Development of a full-scale testing methodology for benchmarking fire suppression systems for use in informal settlement dwellings

Löffel, Stefan; Walls, Richard

doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2019.101451

Cited by 11 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…The numerical simulations were carried out using the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS), a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation that has been utilized by various researchers to explore fire dynamics and fire spread [9, 11-14, 24, 26-30]. The model was built on a full-scale ISO 9705 room geometry, which accurately simulates an IS household and has been used by various writers [9,11,14,27,[31][32][33][34][35][36][37]. The house was subjected to varying wind speeds (1 m/s, 5 m/s, 10 m/s, 15 m/s, 20 m/s, and 25 m/s) and directions (side wind and back wind, relatively to the compartment opening placed at the front wall).Additionally, different compartment boundary characteristics (thermally-thin and thermally-thick) were considered.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical Study on the Effect of Atmospheric Wind on the Fire Severity in Informal Settlements with Different Dwellings’ Wall Thermal Characteristics

et al. 2023

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There is a persistent risk of large-scale fire conflagrations in informal settlements, which can threaten hundreds of people simultaneously. Although the literature implies that wind conditions have a significant impact on these fires, little is known about how wind conditions affect the dynamics and spread of flames in informal settlements. In order to comprehend the impact of wind conditions (speed and direction) on the time to flashover and fire severity in informal settlement dwellings with different wall thermal characteristics, a numerical study was conducted utilizing the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS), a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code. For six different wind speeds (1 m/s, 5 m/s, 10 m/s, 15 m/s, 20 m/s and 25 m/s) and two wind directions (side and back wind). Simulations were conducted with full-scale informal settlement dwellings burning wood cribs, analyzing the fuel mass loss rate, hot gas temperature, global equivalence ratio, radiative heat flux outside the door, and time to flashover. In addition, the influence of wall thermal properties was examined for thermally-thin steel-clad and asbestos cement-clad dwellings (thermally-thick). Regardless of wind direction, it was noticed that an increase in wind speed significantly shortened the time required to attain flashover. This was shown to be the result of the wind accelerating the burning rate of the wood cribs and, as a result, the faster temperature rise of the hot gas. Radiative heat fluxes observed outside the door increased with the wind speeds. The direction of the wind had a small effect on the investigated fire characteristics, with the side wind scenarios exhibiting somewhat longer timeframes to flashover. Thermally-thin walled informal settlement dwellings exhibited a greater fire severity, with higher fuel mass loss rates, hot gas layer temperatures, and higher external radiant heat fluxes, as well as shorter timeframes to flashover. These findings indicate that both wind speed and thermal wall characteristics have a substantial impact on the severity of fires in informal settlements and can enhance the risk of fire spread.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical Study on the Effect of Atmospheric Wind on the Fire Severity in Informal Settlements with Different Dwellings’ Wall Thermal Characteristics

et al. 2023

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“…24 Moreover, in a recent study, it has been reported that the temperature of firefighters’ bunker gear outer shell, in a typical fire, may reach up to the order of 1000 K. 23 Exposure to flashover fire conditions, though not common, include the observation of upper layer temperature of ∼600°C or radiant heat flux at floor level of ∼20 kW m --2 . 49,50 Some of firefighting garments have shown to lose their strength even at lower heat flux of 10 kW m --2 . 9 McCarthy and Di Marzo 47 also observed that with intense heat flux (20 kW m --2 ) firefighter protective gear experiences degradation even at extreme short durations as 30-second exposure.…”

Section: Firefighter’s Thermal Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

A review on volatilization of flame retarding compounds from polymeric textile materials used in firefighter protective garment

Mokoana

Asante

Okonkwo

2023

Journal of Fire Sciences

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Polymeric textile materials, now, find extensive application in modern society than previously imagined, particularly in protective clothing. The application of these polymeric materials has been restricted by their flammability and contribution to fire risk. Flame retarding compounds and inherent flame-retardant materials have been introduced to reduce and even halt the flammability of polymers. However, over time, flame retardants tend to leach out of materials. The exposure of polymer textile to varying heat intensities may trigger polymer and flame retardant’s volatilization and thermal degradation. Firefighters may be exposed to toxic chemicals through the volatilization of flame-retardant compounds from the bunker gear. Flame retardant’s volatilization is associated with thermal degradation of the flame-retardant chemical compounds in the textile material. This review focuses on volatilization of flame retardants from protective textile materials resulting from exposure to heat and seeks to provide the necessary understanding about the release of flame retardants from flame-retardant textiles, particularly firefighting garments.

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Determination of water application rates required for communities to suppress post‐flashover informal settlement fires based on numerical modelling and experimental tests

Löffel

Walls

2020

Fire and Materials

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SummaryFires originating in informal settlements (ie, slums, ghettos, shantytowns, squatter camps) spread rapidly, due to the presence of densely packed, highly combustible dwellings, thereby making these communities inherently susceptible to large conflagrations. By the time, the fire brigades are notified and can get to the scene of the fire, the resulting conflagrations can be large. Thus, it is necessary to equip communities with the ability to combat smaller fires, although it is acknowledged that this is not ideal. Previous full‐scale testing and firefighter experience have shown that water application through ‘bucket brigades’ can be very effective at suppressing fires. In this article, a model is developed for approximately quantifying the amount of water, and discharge rate, that is, required for communities to suppress fires of various sizes using bucket brigades. This is done to answer the question: based on the water supply infrastructure in an area could a community put out post‐flashover fires of certain sizes? If this is not feasible, it would highlight the importance of communities having readily available pre‐filled water buckets at homes. The model presented is developed in fire dynamics simulator and is calibrated based on full‐scale experiments utilizing the bucket brigade technique. It is shown that standpipe discharge rates of 23 to 40 lpm are suitable for fire sizes of around 3.85 MW, based on a dwelling size of 2.4 x 3.6 x 2.4 m. This means that in communities with a single stand‐pipe (water supply point) with flow rates less than 23 lpm, that fires greater than 3.85 MW (as produced by a home of 2.4 x 3.6 m with a timber fuel load of 25 kg/m2) cannot be suppressed in time without resulting in substantial fire spread to adjacent dwellings.

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Development of a full-scale testing methodology for benchmarking fire suppression systems for use in informal settlement dwellings

Cited by 11 publications

References 7 publications

Numerical Study on the Effect of Atmospheric Wind on the Fire Severity in Informal Settlements with Different Dwellings’ Wall Thermal Characteristics

Numerical Study on the Effect of Atmospheric Wind on the Fire Severity in Informal Settlements with Different Dwellings’ Wall Thermal Characteristics

A review on volatilization of flame retarding compounds from polymeric textile materials used in firefighter protective garment

Determination of water application rates required for communities to suppress post‐flashover informal settlement fires based on numerical modelling and experimental tests

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