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🔥 Fire performance

🌡️Ceramic fibre

Spun refractory fibres for 1000–1400 °C — kiln linings, gaskets, and a respirable-fibre caution that AES grades try to ease.

Also called: RCF · alumino-silicate wool · AES wool

🌡️
At a glance
Score intensity

Darker cells mean a higher score for this topic on that metric.

Score profile

Each bar is a 0-100 atlas score for this topic, not a timeline.

149897805034
Fire
Heat
Specs
Timeline

Milestones in order. This is history, not a weekly activity grid.

1942+ Babcock & Wilcox1950s Needled blankets1970s Modules1988–97 EU carcinogen class1990s AES / Superwool2000s REACH / SCOEL2010s Polycrystalline Al2O32010s Fire-protection wraps2020s RCF substitution2020s Recycling of offcuts
  1. Babcock & Wilcox
  2. Needled blankets
  3. Modules
  4. EU carcinogen class
  5. AES / Superwool
  6. REACH / SCOEL
  7. Polycrystalline Al2O3
  8. Fire-protection wraps
  9. RCF substitution
  10. Recycling of offcuts
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18 min read

Last reviewed Sources & creditsMedia creditsMethodology

heat 98 · fire 97

Fire role or insulation role

Pick the fire-performance reading or the insulation reading already scored on this material. Teaching marks — not a specification.

Atlas scores and on-page facts only. A named product test, thickness and assembly decide any real wall or garment. No lab stamp.

Open compare lab

Quick facts

1260–1400 °CT class
A1Fire
RCF vs AESHealth
Kiln blanketIcon
low vs brickλ
fireFamily

Ceramic fibre is one of 32 materials in this atlas, grouped under fire: history, structure, measured properties, process routes, uses, safety and market — not a product catalogue.

Scores compare Ceramic fibre with the rest of the atlas on strength, heat, fire behaviour, insulation, workability and circularity. They are editorial, not certificates.

Seven chapters follow. Fire and insulation claims name test families (Euroclass, ASTM E84, ISO 5660, KS F) rather than inventing a single safety number.

Deep introduction

Deep dive: Ceramic fibre

Ceramic fibre (Al2O3–SiO2 (RCF) / alkaline earth silicate (AES)) is a family of grades whose density 64–192 kg/m³ blankets, heat band classification T often 1260–1400 °C, and fire letter A1.

What “the material” actually is

Ceramic fibre is sold as grades, not as a single substance. Chemistry Al2O3–SiO2 (RCF) / alkaline earth silicate (AES), density 64–192 kg/m³ blankets, heat band classification T often 1260–1400 °C.

This atlas treats Ceramic fibre as a system: mill route, coatings, tests and the cavity it sits in.

Heat, fire and insulation

Conductivity note: λ rises with T; still far below brick. Insulation score 80/100 is relative to 32 entries — metals lose, VIPs and aerogels win.

Fire letter in editorial use: A1. Do not equate A1 with “safe in a blaze” or E with “illegal”. Assemblies decide.

How it is made and used

Origin: 1940s–60s US/JP; EU RCF classification 1990s, United States / Japan / EU. The process chapter follows feedstock → conversion → forming → finish → install.

Uses span buildings to defence / safety. Pairings matter: mineral-wool.

Market and circularity

Producers below are landmarks, not an endorsement ranking. Prices are bands, not live quotes.

Circularity mark 34/100. Ask which scrap, which certificate, which year.

The profile

149897805034
Strength 14
Heat resistance 98
Fire performance 97
Insulation 80
Workability 50
Circularity 34

Fire role or insulation role

Pick the fire-performance reading or the insulation reading already scored on this material. Teaching marks — not a specification.

Atlas scores and on-page facts only. A named product test, thickness and assembly decide any real wall or garment. No lab stamp.

Seven chapters

Fire mark or insulation mark first?

Decision walkthrough on Ceramic fibre: fire 97, insulation 80, and one fact already on file — not a code stamp.

  1. Read the fire-performance mark — Fire on this hub is 97/100 — teaching comparison among atlas materials.
  2. Read the insulation mark — Insulation is 80/100 — heat-flow story, not the same question as flame.
  3. Sit one published fact beside them — Quick fact on file: T class: 1260–1400 °C.
  4. Sustainability is not a fire skip — A high sustainability mark does not replace fire protection in a real assembly.
  5. Not a building-code rating — Named tests, thickness and build-up still decide compliance — this page is literacy only.

On Ceramic fibre, fire 97 and insulation 80 answer different jobs; T class: 1260–1400 °C grounds one real detail.

Editorial atlas marks. Not a code certificate or product approval.

Thermal mark or safety fact first?

Second lab decision on Ceramic fibre: heat-resistance 98 beside published thermal fact Conductivity — literacy, not a code stamp.

  1. Read the heat-resistance mark — Heat resistance on this hub is 98/100 — a thermal story, different from the fire/insulation pair.
  2. Sit one thermal fact beside it — Properties chapter lists Conductivity among published thermal rows.
  3. Heat resistance is not a fire skip — A high thermal mark does not replace named fire tests in a real assembly.
  4. Still not a building-code rating — Thickness, build-up and named tests decide compliance — this page teaches axes only.

On Ceramic fibre, heat 98 and Conductivity are a second thermal/safety reading after fire vs insulation.

Editorial atlas marks. Not a code certificate or product approval.

Heat line to keep

Choose the heat reading for Ceramic fibre.

Keep heat resistance 98.

A decision from printed marks. Not a building permit.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ceramic fibre non-combustible?
Declared reaction class in this atlas: A1. Assemblies still need resistance tests.
Does Ceramic fibre insulate?
Thermal mark 80/100 versus the atlas. Conductivity note: λ rises with T; still far below brick.
What is the density band?
64–192 kg/m³ blankets
How is it made?
Origin story: 1940s–60s US/JP; EU RCF classification 1990s (United States / Japan / EU).
Can it be recycled?
Circularity mark 34/100 — editorial, route-specific.
Typical melting or failure heat?
classification T often 1260–1400 °C
What should it be paired with?
mineral-wool: Building A1 wool at much lower T.
Where is it specified?
Buildings, transport, energy and consumer goods — see the uses chapter.
Is the fire-performance score a building-code rating?
No. It is an editorial 0–100 teaching mark among materials in this atlas. A real wall or garment needs a named product test, thickness and assembly. This page is not a lab stamp.
When should I read insulation instead of fire?
Use the insulation pick when the question is heat flow — lining, loft, or a cold-bridge — and the fire pick when the question is how the same material behaves in flame. Both numbers already sit on this hub; they answer different jobs.
Does a high sustainability score mean I can skip fire protection?
No. Sustainability here is a relative atlas mark (growth, reuse, embodied story). Bamboo and timber can still char like wood. Fire protection stays a separate specification.
Why is bamboo missing in some languages?
A language URL is published only when the seven chapters are real prose in that language. Bamboo exists in English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese and Spanish. French, German, Portuguese and Russian stay withheld — earlier machine drafts leaked English, so those URLs are not opened.

Icons

1

Kiln blanket

Global · 1960s–

Kiln blanket is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

2

Petrochem module

US Gulf · 1970s–

Petrochem module is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

3

AES Superwool

Europe · 1990s–

AES Superwool is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

Fire-wrap duct

Fire-wrap duct

Global · 2000s–

Fire-wrap duct is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

5

RCF warning label

EU · 1990s–

RCF warning label is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

Polycrystalline fibre

Polycrystalline fibre

Japan / US · 1980s–

Polycrystalline fibre is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

Gasket paper

Gasket paper

Global · 1970s–

Gasket paper is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

Shuttle tile cousin

Shuttle tile cousin

United States · 1980s

Shuttle tile cousin is a reference point in the public image of Ceramic fibre.

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Head-to-head

Same family or rival physics — pick a duel.

Similar materials

Closest neighbours on the six atlas axes — strength, heat, fire, insulation, workability and circularity.

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