The US Bureau of Mines (USBM) has developed an inflatable feed-tube seal (IFTS) for high-expansion foam generators. The IFTS is a lightweight, portable, rectangular inflatable bag that can be used by firefighters to rapidly seal large openings, such as those in underground mines, and to simultaneously provide a feed-tube for a high-expansion foam generator. Thus allows fire-fighting foam to freely flow to the fire site and control or extinguish the fire. Studies indicated that a high-expansion foam plug will travel 183 m (600 ft) down an entry with a 4.5 percent rise in elevation, before leakage of foam from around the inflatable partition.
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