Switzerland-wide premiere: Fire tests on wall-bound green façade

May 2023

How green facades behave in the event of a fire still raises many questions. Researchers at the Bern University of Applied Sciences BFH want to change this and have conducted the first fire tests in Switzerland on wall-mounted green façades as part of a multi-year research project. In doing so, BFH is making an important contribution to current international research in the field.

Green facades can contribute to improving the microclimate in the city, support heat regulation in the building and promote biodiversity. However, there is still a large knowledge gap with regard to fire behaviour. In order to close this gap, researchers from the Institute of Timber Construction, Structures and Architecture IHTA at the Bern University of Applied Sciences BFH have carried out two fire tests on wall-mounted green facades.

The test arrangement consisted of a multi-storey external wall element with two full and two only partially formed storeys. In the lower part of the wall element, the researchers placed a fire chamber that was open to the front. This allowed them to simulate the escape of flames from a window as it occurs after the so-called flash-over – the sudden development of a small fire into a large fire. The tests were carried out on the premises of the Dynamic Test Center of the BFH-TI in Vauffelin as closely as possible to the test specifications for exterior wall cladding systems of the Association of Cantonal Fire Insurers VKF (2016).

Based on the results, it is possible to evaluate the fire behaviour of wall-bound green façades for buildings of medium height and to optimise the construction of external wall cladding systems for approval. The tests were part of a multi-year research project.

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