Bautista, BJ G.

BS Crim 3-B Rate and period of Heating

CDI6: Fire Protection & Arson Investigation - it influences the susceptibility of wood and wood
products to ignition
(Prelims)
Rate of combustion

- it is markedly influenced by the physical form of

GENERAL CATEGORIES OF FUEL
combustion.

Ignition temperature
Solid combustible materials
- specific ignition temperature of the wood is difficult to
- includes organic and inorganic, natural or synthetic, determine because of the variables concerned.
and metallic solid materials.
TYPES OF FLAMMABLE SOLIDS
Liquid combustible materials
Pyrolyzable solid fuels
- includes all flammable liquid fuels and chemicals.
- includes many of the ordinary accepted combustibles,
Gaseous substances woods, paper and so on

- includes those toxic/ hazardous gases that are capable Non- Pyrolyzable solid fuels
of ignition.
- solid fuels that are difficult to ignite, a common
example is charcoal.

THE SOLID FUELS The following are groups of solid fuels

The most obvious solid fuels are wood, paper, and 1. Biomass- it is the name given to such replaceable
cloth. organic matters like wood, garbage, and animal manure
that can be used to produce energy, for example, heat
produced by burning nutshells, rice oat hulls and other
FACTORS AFFECTING IGNITION AND BURNING OF any products of processing.
WOOD 2. Fabric and Textiles

- almost all fibers and textiles are combustible.

Physical form
- wood uses for kindling is chopped to smaller pieces in
order to speed up burning, heavier wood logs or timber
shows considerable resistance to ignition.
Moisture content
 Fabrics- are twisted or woven fibers.
 Fiber- is a very fine thin strand or thread like
object.
 Textiles- are machine woven or knitted fabric.

- from laboratory ignition and burning test, it has been

shown that the behavior of combustible solids of the
same size, shape, and chemical composition will vary
with moisture content.
Heat of conductivity
CLASSIFICATION OF FIBERS
Natural fibers- they come from plants (coir- coconut
fiber, cotton- seed fiber, pulp- wood fiber), from
animals.

- it is a measure of the rate in which absorbed heat will Synthetic/ artificial fibers- organic fibers, cellulose,
flow through the mass material. cellulose acetate, non cellulose and organic fibers like
fiber glass, steel

FACTORS AFFECTING THE COMBUSTIBILITY OF FIBERS
Chemical composition
- natural and synthetic organic fibers are generally
highly combustible materials especially if they are dry.
Mineral fibers and synthetic inorganic fibers are
normally fire resistant materials.
Fiber finish or coating
- fiber coating combined with organic fibers are
supportive to continued burning of fabric.
Fabric weight
- the heavier the fabric, the greater its resistance to
ignition, thus delaying its ignition.
Tightness of weave
- the closer the fiber are woven, the smaller the space it
contains thus it takes a longer period to ignite it.
Flame retardant treatment
- fabric treated with flame retardant have higher
resistance to ignition.
Limiting Oxygen Index (LOI)
-is a numerical basis of measuring the tendency of a
fabric to continuously burn once the source of ignition is
removed.
3. Plastics
– are included as ordinary fuels under class A except for
those materials of or containing cellulose nitrate
Cellulose Nitrate
- is a chemical powder used in bombs, they are also
called Pyroxylin.
4. Coal
- a black, combustible, mineral solid resulting from the
partial decomposition of matter under varying degrees
of temperature
-they are also used to heat buildings and to provide
energy for industrial machinery.
-the forms of coal are lignite or brown coal, sub-
bituminous coal, bituminous coal and anthracite.
BITUMINOUS COAL
- is the most plentiful and important coal used by
industry.
5. Peat
- it is partially decayed plant matter found in swamps
called bags and used as a fuel chiefly in areas where
coal and oil are scare. In Ireland and Scotland, for
example peat is cut formed in blocks, and dried the
dried blocks are then burned to heat homes.
THE LIQUID FUELS
-are mainly made from petroleum, but some synthetic
liquids are also produced. PETROLEUM is also called
crude oil, they may be refined to produce gasoline,
diesel oil, and kerosene.
General Characteristics of Liquids
 They are matters with definite volume but no
definite shape.
 They assume the shape of their vessel because
there is free movement of molecules.
 They are slightly compressible, they are not
capable of indefinite expansion, unlike gas.
Factors affecting the rate of flame propagation and
burning of liquids
• Wind velocity
• Temperature
• Heat of combustion
• Latent heat of evaporation
• Atmospheric pressure
Latent heat
- is the quantity of heat absorbed by a substance from a
solid to a liquid and from a liquid to gas