Facilities
Fire Engineering has two laboratories: the small-scale fire laboratory and the medium-scale fire laboratory. The small-scale fire laboratory contains the Cone Calorimeter used for ignition, burning rate and flame spread measurements; the wind-tunnel; a small-scale furnace and the ISO ignition apparatus. The medium-scale fire laboratory contains the furniture calorimeter that can measure fires up to around 2 MW. Space is also available in the Civil and Natural Resources Engineering laboratories for specific projects.
The fire laboratories include instrumentation and data acquisition equipment used as needed for particular research and testing projects. Both the furniture and cone calorimeters are used for graduate laboratory classes as well as MEFE and Ph.D. research projects.
Cone calorimeter
Ignition and burning rate
The cone calorimeter is used intensively to obtain ignition and burning rate data. Materials tested have included upholstered furniture foam and fabric combinations, various species of timber, manufactured wood products, gypsum wallboard, cables and metro train construction materials.
Key publications
Coles A. Flammability of Upholstered Furniture Using the Cone Calorimeter. Fire Engineering Research Report 2001/1. (PDF, 984K)
Flame spread
The cone calorimeter was adapted to measure opposed flow flame spread by the apparatus referred to as the Reduced scale Ignition and Flame spread Technique (RIFT). The RIFT is used to examine opposed flow flame spread over several species of New Zealand timber and timber products such as Beech, Rimu, Radiata Pine, Macrocarpra, Plywood, Particle board, Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF) and Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL).
Key publications
- Merryweather G, Spearpoint M J. Flame spread measurements on wood products using the ASTM E 1321 LIFT apparatus and a reduced scale adaptation of the cone calorimeter. Fire and Materials, 2010. doi:10.1002/fam.1001
LIFT
The Lateral Ignition and Flame Transport (LIFT) test apparatus is a standard test method for obtaining ignition and flame spread properties. The LIFT test apparatus was built in-house and can be setu-up so that materials can be tested either in the vertical or horizontal orientation. Recent work has compared the results obtained from teh RIFT and LIFT.
Key publications
- Merryweather G, Spearpoint M J. Ignition of New Zealand wood products in the LIFT, RIFT and ISO 5657 apparatus using the ASTM E 1321-97 protocol. Journal of Fire Sciences, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 63-88, 2008 [Journal link]
Wind-tunnel
Students taking the Fire Safety Systems course, as well as Master's research students carrying out project work, use the wind-tunnel. It was used to determine appropriate distributions of the Response Time Index (RTI) for a range of commercially available sprinklers. Measurement of the sprinkler conduction (C) factor has also undertaken.
Key publications
- Yu, K.X.J. Investigation of recessed and concealed sprinklers activation in wind tunnel plunge test and in BRANZFIRE computer model (ME Thesis - UC Research Repository)
- Tsui A, Spearpoint M J. Statistical analysis of sprinkler response time index and determination of conduction factor using the plunge test. Building Services Engineering Research and Technology, 2010.
Small-scale furnace
The small-scale furnace is used for testing structural timber connections under fire conditions. Internal connections using high strength steel bars epoxy grouted into LVL members have been under development at the University and were assessed in the furnace.
Key publications
- Moss P J, Buchanan A H, Lau J, Chuo T. Fire resistance of connections in laminated veneer lumber (LVL), ACMSM 19, Christchurch, NZ, 28 Nov -1 Dec 2006.
Civil engineering laboratory
Atrium smoke control
An atrium 1/10 th scale-model was built to study the effects of spill
plumes. The model consisted of a supporting steel frame with ceramic fibre
insulation boards attached. The model simulated a fire within a communicating
space in an atrium building, and consisted of two main units, the fire compartment
and the smoke exhaust hood. Experiments investigated the entrainment of air
into the spill plume in which a downstand and a balcony were present.
Key publications
- Harrison R, Spearpoint M J. The balcony spill plume: Entrainment of air into a flow from a compartment opening to a higher projecting balcony. 9th International Symposium on Fire Safety Science, Karlsruhe, Germany, 21-26 September 2008, pp.727-738, 2009.
- Harrison, R., Spearpoint, M.J. (2006) Entrainment of air into a balcony spill plume. Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, 16(3), pp. 211-245. (UC Research repository)
Water mist systems
A compartment and plenum space was designed to carry out experiments on
the use of a water mist system with a displacement ventilation
system. Fire tests were conducted to measure the effects of the
water mist system on the compartment conditions.
Key publications
- B Hume. Water Mist Suppression in Conjunction with Displacement Ventilation.
Fire
Engineering Research Report 2003/4. (PDF, 9MB)
ISO Ignition apparatus
The ISO 5657 ignition apparatus was used to obtain ignition and burning rate data on upholstered furniture foam and fabric combinations and various species of timber. 
Key publications
- Fleischmann C M , Chen F. Radiant Ignition of Upholstered Furniture, Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineered Fire Protection Design, 2001, 243-252.
- Ngu C K. Ignition Properties of New Zealand Timber. Fire Engineering Research Report 2001/5. (PDF, 636K)
Furniture Calorimeter
The furniture calorimeter can be used to measure the rate of heat release of a variety of items such as furniture, piled stock, vegetation, etc.
Key publications
- Richards P L E, Fleischmann C M, Spearpoint M J. Design fires for deliberately lit fire scenarios in which petrol is used as the accelerant. 9th International Symposium on Fire Safety Science, Karlsruhe, Germany, 21-26 September 2008, pp.1017-1028, 2009.
Computer resources
Students have access to a wide range of general computer applications and specialised fire modelling tools including:- The SAFIR thermal and structural analysis program
- The Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) large eddy simulation CFD program
- Compartment zone modelling software such as CFAST, FPETool and BRANZFIRE
- The Simulex evacuation model
- @Risk Monte Carlo Simulation Package
FDS modelling of the McLeans Island Road experiments |
Evacuation analysis using Simulex. |
Salt water fluid flow
The density difference between salt water and fresh water can be used to represent the flow of hot smoke in a compartment. Fire Engineering has been working with our colleagues in Fluids to examine flows prior t backdrafts and fluids through ceilng vents. The fluids laboratory has extensive darkroom facilities and in-house expertise to support Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Particle Tracking Velocimety (PTV) measuring techniques.Key publications
- McBryde, James David, 2008, Experimental and Numerical Modelling of Gravity Currents Preceding Backdrafts (ME Thesis - UC Research repository)