Effect of ceiling extraction on the smoke spreading characteristics and temperature profiles in a tunnel with one closed end

Abstract

A series of fire tests in a 1/15 scaled-model tunnel with one closed end have been conducted. Analysis was carried out to explore temperature distribution and smoke propagation under the influence of ceiling extraction system. Five different heat release rates, three dimensions of exhaust outlet, and numerous extraction rates were considered. Experimental results led to some interesting findings about the relationships between smoke extraction rate, fuel mass burning rate, and ceiling temperature. Two distinctive ceiling temperature regions were identified according to their different responses to smoke extraction rate, i.e., ceiling temperature decay between the fire and outlet was almost independent of smoke extraction rate while temperature upstream of the outlet decreased sharply with the increase of smoke extraction rate. Analysis was also conducted about smoke back-layering length, revealing its strong dependence on heat release rate and induced air velocity. Based on the experimental results and dimensional analysis, three empirical formulas were proposed to capture ceiling temperature decay and smoke back-layering length for tunnels with one closed end utilizing ceiling smoke extraction.