- Author
- Fernandez-Pello, A. C.
- Title
- Fire Propagation in Concurrent Flows. Final Progress Report. June 1, 1981-May 31, 1982.
- Coporate
- California Univ., Berkeley
- Sponsor
- National Bureau of Standards, Gaithersburg, MD
- Report
- NBS GCR 82-392, June 1982, 24 p.
- Distribution
- Available from National Technical Information Service
- Contract
- GRANT-NB80NADA1064
- Keywords
- combustion | flame spread | walls
- Abstract
- A research program has been undertaken to study experimentally and theoretically the process of fire spread in gas flows moving in the direction of fire propagation. The study concentrates on two characteristic modes of fire spread: a) concurrent vertical wall-ceiling fire spread in free convection and b) fire spread in a concurrent forced flow. During this reporting period measurements have been performed of the rate of fire spread over the surface of PMMA sheets in a vertical wall-ceiling configuration. The results indicate that the initiation of spread and rate of spread over the ceiling surface are strongly dependent on the length of the vertical wall. A theoretical analysis of the gas phase process during the steady burning of surfaces of varied length in the vertical wall-ceiling configuration has been completed during this period. The results for the flame shape and length agree well with experimental measurements. Initial testing of a combustion tunnel to study the rate of fire spread in a concurrent forced flow is currently underway. An analysis of the burning characteristics of flat combustible surfaces under mixed, forced and free, convection conditions has also been developed during this contract period. The analysis provides uniform solutions from one convective limit to the other.