Flow induced by fire in a compartment

Abstract

Fifty-five full-scale steady-state experiments were conducted to study the flow induced by a simulated pool fire in a compartment under conditions characteristic of the developing fire period. The mass flow rate through the door or window opening and bounds on the fire plume entrainment rate are presented as a function of opening geometry, fire strength, and fire location. The characteristics of the measured opening flow rates are explained by a simple hydrostatic model based on temperature distribution. A good correlation between the measured results and the idealized flows, taking into account the complete temperature distribution, is demonstrated. Entrainment results for fires near walls are in reasonable agreement with results from free-standing plume models. Except for the smallest openings, fires in other locations entrain at a rate two to three times the rate predicted by these models. This phenomenon is attributed to room disturbances caused by the opening flow and is similar to the behavior of a fire plume in a cross wind.