter media pack shall be secured to the filter frame in accordance with
the manufacturer’s written instructions.

3.2.2 Each filter assembly shall be supplied with its maximum filter pack media height.

3.2.3 A complete grid system with all the necessary gaskets or sealant gel materials shall be supplied for
each filter type (style) being tested.

3.2.4 If the manufactuer is seeking to test a filter assembly that uses a sealant gel, the Material Safety
Data Sheet (MSDS) shall be submitted.

3.2.5 Instructions for mixing the sealant gel and required tooling to combine the ingredients of the
sealant gel shall be submitted prior to assembling the materials.

3.3 Manufacturer’s Installation and Operation Instructions

The manufacturer shall provide the user with:

• written instructions for the proper installation, maintenance and operation of the product;
• services to ensure proper installation, inspection or maintenance for products of such
nature that it would not be reasonable to expect the average user to be able to provide
such installation, inspection or maintenance.

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4 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Test Method for Fire Exposure Testing (for horizontal, vertical, wall filters or prefilters) Clean Room
Filters

4.1.1 Requirement

The test sample is a field installed horizontal, vertical (wall) filter or pre-filter assembly consisting
of finished filter units placed in vertical parallel panel test fire fixture. Four 4 ft. ± 1/8 in. (1.2 m,
±3mm) high by 2 feet ±1/8 in. (0.6 m, ± 3mm) wide filter assemblies are fastened to the fixture
with the vertical surfaces facing each other spaced 1 ft. ±1/8 in. (0.3 m, 3mm) apart. The parallel
panels are subjected to a 57 BTU/s ±5% (60 kW) propane sand burner placed at the base of the
panels. The filters will be tested with their maximum filter pack height and associated grid
suspension (if applicable) system with gaskets or sealant gel (if appropriate).

4.1.2 Test/Verification

The fire exposure test is conducted to determine if the sample filters meet the acceptance
conditions as stated in section 4.1.3.

4.1.3 Conditions of Acceptance of the Fire Exposure Test

1) The visual flame height shall not exceed 6 feet (1.83 m).

2) The chemical heat release rate, measured 2 minutes after the burner is shut off is to be at
or below 25% of the maximum heat release rate observed up to 10 seconds before the
burner is shut down.

3) The cumulative smoke generated shall be less than or equal to 0.13 lb (60 g).

4) The smoke generation rate shall be less than or equal to 0.0005 lb/s (0.23 g/s).

5) The smoke generation rate at 12 minutes shall be less than or equal to 0.0002 lb/s (0.07
g/s).

5 PARALLEL PANEL FIRE TEST

5.1 Purpose

The 8 ft (2.4 m) Parallel Panel Test is performed in order to obtain the maximum flame height, the
chemical heat release rate and smoke quanties generated by the filter sample.

5.2 Parallel Panel Test Arrangement

5.2.1 The Parallel Panel test shall be performed under the Fire Products Collector, which is a minimum
5 MW heat release rate calorimeter running with the optimal air flow for the size of the

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calorimeter. For details, see the Parallel Panel Test arrangement shown in Figure 1 and the Fire
Products Collector in Figure 2.

Figure 1 Parallel Panel Test Arrangement

5.2.2 Two vertical parallel panels shall be constructed. Each panel shall be 8 ft ± 0.5 in. (2.4 m ± 13
mm) long by 2 ft ± 0.5 in. (0.61 m ± 13 mm) wide. The outer layer of each panel shall be a
layer of minimum 0.5 in. (13 mm) thick rigid plywood. The inner layer of each panel shall be a
layer of minimum 1 in. (25 mm) thick calcium silicate insulation board 1. The filter assembly will
be attached to the angle iron frame and tested with its maximum pack height and associated grid
support system.

1
One inch thick calcium silicate board shall be used to prevent heat damage to the plywood layer, regardless of the
sample thickness.

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Figure 2 Fire Products Collector Used for Large Scale Tests in the Parallel Panel Fire Test

5.2.3 Each sample filter assembly shall be in thermal contact with the insulation board side of the panel
through the use of fasteners and grid support system clamped along the two 8 ft ±0.5 in. (2.4 m
±13 mm) long edges of the sample. The ignition source, a nominal 2 ft ±0.5 in. (0.61 m ±13
mm) long by 1 ft ±0.25 in. (0.31 m ±6 mm) wide by 1 ft ±0.25 in. (0.31 m ±6 mm) high
propane sand burner, shall be located between the assembled filter assemblies to provide a 1 ft
±0.25 in. (305 mm ±6 mm) separation between the assembled filter samples. The filter
assemblies shall be positioned such that the top surface of the burner is in contact with the bottom
edge of the vertical sample material. To further insure that the sample separation distance is 1 ft
±0.25 in. (305 mm ± 6 mm) throughout the test, two threaded rods shall be installed to connect
the filters together at the top of each long edge of the assembly.

5.3 Conduct of Test

5.3.1 The test duration shall be 12 minutes (+ 0.1 min, -0) consisting of propane sand burner operation
at the prescribed 60 ±2 kW heat release rate for the first 10 minutes (+ 0.1 min, -0), followed
by 2 minutes (+ 0.1 min, -0) without burner operation. If flaming of the filter sample, including
fingers of flame above the average height, is observed above the top of the filters while the burner
is operating, propane flow to the burner shall cease. A hose stream shall be applied to the panels
and the test terminated thirty seconds after stopping propane flow to the burner if flame height
continues to increase above the top of the panels. The test shall also be terminated and a hose
stream applied if the filters do not stay intact for any reason (i.e., the melting material obstructs the
top of the sand burner) 2.

2
Trained firefighting personnel should use a heavy mist rather than a jet of water from the hose to terminate the test.

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5.3.2 During the test, measurements shall be made for the release rates of material vapors (mass loss
rate, m), flame height and heat and smoke release rates using the Fire Products Collector
instrument section shown in Figure 2. Following the test, data on fire burn patterns shall also be
recorded.

5.4 Test Arrangement & Set-up Procedure

5.4.1 Sheathed thermocouples shall be type K chromel/alumel stainless-steel sheathed thermocouples

with a wire diameter of 0.012 in. (0.3 mm) and an outer diameter of 0.059 ± 0.004 in. (1.5 ±
0.1mm). The hot junction shall be insulated and ungrounded. These will be located in the exhaust
duct and room air, respectively.

5.4.2 Thermocouples shall be of tolerance class 1 in accordance with IEC 60584-2.

5.4.3 Load cell to measure weight loss of the test specimens during the burn. The range of the load cell
shall be capable of monitoring 500 lbs (227 kg), weighing to the nearest 0.01 lb (0.005kg).

5.4.4 Data Acquisition computer capable of recording and storing input data from the thermocouples
and heat flux gage at intervals not exceeding 1 second, and able to provide a hard copy of the data
shall be used.

5.4.5 CO, O2 and CO2 analyzers for heat release measurements and an IR laser system with detector to
measure obscuration for smoke release measurements.

5.4.6 Timing device - stopwatch or clock with 1 second divisions or equivalent.

5.5 Test Specimen

5.5.1 The test specimen consists of the necessary components to construct two (2) filter assemblies,
each covering a 2 ft ±1/8 in. x 8 ft ±1/8 in. (0.6 m±3mm x 1.2 m ±3mm) area. The filter
assembly must be tested with its maximum filter pack thickness.

5.5.2 The test specimen is to be built by those suitably qualified in the construction of this type of
structure.

5.6 Ignition Source

5.6.1 The ignition source is a propane gas sand burner made from mild steel and having a rectangular
top surface layer of porous inert material (e.g. sand). The burner has face dimensions of 12 in. by
24 in. (305 mm x 610 mm). The construction is such that an even gas flow is achieved over the
entire open area.

5.6.2 The burner is placed on the center of the apparatus’ platform and is aligned such that the bottom
edge of each specimen is on the lip of burner with a separation of 1 ft. (305mm) between panel
faces.

5.6.3 The burner is to be supplied with house grade propane (86 % purity). The gas flow to the burner is
to be measured with an accuracy of at least ± 3 %. The heat output to the burner is to be controlled
within ± 5 % of the prescribed value of 57 BTU/second (60 KW).

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5.6.4 The burner heat output is to be 57 BTU/second (60 kW) for the first 10 minutes of the test. The
gas flow to the burner is calculated by dividing the burner heat release rate by the heat of
combustion of the propane.

5.7 Thermocouple Location

A mandatory sheathed thermocouple is installed in the centerline of the exhaust duct at least 12
diameters from the exit of the cone of the collector.

5.8 Test Procedure

5.8.1 The data acquisition system is started and allowed to run for two minutes prior to igniting the sand
burner to get base line data for duct flow rate, obscuration probe out put, CO, CO2, O2 and both
room and duct temperature.

5.8.2 The test set-up is to be photographed and videotaped prior to testing.

5.8.3 Propane flow to the sand burner is started at 11 gpm (42 standard liters per minute (slpm)). A
propane fired torch is used to ignite the burner. As soon as the propane burner has flames
covering the surface, a timing mark is placed into the data acquisition system as a reference to
“time zero” for the test.

5.8.4 Adjust the burner to maintain the required flow of 11 gpm (42 slpm) to maintain level of 57
BTU/second (60 kW). The gas supply to the burner is turned off 10 minutes into the test.

5.8.5 Continue running the data acquisition system for two minutes longer to monitor the behavior of
the test specimens after the burner is shut down.

5.8.6 During the test, record the following observations and the time at which each occurs (usually
directly to the video tape):

a) flame height
b) smoke intensity and color (visual)
c) size of zone where flames are attached to the surfaces of the panels or clean room filter
assemblies under test
d) charring, bellying in
e) delamination, falling debris, flaming droplets
f) indications of flame spread through core of specimen (i.e. discoloration of facing panels)
g) any other unusual behavior

5.8.7 End the test if flame height exceeds 6 ft. (1.8 m) or after 12 minutes, whichever occurs first, by
turning off the gas supply to the burner (if not already turned off) and extinguishing the fire with
one or more hose streams. The test is terminated earlier if structural collapse or other conditions
potentially dangerous to the laboratory staff develop.

5.8.8 Photograph and videotape the test specimen after the test has been terminated and the fire
extinguished.

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6 PROCEDURE TO CALCULATE FLAMMABILITY DATA

6.1 Purpose

Tests conducted in the Parallel Panel Test under the Fire Products Collector require that the
chemical heat release and smoke generation rates be measured in a measurement duct where the
flow is well-mixed.

6.2 Chemical Heat Release Rate Calculation

6.2.1 The chemical heat release rate shall be determined from the following equation:

Equation 1

where ĠCO2 is the mass flow rate (kg/s) of CO2 and ĠCO is the mass flow rate (kg/s) of
CO in the measurement duct of the Fire Products Collector and Ġ CO2 and Ġ CO are the
0 0

corresponding mass flow rates (kg/s) before specimen ignition, if the composition of the
sprecimen is known. The coefficients 13,300 kJ/kg and 11,100 kJ/kg in Equation 1shall be
replaced by values for the net heats of complete combustition per unit mass of CO2 and CO
generated.

6.2.2 The mass flow rates of CO2 and CO shall be determined from the following equations:

Equation 2

Equation 3

where Ad (m2) is the cross sectional area of the sampling duct, Td is the gas temperature for flow
in the appropriate measurement duct, K (-) is the flow coefficient, Δp m (Pa) is the differential
pressure output corresponding to the device sensing gas velocity in the measurement duct, Patm
(Pa) is actual atmospheric pressure during the measurement, X is the mole fraction of CO2 or CO
measured in the duct and 353 (kg K/m3) is the product of air density and temperature at normal
atmospheric pressure.

6.3 Smoke Generation Calculation

6.3.1 Smoke generation rate, Ġs shall be determined from the following equation :

Equation 4

where λ is the wavelength of light (which shall be in the range 0.6328 to 0.6348) used to measure
the extinction coefficient, D (m-1) in the measurement duct and v (m3/s) is the total volumetric
flow rate in the measurement duct.

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6.3.2 The volumetric flow rate shall be determined from the following equation:

Equation 5

where all parameters have been defined above.

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Parallel Panel – Summary of Results

Client:______________________
Material: ________________________

ANSI/FM 4920 Cleanroom Filter Test Results

Observation/measurement Result Criteria

Flame height, ft (m) Max 6 (1.8)

Chemical heat release rate decay: Decay of at least half
Max rate within 10 s before burner is after 1 minute and of at
56.9071 Btu/min (kW)
turned off least a factor of 4 after
At 1 min. after burner is turned off Btu/min (kW) 2 minutes, from the
At 2 min. after burner is turned off Btu/min (kW) max rate
Smoke generation rate, lb/s (g/s) (/453.6) Max 0.0005 lb/s (0.23)
Smoke generation rate at 12 min., lb/s (g/s) (x0.002205) Max 0.0002 lb/s (0.07)
Total smoke generation, lb (g) (x0.002205) Max 0.13 lb (60)

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APPENDIX A: UNITS OF MEASUREMENT

LENGTH: in. - "inches"; (mm - "millimeters")
mm = in. x 25.4

ft - "feet"; (m - "meters")
m = ft x 0.3048
AREA: in2 - "square inches"; (mm2 - "square millimeters")
mm2 = in2 x 6.4516 x 102

ft2 - "square feet"; (m2 - "square meters")

m2 = ft2 x 0.0929
MASS: lb - "pounds"; (kg - "kilograms")
kg = lb x 0.454

PRESSURE: psi - "pounds per square inch"; (bar - "bar")

kPa = psi x 6.895

bar - "bar"; (kPa - "kilopascals")

bar = kPa x 0.01
bar = psi x 0.06895

HEAT: Btu - "British thermal units"; (J - "joules")

J = Btu x 1.0551 x 103

HEAT RELEASE RATE: Btu/min -"British thermal units per minute"; (kW - "kilowatts")
kW = Btu/min x 0.0176

TEMPERATURE: °F - "degrees Fahrenheit"; (°C - "degrees Celsius")

°C = (°F - 32) x 0.556

LIQUID: gal - "gallons"; (L - "liter")

L = gal x 3.785

L - "liter"; (dm3 - "cubic decimeters")

L = dm3

FLOW RATE: gal/min - "gallon per minute"; (L/min - "liters per minute")
L/min = gal/min x 3.785

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