Abstract
Severe wooden home conflagrations have previously been linked to the combination of very dry indoor climate in inhabited buildings during winter time, resulting in rapid fire development and strong winds spreading the fire to neighboring structures. Knowledge about how ambient conditions increase the fire risk associated with dry indoor conditions is, however, lacking. In the present work, the moisture content of indoor wooden home wall panels was modeled based on ambient temperature and relative humidity recorded at meteorological stations as the climatic boundary conditions. The model comprises an air change rate based on ambient and indoor (22 °C) temperatures, indoor moisture sources and wood panel moisture sorption processes; it was tested on four selected homes in Norway during the winter of 2015/2016. The results were compared to values recorded by indoor relative humidity sensors in the homes, which ranged from naturally ventilated early 1900s homes to a modern home with balanced ventilation. The modeled indoor relative humidity levels during cold weather agreed well with recorded values to within 3% relative humidity (RH) root mean square deviation, and thus provided reliable information about expected wood panel moisture content. This information was used to assess historic single home fire risk represented by an estimated time to flashover during the studied period. Based on the modelling, it can be concluded that three days in Haugesund, Norway, in January 2016 were associated with very high conflagration risk due to dry indoor wooden materials and strong winds. In the future, the presented methodology may possibly be based on weather forecasts to predict increased conflagration risk a few days ahead. This could then enable proactive emergency responses for improved fire disaster risk management.
Highlights
IntroductionFor example, develop when non-hygroscopic plastic-based products or fuel is involved in combustion
The indoor wooden materials were represented by 12 mm thick wall panels and the model was tested for three selected wooden homes in the Haugesund area and one in Lærdal, Norway
The Bernoulli stack effect correction is recommended for modeling indoor relative humidity (RH)
Summary
For example, develop when non-hygroscopic plastic-based products or fuel is involved in combustion. These fires generally develop very fast [1]. Modern products are in general more dangerous than products used in previous periods [2]. This is the case for industry processing hydrocarbons. Initiatives are taken to detect the fire risk early, that is, before leaks can develop into dangerous situations [3]. Homes may be involved in fires, and in several areas homes are traditionally made of wood based materials. While concrete dominated the home constructions for many years, the emerging focus on sustainability increases the popularity of wood constructions including sustainable safety measures [4]
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