PFAS-Free Foam Systems

Change the foam. Prove the system still works.

Fluorine-free foam is no longer a future project for Thai operators. Under the IMO amendments taking effect in 2026, PFOS-containing foam must be removed from ships and offshore units, and terminal and refinery operators face the same pressure from insurers, from their own group standards, and from the direction Thai regulation is travelling. The hard part is not buying a different drum — it is proving the system still performs after the change.

What actually has to change

A PFAS-free conversion touches four things, and skipping any one of them is where projects fail:

The concentrate — selected on fire-test evidence, not marketing. EN 1568 for the European route, UL 162 for the listing your insurer expects, and LASTFIRE for large tank-fire performance.
The proportioning — fluorine-free concentrates are more viscous than the AFFF they replace, so the mixing rate has to be re-measured and certified, never assumed.
The system itself — pipework, linings, bladders and tanks hold residual fluorine that leaches back into the new foam after a straight drain-and-fill.
The evidence — test records, certificates and an updated ITM regime that a regulator or insurer will accept.

Proportioning: the decision that determines the rest

If the site still proportions through a bladder tank, the foam change is constrained by the hardware. A bladder tank is a pressure vessel tied to one concentrate; the bladder is a consumable; and proving the mixing rate means taking the system out of service.

We specify FireDos water-driven proportioners instead. The unit is driven by the water flow itself, needs no external power, holds its mixing rate across the flow range, and is foam-agnostic — the same hardware runs AR-AFFF, AR-SFFF, fluorine-free SFFF and Class A. That means the site can change concentrate later without changing proportioning hardware again, and the mixing rate can be measured and certified after every change. See the NFPA 11 compliance guide for what the standard requires.

The rebound problem

Residual PFAS is the failure mode that catches sites out. Fluorosurfactants bind to pipe walls, hoses, tank linings and bladders, then leach back out into the new fluorine-free charge — so a system that was drained and refilled can still test positive months later. Proper conversion needs a cleaning method statement, verification sampling, and in some cases component replacement rather than cleaning. Our guide to system decontamination and PFAS rebound sets out how this is scoped and proven.

The concentrate

SATU supplies SOLBERG fluorine-free foam concentrate in Thailand, and specifies other certified fluorine-free ranges where an insurer or group standard requires a particular listing. Selection is done on the certificate set that matches the hazard — hydrocarbon or polar solvent, fresh or salt water, the application rate and discharge device actually installed — rather than on a single headline approval. What to check before you commit is set out in PFAS-free foam: what to test before you specify.

How we deliver it

Survey and baseline — existing concentrate, proportioning method, system condition, and the certificates currently relied on.
Selection study — candidate concentrates scored against the fire-test evidence and against your discharge devices and application rates.
Compatibility and proportioning check — viscosity, seals and linings, and a measured mixing rate before changeover.
Decontamination and changeover — cleaning method statement, disposal route for the legacy stock with documentation, and refill.
Verification — post-change proportioning test, updated records, and an ITM plan that keeps the result provable.

Where a fully independent view is needed, we also take study-only engagements with no supply interest — see safety & risk engineering services.