- Author
- Lattimer, B. Y.
- Title
- Corner Fire Testing and Fire Growth Model Development. BFRL Fire Research Seminar. VHS Video.
- Coporate
- Hughes Associates, Inc., Baltimore, MD
- Report
- Video, July 18, 2000,
- Keywords
- corner tests | fire growth | fire tests
- Abstract
- A corner fire growth model was recently developed for the U.S. Navy to assess the performance of candidate composite systems for use on surface ships. The fire growth model is capable of predicting flame spread and total heat released from combustible materials lining a corner with a ceiling, in addition to other geometries including flat walls, parallel surfaces, and unbounded ceilings. Input data for the model can be developed using small-scale fire test data from ASTM E1354 (Cone Calorimeter) and ASTM E1321 (LIFT). An important aspect of the model is a heat transfer algorithm, which is an integral solution to a semi-infinite solid heat conduction problem with a time varying heat flux at the surface. The model requires empirical correlations to determine the time varying heat fluxes, but no correlations for heat fluxes from a fire to corner boundaries were available. As a result, a series of fire tests were conducted to develop the necessary correlations for the model. Initial tests were performed in a full-scale noncombustible open corner beneath a hood with different types of burners in the corner. Square sand burners were used to simulate conditions produced by initiating area fires, while "L"-shaped line burners simulated conditions resulting from burning boundaries. Propane was used as the fuel. Using both types of burners, heat flux and temperature fields were measured for a range of different heat release rates and burner dimensions. Data from these tests were used to develop empirical correlations for flame length, heat flux to the boundaries, and gas temperatures near the boundary. Three combustible boundary tests were performed in the open corner to provide validation data for the empirical correlations and the fire growth model. Additional validation of the fire growth model was performed using a series of ISO 9705 room corner fire tests performed by the U.S. Coast Guard on nine different composite materials. A sensitivity analysis was also conducted to evaluate the importance of different variables.