Collection: Security cabinets

No, absolutely. It is one of the most frequent and dangerous errors in laboratories and workshops.

Simple spacing between shelves does not eliminate chemical incompatibility. In the event of spills or evaporation, the vapors of flammable liquids and the corrosive fumes of acids and bases can react with each other inside the same confined volume, igniting fires, explosions, or releasing toxic gases. Furthermore, the corrosive fumes would rapidly corrode the automatic closure mechanisms of the cabinets for flammable liquids, compromising their safety.

The solution in compliance:
It is necessary to use separate cabinets or opt for combined (or fractionated) cabinets.These special models are divided internally into sealed compartments, thermally and structurally isolated from each other, each equipped with its own collection basin and preparation for independent ventilation.

The reference technical standard: EN 14470-1Establishes that fire safety cabinets must be equipped with air intake and exhaust ducts to allow connection to an aspiration system.

• Natural Ventilation:Is only tolerated for low-risk substances and minimal storage (e.g. pesticides, where often perforated grids as per DPR 290/01 suffice), provided the hosting room is already strongly ventilated and no explosive atmospheres (ATEX) are created.
• Forced Mechanical Ventilation:becomesmandatory in practice (according to the 81/08 decree on chemical risk and the Fire Brigade guidelines) if solvents or substances generating toxic or flammable vapors at room temperature are stored inside the cabinet.

The system must ensure continuous air exchange (exhausted to the outside in a safe area), maintaining the cabinet in constant depression to prevent the escape of harmful vapors when opening the doors. In the event of a fire, the ventilation grilles of the cabinet must seal automatically via thermofusible valves at around 70°C.

It is absolutely necessary to have a specific cabinet for lithium batteries.A common cabinet for flammable liquids (even if certified EN 14470-1 Type 90) is not suitable and may prove inefficient.

The danger of lithium-ion batteries is not just exposure to an external fire, but the internal risk of Thermal Runaway (thermal instability) due to short circuits, charging defects or impacts. When a lithium-ion battery enters self-combustion:

1. Generates internal temperatures that exceed rapidly 1000°C.
2. Produce toxic gases, dense and highly flammable under strong pressure.

Specific lithium storage cabinets offer a double-layer protection: double path: not only do they protect batteries from external fires, but they also contain any internal explosion. They are also equipped with internal walls with filters for fumes, thermal and smoke sensors, dedicated extinguishing systems (e.g. aerosol) and electrical panels with ventilated internal outlets to interrupt the current in case of anomaly during charging.

In Italy, the minimum capacity of the retention basin at the base of the cabinet is strictly regulated by environmental and safety regulations (Water Regulations and Ministerial guidelines). The calculation follows the maximum value rule

The bathtub must be able to hold the largest volume among:

• 100% of the volume of the largest container stored in the closet.
• 33% (one third)Of the total volume of all liquids contained in the cabinet.

The only tax exception:If the cabinet is located in a zone subject to groundwater protection or if it contains exhausted oils, the collection tank must necessarily contain the 100% of the total stored volume.

Example: If you store 5 tanks of 20 liters each (Total = 100 liters), the 33% of the total is 33 liters, while the largest container is 20 liters. The tank must have a minimum capacity of 33 liters.

For most agricultural and nursery companies, the structural requirements set by the DPR 290/01 are sufficient (successive decrees linked to the PAN - National Action Plan for the sustainable use of phytosanitary products).

The standard cabinet for pesticides and pharmaceuticals must be:

• Made of robust steel, locked with a key to prevent unauthorized access to personnel.
• Equipped with grids for natural ventilation to prevent the accumulation of toxic vapors.
• Equipped with shelf trays (retention tanks) to collect spills.

When do you need the EN 14470-1 certification instead?
If among the stored pesticides and adjuvants you have packages marked with the warning symbols for "highly flammable" (GHS02)"highly flammable" (GHS02) warning symbols and the quantities exceed the modest usage quantities, the obligation to fire protection kicks in. In that case, the cabinet must possess the REI/Type certification for flammable materials, integrating the collection basins to protect the environment from the toxicity of pesticides.