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Wall flame heights with external radiation

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Abstract

An existing flame heat transfer fire testing apparatus was used to study the upward flame spread potential of two kinds of wall materials: (1) PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate) and (2) Douglas Fir Particle Board. PMMA is noncharring whereas Douglas Fir Particle Board is a charring material. Various levels of external radiant heat flux ranging from 1.8 W/cm2 to 3.4 W/cm2 were imposed onto the wall samples in order to measure the flame heights as a function of energy release rate. Flame height measurements were established visually by a review of video recordings. The results for these wall flames correlate flame height to the 2/3 power of energy release rate per unit sample width. The wall results are generally higher than data from gas burner line fires against a wall for a range of 10 to 200 kW/m.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Building and Fire Research Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 20899, Gaithersburg, MD, USA

    King-Mon Tu

  2. Department of Fire Protection Engineering, University of Maryland, 20742, College Park, MD, USA

    James G. Quintiere

Authors
  1. King-Mon Tu
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  2. James G. Quintiere
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Note: This paper is a contribution of NIST and is not subject to copyright.

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Tu, KM., Quintiere, J.G. Wall flame heights with external radiation. Fire Technol 27, 195–203 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01038446

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