Fire Spread on Walls and Ceilings to Flashover. (Abstract/Presentation)
Fire Spread on Walls and Ceilings to Flashover.
(Abstract/Presentation)
(221 K)
Quintiere, J. G.
NIST SP 998; May 2003.
Keywords:
fire growth; fire spread; walls; ceilings; flashover
Abstract:
Flame spread speed on surfaces has been successfully
modeled using a simple engineering formula that relies
on knowledge of flame heating length and the
corresponding heat flux. The flame spreads if the heat
flux is sufficient to bring the material to its ignition
temperature. This heat transfer process depends on the
thermal properties of the material. To apply this
formula, the material properties must be known. For
practical applications, the material properties must
easily be measurable, and consistent with a model. The
flame heat flux and its extent of heating depend on
orientation, direction of spread, and ambient
conditions. These flame features are presently beyond
the capability of fundamental prediction. The
difficulties that prevent accurate prediction are the
ability to resolve the reaction region, radiation heat
transfer, and turbulence effects. Consequently, I have
relied on correlations and measurements, for the most
part, in estimating these flame parameters.
