Paratech Demonstrates Korea's First Electric Vehicle Fire Propagation Prevention Shut-off Valve

Paratech, a specialized fire protection equipment company, announced on the 26th that it has installed the nation's first 'Non-Interlock Valve' demonstration system to prevent the spread of fires in underground parking lots for electric vehicles. This product operates regardless of valve interlock shutdowns or disconnections and has the advantage of preventing fire transfer to adjacent vehicles. In particular, it can be easily applied by simply replacing the valve while maintaining the existing sprinkler system, and there is no concern about freezing.

Existing valves are divided into alarm valves that supply water when the sprinkler head opens and pre-action valves that supply water when the fire detector operates. Unlike existing pre-action valves, the Non-Interlock Valve opens when either the sprinkler head opens or the fire detector operates, enabling early fire control.

Paratech developed the Non-Interlock Valve independently in August last year and obtained type approval from the Korea Fire Industry Technology Institute. After the product launch, the company supplied the Non-Interlock Valve to a major domestic corporation last year and applied it to the underground parking lot sprinkler system.

Due to the structural characteristics of electric vehicles, a large amount of extinguishing water sufficient to submerge the entire lithium-ion battery is essential to effectively suppress thermal runaway. When a fire occurs in an underground parking lot, heat transfer inside the battery happens rapidly, so minimizing damage spread is considered the top priority.

In the recent fire in Cheongna, Incheon, it was reported that the manager arbitrarily shut off the valve operation, preventing the sprinkler from activating. The company explains that applying the Non-Interlock Valve in parking lots is suitable for preventing fire spread because water is sprayed even if valve interlock is cut off.

A Paratech official emphasized, “Other measures for fire control during electric vehicle fires have minimal practical effect, and fire spread prevention using sprinklers is the most effective. Since the Non-Interlock Valve can supply extinguishing water under any circumstances, applying it to underground parking lots is expected to significantly reduce damage caused by electric vehicle fires.”