Fire Safety Engineering & Structures in

Fire
Workshop at Indian Institute of Science
9-13 August, 2010
Bangalore
India

Fundamentals of Fire Dynamics

Session JT3 to JT8

Organisers: CS Manohar and Ananth Ramaswamy

Indian Institute of Science
Speakers: Jose Torero, Asif Usmani and Martin Gillie
The University of Edinburgh
Funding and
Sponsorship:
 Evacuation

te = tde + tpre+ tmov

te total egress time
tde detection time
tpre pre-movement time
tmov movement or displacement time
 Movement

Egress is formulated on the basis of

displacement velocities
V [m/seg]

1 [m/seg]

D [people/m2]
 Movement time(t mov)

Calculations are based on empirical data (SFPE Handbook of Fire

Protection Engineering)
 Pre-Movement (t pre)

Purely statistical
Large error bars
Could potentially be the longest time
 Detection time (t de)
Calculated as a function of:
Technology used
Growth of the fire
Compartment geometry
 Detection

Obvious alarm mechanism

Types of detectors:
Smoke detectors (ionization, photoelectric)
CO Detectors
Temperature detectors
Multiple inputs (Artificial Intelligence)
etc.
 Movement time

Empirical results are available for:

Doors: (q) Personas/m.seg Act like valves
Q= w.q
Where w is the width of the door and Q the total flow rate
Stairs: (q) Personas/m.seg Act like pipes
Ramps: (q) Personas/m.seg Act like pipes
Corridors: (q) Personas/m.seg Act like pipes
Open spaces: (V) velocity in m/s as a function of the
density (N people/m2)
Etc.
Simple Systems

Egress time is the

displacement time + time to
go through a door: Required
Safe Egress Time (RSET)
Untenable conditions give
the Available Safe Egress
Time (ASET)
Codes transform these times
into a maximum
displacement distance + a
required minimum door
width
 Maximum Egress Distance

Egress Time (te) (RSET)

t e= t d + t p

td=dMax/Ve

tp= W.Ve,p

W, dMax given by codes

More Complex Scenarios

Maximum egress distances can not be achieved

Safe areas need to be generated with fire
rated walls, doors, etc.
Example: Stairs in high rise buildings
The design of these safe areas has to
withstand a fire longer than the RSET
Egress is directed to safe areas
 Complex Systems

Street Level Train Platform

Generally are multiple 16.4% 37.6%
entry, multiple exit
systems
Requires more
complex calculations
Restaurant +
But the principles are Coffee
8.1%shop
the same

Waiting Area
37.9%
Complete Problem

To be able to analyze such a system all

components must be understood
It is necessary to calculate tf, te y ts
Uncertainty needs to be established
 The Fire Time (t f)

To calculate the characteristic fire times it is

essential to understand compartment fire
dynamics
 Introduction

Smoke inhalation is responsible for most of the

deaths in a fire

What do we need to know to determine the amount of

smoke produced by a fire?
What is in that smoke?
How is the smoke going to migrate from the room of origin
to the rest of the building?

What has to be done to control smoke migration?

How do we use the smoke for warning? - Detection
The Pre-flashover Fire
)

The Front Room Fire

(BRE Video)
 The Pre-flashover Fire
)

)
 The Pre-flashover Fire
)

)
)
The Pre-flashover Fire
The Compartment Fire

H TU

VS VS
TS

S
m a,o
m
Ta

e
m e
m a,i
m
f
m
 The Pre-flashover Fire
)

)
Flashover
The Fire

Temperatures in
Two Zone Fires are
controlled by fuel
burning rates (Fuel
Limited)

Temperatures in fully
developed fires are
controlled by
ventilation
(Ventilation Limited)
Timeline
Ventilation Limited

A (Floor Area)

H0

A0: Opening Area

H0: Opening Height
Ventilation

~3 m

12-18.5 m

A~ 3000 m2
A0~ 100 m2
H0~ 3 m

Ventilation Factor: A/A0H01/2~20

 The Temperatures

Empirical Data can be

used to estimate fire
temperatures
 Duration of the Fire

-s
80
Depending on the

2
Mass Loss Rate per uint Total Area, g/m
70
average compartment
temperature a mass 60
Wood cribs
PU cribs
loss rate can be 50 PMMA pools
PMMA pools, Vent-lim.
established 40

30
Total consumption of
20
the fuel defines the
longest possible fire 10

duration 0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200
o
Compartment Ceiling Gas Temperature ( C)
 Duration of the Fire

C.I.B.

-s
80

2
Fuel consumption per

Mass Loss Rate per uint Total Area, g/m

70
unit area per unit time
f
m kg / m .s
2
60

50
Wood cribs
PU cribs
PMMA pools
PMMA pools, Vent-lim.
40
Fuel Load
M f kg / m 2
30

20

10
Duration of the fire
M f
0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200
tf Compartment Ceiling Gas Temperature (
o
C)
f
m
Simplest Approach

Slope is defined by losses

through the walls (resistance
Temperature:C.I.B. method)
7oC/min (t>60 min)
10oC/min (t<60 min)

tf
Resistance Method

h r 104 725 W / m 2 K
(500 o C 1200 o C)

1/Ahr 1/Ahr

k
Tf Ta h C Nu g
H
1/Ahk
1/Ahc 1/Ahc
kC
hK
4 t
 Fuel Limited (Growth-PreFlashover)

Zone Model Divides the room into two well

defined zones
Upper Layer Hot combustion products
Lower Layer Cold air

Implies strong simplifications but help

understand the dynamics of the problem
 Initial Stages of a Compartment Fire

Upper Layer -
The parameters
H TU that need to be
evaluated are:
VS TS VS
The temperature
S
m of the upper layer:
a,o
m
Ta Tu
The velocity at
e
m e
m a,i
m which the Upper
f Layer descends:
m
dH
VS
dt
 Initial Stages of a Compartment
Fire
These parameters can be obtained from, the ideal
gas law and conservation of mass and energy in
the Upper Layer

P RTu

A(Tu )H( t ) m S
t

t
A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS
 Conservation of Energy

S m
m f m
e

t

A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS

QP Qm
SCp (TS Ta )
P

Unknowns: f
m
e
m
 Correlations

The Energy Release Rate

Q HCm
f

Mass of air entrained

1/ 3
g 2
m e 0.20 a
Q1/ 3 (H 0 H( t ))5 / 3
C P Ta

Mass Burning Rate: Generally obtained from empirical

correlations
f f (D, Q,Fuel)
m
 References

Different engineering correlations are proposed in

the literature
SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering
NFPA-The Fire Protection Handbook
Karlsson and Quintiere, Enclosure Fire Dynamics, CRC
Press, 2000.
Drysdale, An Introduction to Fire Dynamics, John Wiley
and Sons, 1999
Cox, Combustion Fundamentals of Fire, Academic
Press, 1995
etc., etc., etc.
 The Energy Release Rate, Q

QP

The effective energy Qr

release rate that will be
transferred to the Q
QS,r
combustion products is QF
f
m
unknown.
The effective energy used Q
to gasify the fuel is
unknown.
QC
 Assumptions

Total Energy: Q QP QF Qr
Feedback is generally QF 0
assumed to be small
Radiation is assumed to Qr Q
be a fraction of the total 0 .3
energy released

QP (1 )Q 0.7Q
 Simplifications

Under these
assumptions we can Q H
m
C f
correlate everything with
Q
There is no need to g
2
1/ 3

m e 0.20 a Q1/ 3 (H 0 H( t ))5 / 3

calculate QP directly C P Ta

How do we calculate
f f (D, Q,Fuel)
m
Q?
 The Energy Release Rate

Q HCm
f
Can be found in Can be found for
tables but some particular
generally only for conditions,
simple materials, generally difficult
i.e. liquid fuels to generalize to
real scenarios

Generally Q is evaluated empirically

 Standard Test Methods

The Cone Calorimeter

Energy Release Rate obtained from Oxygen Consumption
ASTM E 1354 Standard Test Method for Heat and Visible
Smoke Release Rates for Materials and Products Using an
Oxygen Consumption Calorimeter
NFPA 264 Standard Method of Test for Heat and Visible
Smoke Release Rates for Materials and Products Using an
Oxygen Consumption Calorimeter
ISO 5660 Rate of Heat Release of Building Products (Cone
Calorimeter)
Ohio State University Calorimeter (OSU-
Calorimeter)
Energy Release Rate obtained from temperature measurements
of the combustion products
ASTM E906 Standard Test Method for Heat and Visible
Smoke Release Rates for Materials and Products
The Cone Calorimeter (ASTM E 1354
)
 Fundamental Issues

Heat Release Rate is obtained indirectly by

measuring O2 consumption

Mass is obtained real-time allowing a true mass

loss rate to be obtained

External Heat Fluxes of 0 to 100 kW/m2 may be

achieved simulating conditions from incipient
stages of a fire to post-flashover conditions
O 2 Consumption

COMPLETE COMBUSTION

Main simplifying assumptions:

Energy release per unit mass of O2,constant
E = 13.1 MJ/kg of O2 consumed
Ideal gas law applies
O2 depletion factor assumes each mole of air
required for complete combustion is
replaced by 1.105 moles of products

nf nair np 1.105nair
Energy Released per kg of O 2

18
Energy Released/kg of O2

16
14
12
[MJ/kg]

10
8
6
4
2
0
0 5 10 15
Carbon Atoms
 Example

CH4 2(O2 3.76N2 ) CO2 2H2O 7.52N2

2 7.52 1 2 7.52 1.105nair nP

The assumption is reasonable but can be

improved by measuring CO, CO2, soot
concentration and reconstructing the
chemical reaction
O 2 Consumption

To
Blower
ex
m
Exhaust Duct
Plenum

= control volume Hood

in
m f
m
Calculations

Oxygen concentration is measured at the

exhaust
Incoming oxygen concentration is that of
air

Therefore oxygen consumed is given by:

m
O m
2
O .in m
2
O .ex
2
 Calculations

Using this information, the energy release

rate can be calculated as:

Q 13.1 m
O
2
MJ
Calculations

2P
mex cA

o To
Density of the exhaust gas
Texh
P Pressure differential across the exhaust orifice

A Cross sectional area of the exhaust stack

c Orifice coefficient
 Solution

How much smoke?

How much time does it take? H(tO)=HO
The following equations need to be solved:

P RTu

A(Tu )H( t ) m S
t

t
A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS
 Solution

1/ 3
P RTu g 2
m e 0.20 a
Q1/ 3 (H 0 H( t ))5 / 3
C P Ta

A(Tu )H(t ) m S 1.105nair np

t

S f (m
m e)

t

A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS QP m
SCp ( TS Ta ) 0.7Q

Q comes from experimental data Calorimetry

 Experimental Results

Ideal Scenario:

Q
m f
m
f
t

t
Kerosene

600

500

400
HRR (kW/m )
2

Series1
300 Series2
Series3

200

100

0
0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225
Time (s)
Gasoline

800

700

600

500
HRR (kW/m )
2

Series1
400 Series2
Series3

300

200

100

0
0 25 50 75 100 125 150
Time (s)
Naphthalene

1200

1000

800
HRR (kW/m )
2

Series1
600 Series2
Series3

400

200

0
0 25 50 75 100 125
Time (s)
 The Real Scale Application

Large Scale Calorimeters

Factory Mutual
Underwriters Laboratories
BRE
 Design Fire

Simple representation of the HRR

H m
Q f
f H C A B m
C

A B r 2 (Vf t ) 2 (Vf2 ) t 2

Q H A m
C B
f H C (Vf )m
2
f t t
2

2
 t 2 parameters

Incipient heat release rate (Q*i)

Incipient period (to)
Growth time (tg)
Growth HRR(Q*o)
Peak HRR (Q*max) 1 2 3 4

RELEASE RATE
Q max
Total HR (Q)
Burnout time (tbo) Q o
tg
Q

Q i
to tbo

TIME
Fire growth characterization

Q=t2
Loveseat
Loveseat

Qmax

Q=t2
 Bunk bed

Corner ignition of lower bunk

Data from Fire on the Web (www.bfrl.nist.gov)
Mattress
 HRR data resources

BFRL / NIST - Fire on the Web

www.bfrl.nist.gov
Lund University - Report on initial fires
www.brand.lth.se
Many other scattered reports
Some data included in fire model suites
CFAST; FPETool
 Initial Stages of a Compartment
Fire

With Q and the empirical correlations we

can come back and evaluate:

P RTu

A(Tu )H( t ) m S
t

t
A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS
 The Solution

For most cases the solution to those three

simultaneous equations has to be achieved
numerically
Several codes are available that will solve the
equations

Always remember what the assumptions are and

where correlations were included
Make sure that the assumptions and correlations
apply to your particular scenario
Smoke Movement

H TU

VS VS
TS

S
m a,o
m
Ta

e
m e
m a,i
m
f
m
 Objectives

How much smoke?

How much time will it take for the smoke to
come out of the room of origin?
What is in the smoke?
 Solution

How much smoke?

How much time does it take? H(tO)=HO
The following equations need to be solved:

P RTu

A(Tu )H( t ) m S
t

t
A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS
 Solution

1/ 3
P RTu g 2
m e 0.20 a
Q1/ 3 (H 0 H( t ))5 / 3
C P Ta

A(Tu )H(t ) m S 1.105nair np

t

S f (m
m e)

t

A(Tu )H( t )Cp Tu m
SCp TS QP m
SCp ( TS Ta ) 0.7Q

Q comes from experimental data Calorimetry

 Design Fire

Simple representation of the HRR

H m
Q f
f H C A B m
C

A B r 2 (Vf t ) 2 (Vf2 ) t 2

Q H A m
C B
f H C (Vf )m
2
f t t
2

2
 How do we calculate the area?

A B r (Vf t ) (V ) t
2 2
f
2 2

A function of the flame spread

Flame spread is a function of ignition
 Ignition

Simplest case
q e q (L) 1-D
Constant heat
x=0
x flux

L
 Ignition Events

Flash Point
Fire Point
Auto-Ignition
F
m Piloted Ignition
TFP
TfP
q e TP Piloted ignition
minimizes environmental
variables-preferred to
study the solid phase!

0 x
 Standard Protocols to Assess the Solid

Introduce many simplifications

A standard methodology will be described

and all simplifications and assumptions
studied
The Lateral Ignition Flame Test (LIFT-ASTM-1321)

Ignition Test Flame Spread Test

The Lateral Ignition and Flame Spread Test
(LIFT)

t ig t p t m t i
TP

t ig t p t m t i T(x,t>tP)
F ( t t P )
m

t ig t p T(x,tP)
Ignition Delay Time

Ignition Delay Time [s]

1400

1200

1000

800

600
Critical Heat
Flux for
400
Ignition

200

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
2
External Heat Flux [kW/m ]
 Results

The experimental data is fitted to the theoretical predictions

and all characteristic values are extracted
The total heat transfer coefficient is evaluated (hT)
Material properties are evaluated (kC, Tig)

Assumptions
Semi-Infinite Solid
Linearized Total Heat Transfer Coefficient: hT=hC+hS,r
Solid remains inert until ignition
 Summary

2500

"
2000 q 0 ,ig
h T (Tig T )

1500
time [sec]

"
1 2 1 q
i

kc Tig T
1000
t ig
500

0
0 10 20 30 40
q e [kW/m2]
Critical Heat Flux
for Ignition
 Ignition Properties

"
1 2 1 q
e
t ig
kc Tig T
Material Tig [oC] kC Critical
[s.kW2/m4K2] Heat Flux [kW/m2]
Douglas Fir 382 0.94 16
Cedar 402 1.22 18
Iroko 410 1.30 17
Polyisocianurate 445 0.02 21
Polyurethane 390 0.30 16
PMMA 378 1.02 15
Acrilic 300 0.42 10
Flame Spread

Propagation Rates Forward

Propagation
Flame
are controlled by
Opposed
orientation Propagation

Propagation
defines the Lateral
Propagation

evolution in size
with time of the fire
Opposed Flame Spread

T
g VF
Cp,g TF S C P ,S Vf (TP T ) T q g S
g
U
q g S
T
Vf
-x g
S C P ,S (TP T ) T

x
T
S
Thermally Thick
Cp,S L
S (TP T )
S
T
T
q g
TP
Thermally Thin
T
S x
T L
 Thermally Thick

Solution
q g 2
S
Vf
S S C P ,S (TP T ) 2

Flame Spread Parameter q g S

2

Solution
Vf
S S C P ,S (TP T ) 2
LIFT Test - Flammability Diagram

1400 0.0045

0.004
1200

0.0035
1000 Vf
[ q 0,ig q e ] 2 0.003

800 0.0025

Vf (m/s)
tig (s)

600 Flame 0.002

Spread Ignition Data
Data 0.0015
400
kW
q "o ,ig 11 0.001
m2
200
0.0005

0 0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Incident Heat Flux (kW/m2)
 Flame Spread Properties

Vf
[ q 0,ig q e ] 2

Material Minimum Flux

[kW/m2] [kW2/s.m3]
Douglas Fir 6.0 2.3
Cedar 9.0 1.2
Particle Board 5.7 2.1
Polyurethane 0.0 11.7
Acrilic 2.0 9.9
PMMA 0.0 14.4
 Design Fire

Simple representation of the HRR

H m
Q f
f H C A B m
C

A B r 2 (Vf t ) 2 (Vf2 ) t 2

Q H A m
C B
f H C (Vf )m
2
f t t
2

2
 Smouldering

Smouldering leads to propagation rates 100

times slower than flaming fires
Therefore is important to establish if the fire
originated in smouldering
Smouldering Limits

1600
1400
1200
Exposure Time (s)

1000
800
600
400
ignition
200
no ignition
0
5.9 6 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9
kW/m2
 What is inside the smoke?

Generally defined by yields (Yp)

A yield is the fraction of the total mass that
corresponds to the specific product
The mass of the specific product is given
by:
CO YCOm
m S
 Typical Yields

Irritants

Compound Pyrolysis Yield Oxidation Yield Threshold Value

(%) (%) (ppm)
Formaldehyde 0 3.32 2
Acetaldehyde 0 3.50 100
Acetone 0 3.84 750
Phenol 0 1.16 5
Xylene 0.61 0.02
Styrene 0.56 0.40
From Purser, SFPE Handbook,
1995

These values vary from fuel to fuel and from

burning conditions to burning condition
 Carbon Monoxide (I)

Flaming Combustion

Material CO Yield CO Yield

(%) (%)
Well Ventilated Under-Ventilated
PVC 11 42
Methane 0.1 10
Propane 0.1 12
Polyester 1.5
Rayon 4.3
Polyurethane 1
Paper 0.3
Wood (red oak) 0.4
From Tewarson, SFPE Handbook,
1995
CO yields for smoldering tend to be much higher, i.e. 6% for
polyurethane foam
 Carbon Monoxide (II)

3
Heavy Work
2.5 Light Work
Sitting
2
%CO2

1.5

0.5

0
0 10 20 30 40
minutes From Purser, SFPE Handbook,
1995
Time to incapacitation because of CO
inhalation
 Carbon Monoxide (III)

It is necessary to know the concentration of CO within the smoke

An additional differential equation has to be incorporated for each species

The CO concentration is a direct function of the fire size

AYCO, u(Tu )H( t ) m CO YCOm S
t