Imagine fighting a fire without water, foam, or chemicals—just the power of sound.
Sounds like something out of a sci-fi flick, right? But back in 2015, two engineering students at George Mason University in Virginia made it a reality.
Viet Tran and Seth Robertson, both seniors at the time, built a device that uses low-frequency sound waves to extinguish flames.
Their invention, dubbed the “Wave Extinguisher,” caught the world’s attention and sparked a wave of research into acoustic fire suppression.
Here’s the full story of their breakthrough, the science behind it, and where this wild idea might take firefighting in the future.
The Birth of the Wave Extinguisher
It all started as a senior project for Tran and Robertson, electrical and computer engineering majors at George Mason University.
Instead of picking a safe, predictable project, they decided to tackle something bold: fighting fire with sound.
After a year of trial and error—and $600 of their own money—they built a 20-pound prototype that looked like a cross between a fire extinguisher and a boombox.
The device used a sound generator, an amplifier, a power source, and a cardboard focusing tube to direct low-frequency sound waves at flames.
... continue reading