Salt Water Modeling of Fire Compartment Gravity Currents.
Salt Water Modeling of Fire Compartment Gravity
Currents.
(496 K)
Fleischmann, C. M.; Pagni, P. J.; Williamson, R. B.
International Association for Fire Safety Science. Fire
Safety Science. Proceedings. 4th International
Symposium. July 13-17, 1994, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada,
Intl. Assoc. for Fire Safety Science, Boston, MA,
Kashiwagi, T., Editor(s), 253-264 pp, 1994.
Sponsor:
National Institute of Standards and Technology,
Gaithersburg, MD
Keywords:
fire research; fire safety; fire science; salt water
models; compartment fires; gravity current; backdraft;
explosion hazards
Abstract:
In order to investigate the gravity current speed and
the extent of its mixed region in backdraft experiments,
a series of scaled salt water experiments were
conducted. The scaling parameters are the Froude
number, [equation], and the normalized density
difference, betta=(rho0-rho1)/rho1, where 1 indicates
initial conditions in the compartment (fresh) and 0
indicates conditions in the ambient (salt). The scaled
compartment (0.3m x 0.15m x 0.15m) was fitted with a
variety of end openings: full, slot, door, and window.
Video and photo data indicate that the mixing layer
which rides on the gravity current in the full opening
case, expands to occupy nearly the entire current in the
partial opening cases. Results for the scaled current
height, h*=h0/h1 and v* respectively are: full (0.5,
0.44), slot (0.38, 0.32), door (0.33, 0.35), and window
(0.29, 0.22). These data are independent of betta and
are in good agreement with limit calculations from the
literature.
Building and Fire Research Laboratory
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Gaithersburg, MD 20899