Citation

Harmathy TZ. Fire Safety J. 1981; 3(4): 261-271.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1981, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Because of drafts, the ventilation of realworld compartment fires is usually more intense than that in classic burn experiments. Fortunately, the potential for fires to spread by structural destruction, irrespective of the nature of fire load, decreases with increasing ventilation, so that designing the fire resistance of the compartment boundaries on the assumption of classic conditions is a safe practice. Fires, however, do not usually spread by structural destruction but rather by the convection of uncombusted fuel volatiles. In deciding on measures for the prevention of convective fire spread the assumption of classic conditions is not necessarily a safe practice. Self-closing doors, fire drainage facilities, and flame deflectors may often prove powerful tools in the provision of fire safety.