FIRE PATTERN PERSISTENCE THROUGH POST-FLASHOVER COMPARTMENT FIRES

Fire patterns, as defined by NFPA-921, are the visible or measurable physical effects that remain after a fire. Fire pattern analysis has been a key factor in the determination of the origin and cause of fires for the more than 50 years. In 1985 the Advanced Fire Patterns Research Project (AFPRP) was formed by the National Association of Fire Investigators (NAFI) and the Fire and Safety Engineering Technology Program of Eastern Kentucky University to complete research into the development of fire patterns. Since the creation of the project, considerable work has been undertaken to study fire growth and spread in both full and ¼ scale test burns. Much of the data generated has been utilized to supplement instruction in the area of Fire Pattern Analysis. The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of the most recent full scale test burns that were conducted at Eastern Kentucky University and sponsored by the AFPRP in order to give the reader an understanding of the wider research which is currently underway. For the past 3 years a series of ten full scale tests were conducted in identically constructed, finished, and furnished compartments. In each of the tests (with one exception) all fires progressed through flashover, to full room involvement. These full-scale test burns provided a considerable amount of data concerning fire pattern development and evolution during fire growth and spread. These test burns demonstrated fire pattern persistence and predictability during pre- and post-full room involvement fires. The full scale tests demonstrated that the fire patterns described in current peer- reviewed literature are correct and when used properly can assist in the determination of the origin of a fire. Due to the necessary brevity of this research report (10 pages), only a selected few of the more significant tests are reported here.