- Author
- Milke, J. A. | Anderson, M. K. | Bowen, M. W.
- Title
- Determination of Recommended Clearance of Duct Surfaces to Combustibles. National Cooking Vent Duct Fire Test Project. Technical Report.
- Coporate
- Maryland Univ., College Park
- Report
- Technical Report, May 1998, 105 p.
- Keywords
- vents | ducts | combustibles | ventilation | computer models | kitchens | commercial buildings | fire protection | heat transfer
- Abstract
- The clearance of combustibles from unprotected kitchen exhaust ducts at commercial cooking establishments is addressed in NFPA 96, "Standard for Ventilation Control and Fire Protection of Commercial Cooking Operations" (1994). Recently, questions have been raised concerning the technical validity of the 18 inch (460 mm) clearance requirement between the duct and combustible surfaces stipulated in section l-3.2.1. A combination of experiments and modeling have been conducted to provide guidance to the NFPA Technical Committee on Venting Systems for Cooking Appliances concerning the appropriateness of the existing clearance requirements. Two sets of tests were conducted in the experimental program. The purpose of one set of three tests was to provide data for calibration of a heat transfer model discussed in section 3 of this report. A second set of seven tests was conducted to provide benchmark data for the exposing flux and duration necessary to ignite the combustible surface.