Patent ID: 8602119

Claim:
A method of preventing fires and extinguishing fires in an enclosed space, comprising: air conditioning the enclosed space such that an internal air atmosphere in the enclosed space is not permitted to exceed a predefined temperature value; providing a liquefied inert gas, comprising nitrogen, in a container; supplying at least a portion of the provided liquefied nitrogen gas to a vaporizer; vaporizing said at least portion of the provided liquefied nitrogen gas in same; and supplying a regulated amount of the liquefied nitrogen gas vaporized in the vaporizer to the internal air atmosphere of the enclosed space such that an oxygen content in the atmosphere of the enclosed space one of drops to a specific inertization level and is maintained at same or is maintained at a specific, preset inertization level, wherein a heat energy needed to vaporize the liquefied nitrogen gas in the vaporizer is extracted from the internal air atmosphere of the enclosed space.