Abstract
This is the second part of a two-part paper in which the author has endeavored to present all available information on compartment fires in a consistent theoretical framework. This well-documented review of the state of the art should serve as a valuable reference for researchers for some time to come.
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Abbreviations
- a :
-
coefficient, dimensionless
- A :
-
area; surface area; free surface area, m2
- b :
-
thickness of boundary elements, m
- B :
-
breadth of compartment, m
- c :
-
specific heat; without subscript or with numeral subscript: specific heat of lining material, J/kg K
- C :
-
constant
- d :
-
characteristic dimension of flame base, m
- D :
-
depth of compartment, m
- g :
-
acceleration due to gravity, m/s2
- G :
-
mass of wood; fire load, kg
- h :
-
height of windows, m
- h :
-
coefficient of heat transfer, J/m2s K
- H :
-
height of compartment, m
- H :
-
enthalpy, J/kg
- ΔH :
-
heat of combustion, J/kg
- k :
-
thermal conductivity of lining material, J/m s K
- l :
-
length of flame, m
- n :
-
constant exponent, dimensionless
- p :
-
perimenter at the flame base, m
- R :
-
rate of change of mass of fuel (wood), kg/s
- q :
-
heat flux; heat loss flux, J/m2s
- Q :
-
heat flow; without subscript: rate of evolution of chemical energy, J/s
- t :
-
time, s
- T :
-
temperature, K
- U :
-
mass flow, kg/s
- v :
-
velocity of gas at flame base, m/s
- x :
-
distance of key component from surface of insulation, m
- α :
-
factor (Equations 23a and 23b), dimensionless
- β :
-
factor (Equations 41a and 41b, dimensionless
- ζ :
-
empirical factor, dimensionless
- η :
-
empirical factor, dimensionless
- κ :
-
thermal diffusivity of lining material, m2/s
- ρ :
-
density; without subscript or with numeral subscript: density of lining material, kg/m3
- σ :
-
Stefan-Boltzmann constant, J/m2s K4
- τ :
-
time of primary burning; time of fully developed fire, s
- ϕ :
-
specific surface of fuel (wood), m2/kg
- φ :
-
ventilation parameter, kg/s
- a :
-
of air
- b :
-
of flame base; at flame base
- B :
-
due to burning outside compartment
- c :
-
of char; for feeding char oxidation
- C :
-
conductive
- e :
-
entrained into flame
- E :
-
effective
- f :
-
of fuel (wood)
- F :
-
of floor
- g :
-
of gaseous mixture (indicates space-averaged values); due to gases leaving
- h :
-
of heat sources
- m :
-
maximum; pertaining to maximum
- N :
-
net
- o :
-
att = 0; at reference point; at reference level
- p :
-
from pile of wood
- R :
-
radiant
- s :
-
of bounding surfaces
- t :
-
total (surface area of compartment, heat flux)
- T :
-
at temperatureT
- v :
-
of volatiles; of gaseous mixture consisting mainly of volatiles
- W :
-
of windows
- z :
-
in zones of pyrolysis
- τ :
-
att =τ
- —:
-
bar above symbol or group of symbols: pertaining to period 0 < t <τ; average over period 0 <t ≤τ
- =:
-
two bars above symbol: pertaining to periodτ <t ≤ 2τ
- *:
-
critical
- H :
-
for a compartment of heightH
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Note: This paper is a contribution from the Division of Building Research, National Research Council of Canada and is published with the approval of the Director of the Division.
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Harmathy, T.Z. A new look at compartment fires, part II. Fire Technol 8, 326–351 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02590537
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02590537