An Experimental Study of the Effect of Cross Wind on the Pool Fire with Different Leeward Sidewall Heights

Abstract

This paper presents the effect of cross wind on the burning rate and flame morphological characteristics of heptane pool fire with different leeward sidewall heights. The leeward sidewall heights were 10 cm, 20 cm and 30cm and the cross wind velocity ranged from 0.21 m/s to 3.00 m/s. The experimental results indicated that the burning rate increased with the ascending of cross wind velocity, while the burning rate showed a decreasing trend as the leeward sidewall height increased from 10 cm to 30 cm. An empirical formula was proposed to express the burning rate of pool fire with different leeward sidewall heights in cross flow. The flame height decreased with the cross wind velocity increasing, while the flame tilt angle showed an opposite trend. Meanwhile, the flame height and flame tilt angle were correlated with Fr2/3/Q* and u*, respectively. Moreover, the flame would flow out as the cross wind velocity rose up to a certain value when the leeward sidewall height was 10 cm or 20 em, and the difference between the overflow flame tilt angle β and the flame tilt angle α was mathematically expressed for the flame flowed out the leeward sidewall.