Role of Firebrand Combustion in Large Outdoor Fire Spread.

Large outdoor fires are an increasing danger to the built environment. Wildfires that spread into communities, labeled as Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) fires, are an example of large outdoor fires. Other examples of large outdoor fires are urban fires including those that may occur after earthquakes as well as in informal settlements.

Application of a two-component LDV to the measurement of flows induced by flames propagating over condensed fuels.

In the early stages of a fire, the two mechanisms by which heat transfer occurs are conduction and convection ahead of the flame through gas and fuel phases. The convective flows induced are characterized by low-fluid velocities with changes in magnitude and direction occurring over small distances accompanied by sharp temperature changes. These characteristics make quantitative measurements of fluid velocities difficult using conventional techniques.