Citation

Hamins A, Bundy M, Dillon SE. J. Fire Prot. Eng. 2005; 15(4): 265-285.

Affiliation

National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8663, USA; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms - Fire Research Lab Ammendale, MD 20705, USA; ( anthony.hamins@nist.gov )

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1042391505053163

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Common household open flame and radiant ignition sources are the actual or suspected cause for many fires. The purpose of this research is to identify the burning behavior and properties of common candles in order to provide additional tools for use by fire investigators. The properties of paraffin wax are obtained from the literature and from experiments. The candles are burned under controlled laboratory conditions to measure the mass burning rate, candle regression rate, flame height, and heat flux. Using the properties of paraffin wax and characteristics of the candles, numerous simulations are performed with the NIST Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) to model the burning rate and heat flux profile of the candle flame. The modeling results are then compared with the flame height and heat flux data obtained experimentally. The model facilitates an enhanced understanding of the structure of candle flames.