Indoor relative humidity as a fire risk indicator

Log, Torgrim

doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2016.11.002

Cited by 14 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The severity of the Laerdalsøyri fire was due to adiabatic heating of the ambient air and drying of cellulosic materials, especially indoors, combined with very strong wind likely caused by climate changes. Since the lower indoor relative humidity resulted in fast fire development, indoor relative humidity has been studied as a possible fire risk telltale [10].…”

Section: Recent Cold-climate Firesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It should also be noted that there would be a delay in this peak due to the finite number of air changes per hour. It has recently been demonstrated [10] that the buffering capacity of the wood products will partly even out such a short duration peak in RH compared to the RH values seven days earlier. The short duration peak a few hours before the fire will therefore result in only minor moisture absorption at the surface of solid wood products, such as wall panels.…”

Section: Recent Cold-climate Firesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The diffusion coefficient for wood is typically in the range 1 to 5·10 −10 m 2 /s [10], and it may be considered constant within normal variations of indoor temperatures [20]. For the sake of simplicity, it may be assumed to be 3·10 −10 m 2 /s.…”

Section: Drying Of Cellulose-based Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Placing relative humidity sensors in Challenges 2018, 9, 12 7 of 15 selected homes for recording ambient as well as indoor temperature and relative humidity is possible and has been done in a number of studies for limited periods. In a recent study [10], volunteers were selected among people with a special interest in the research field, i.e., firefighters, engineers, etc. As long as the number of sensors is limited, the cost of calibration, installation, and maintenance may be manageable.…”

Section: A Compromise Solutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the increased fire frequency may not tell the complete story. The intensity of a fire, i.e., increased by low Fuel Moisture Content (FMC), is also important [9,10]. Such effects are discussed in the recent work by Ayoub et al [11], who showed that the hospitalization risk for fire-related burns increases during extreme cold weather in Canada.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Cold Climate Structural Fire Danger Rating System?

Metallinou

Log

2018

Challenges

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Worldwide, fires kill 300,000 people every year. The fire season is usually recognized to be in the warmer periods of the year. Recent research has, however, demonstrated that the colder season also has major challenges regarding severe fires, especially in inhabited (heated) wood-based structures in cold-climate areas. Knowledge about the effect of dry cellulose-based materials on fire development, indoor and outdoor, is a motivation for monitoring possible changes in potential fire behavior and associated fire risk. The effect of wind in spreading fires to neighboring structures points towards using weather forecasts as information on potential fire spread behavior. As modern weather forecasts include temperature and relative humidity predictions, there may already be sufficient information available to develop a structural fire danger rating system. Such a system may include the following steps: (1) Record weather forecasts and actual temperature and relative humidity inside and outside selected structures; (2) Develop a meteorology-data-based model to predict indoor relative humidity levels; (3) Perform controlled drying chamber experiments involving typical hygroscopic fire fuel; (4) Compare the results to the recorded values in selected structures; and (5) Develop the risk model involving the results from drying chamber experiments, weather forecasts, and separation between structures. Knowledge about the structures at risk and their use is also important. The benefits of an automated fire danger rating system would be that the society can better plan for potentially severe cold-climate fires and thereby limit the negative impacts of such fires.

show abstract

Section: Recent Cold-climate Firesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Recent Cold-climate Firesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Drying Of Cellulose-based Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: A Compromise Solutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Cold Climate Structural Fire Danger Rating System?

Metallinou

Log

2018

Challenges

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Development and Verification of a Microservice Architecture for a Fire Risk Notification System

Strand,

Kristensen,

Petrucci

2023

Lecture Notes in Computer Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Prediction of moisture-induced cracks in wooden cross sections using finite element simulations

Brandstätter¹,

Autengruber²,

Lukacevic³

et al. 2023

Wood Sci Technol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Wood absorbs and desorbs moisture due to its hygroscopic behavior, leading to moisture gradients in timber elements as well as swelling and shrinkage. These processes are constrained due to the orthotropic material properties of wood, leading to moisture-induced stresses, which can cause crack initiation and propagation. A significant amount of the damage in timber constructions indoors can be related to changes of the moisture content (MC). However, more information is needed about the correlation between moisture changes or gradients and specific damage characteristics, like crack depths. Thus, based on numerical simulations, the crack depth development within two solid timber and one glued laminated timber (GLT) cross section over time for different relative humidity (RH) reductions and initial MCs is analyzed. For this purpose, a multi-Fickian transport model is used to determine moisture fields, which are then used as loads in a subsequent stress simulation, where linear elastic material behavior is considered. An extended finite element approach, supported by a multisurface failure criterion defining the failure behavior, allows for the simulation of moisture-induced discrete cracking. Based on simulation results, correlations between potential maximum crack depths and moisture gradients in indoor climate conditions are derived, which enables the prediction of crack depths in wood. Finally, it is shown that the initial MC level significantly influences the maximum crack depth that can be expected.

show abstract

Indoor relative humidity as a fire risk indicator

Cited by 14 publications

References 20 publications

Cold Climate Structural Fire Danger Rating System?

Cold Climate Structural Fire Danger Rating System?

Development and Verification of a Microservice Architecture for a Fire Risk Notification System

Prediction of moisture-induced cracks in wooden cross sections using finite element simulations

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About