While passive fire safety protection systems, such as thermal insulation, are tested for quality, fire resistance and combustible properties, there is no global regulation to test them for toxicity, said Dr Michael Schumm, Director, Isover Ladenburg R&D Center, Saint-Gobain.

“There are no global regulations to determine the toxicity of these systems,” Dr Schumm said. “However, in Europe there is an initiative to bring in some regulation to test for toxicity.”

He added that it is a challenge to test for toxicity, as toxic fumes vary from incident to incident, owing to the burning of other materials in a room, such as furniture and carpets.

Abhishek Chhabra, Business Development Manager, Fire Compliance, Thomas Bell-Wright International Consultants, added: “While there are tests to quantify the toxicity of passive fire protection systems, yet these tests are not readily available or commercialised, owing to the lack of regulations and awareness.”