Experimental Investigation of PMMA Compartment Fire

Abstract

Transient fire behavior in a compartment was investigated using a reduced scale model with a PMMA specimen. The fire growth process from ignition to full involvement was presented in the floor, wall and ceiling fire situations. Flashover time depended on the ventilation parameter A√H, and had a minimum at about A√H = 0.01m^5/2 in the floor and wall fire situations. But the behavior of ceiling fires was quite different from those of floor and wall fires. The ceiling may have a considerable resistance to self-sustained burning compared with the floor and wall. Sustained burning of the ceiling fire was observed only in the small A√H region of the small compartment.