BASIC FIRE

FIREFIGHTING
WHAT IS FIRE?

Isa chemical reaction accompanied by the

evolution of light and heat. It is a
combination of burnable materials with
oxygen chemically termed as oxidation.
 ELEMENTS OF A FIRE TRIANGLE

Oxygen – Makes up 21% of normal air and for this

reason, the term ‘’air’’ is often used in place of
oxygen. The availability of oxygen in The air permits
materials to burn and when air is reduced sufficiently,
burning ceases. The excluding of oxygen from the fire
Triangle is one of the fundamental principle in the
extinguishment.
Heat – It is a form of energy, if
sufficiently intense, will ignite a
Combustible material. Various fuels
that are normally in the solid or
Liquid state will remain in their
respective conditions until their
Temperatures are raised to a point
where flammable vapors are given off.
Fuel – a substance that is used to
provide energy or power, usually by
being burned
FIRE TETRAHEDRON
A tetrahedron can be described as a
pyramid which is a solid having four
plane faces. Essentially all four
elements must be present for fire to
occur, fuel,heat, oxygen, and a
chemical chain reaction. Removal of
any one of these essential elements
will result in the fire being
extinguished.
WHAT IS HEAT TRANSFER?

Heat transfer is a discipline of thermal

engineering that concerns the generation,
use,conversion, and exchange of thermal
energy between physical systems. Heat
transfer is classified into various mechanisms,
such as conduction, convection,radiation.
METHODS OF HEAT TRANSFER
Convection – Fire spreads by way of a circulating gas or liquid

Conduction – Heat will transfer from an area of high temperature

to a low temperature

Radiation – Radiation refers to the emission of energy in rays or

waves. Heat moves through space as energy waves. It is the type
of heat one feels when sitting in front of a fireplace or around a
campfire.
 CLASSIFICATION OF FIRE
Class A – Defined as fires involving ordinary combustible
materials, such as wood, cloth, paper, and other solid burnable
fuel
Class B – Defined as fires involving flammable petroleum
products such as gasoline, kerosene,diesel, and other flammable
liquids.
Class C – Defined as fires involving electrical equipment
where the electrical non conductivity of the extinguishing agent
is of first importance
Class D – Defined as fires involving combustible metals
such as titanium, zirconium, sodium,and potassium.
Class K – Fires involving combustible vegetable or animal
non-saturated cooking fats in commercial cooking
equipment
 METHODS OF EXTINGUISHING
FIRE
The basic methods for extinguishing a fire are to suffocate it
by ensuring that it cannot have access to oxygen, to cool it
with a liquid such as water which reduces the heat or finally
to remove the fuel or oxygen source, effectively removing
one of the three elements of fire.
Starvation – Taking out of fuel from the fire triangle.
Smothering – Taking out of oxygen (blanketing)
Cooling – Taking out the heat