This Device Fights Fire With Bass

Said extinguisher can also put out fire in space.
Stephen Heard
March 30, 2015

Music is used in every given scenario: weddings, birthdays, parties. Now, thanks to a pair of intuitive electrical engineering students, the power of bass can be used in a more practical way - dousing flames.

Seth Robertson and Viet Tran from George Mason University in Virginia have invented a fire extinguisher that uses low-frequency sound waves to engulf a blaze.

Instead of an air tank spewing out foam, water and chemicals, the device uses has a loudspeaker the size of subwoofer to pump out sound waves. It produces a low hum like a regular blast of air, that when pointed in the right direction, will make flames vanish.

As well as of being an everyday utility, the extinguisher has the potential to be used in outerspace, where sound waves can be directed without gravity, in comparison to normal extinguishers that would spread chemicals in a disorderly fashion and possibly damage equipment.

Despite initial doubt from classmates and professors, the pair now have a preliminary patent application and backing from the university.

Published on March 30, 2015 by Stephen Heard
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