Effect of live/dead condition, moisture content and particle size on flammability of gorse (Ulex europaeus) measured with a cone calorimeter

IF 2.9 3区农林科学 Q1 FORESTRY

International Journal of Wildland Fire Pub Date : 2024-06-26 DOI:10.1071/wf23167

Katharine O. Melnik, Andres Valencia, Marwan Katurji, Daniel Nilsson, Greg Baker, Oleg M. Melnik, H. Grant Pearce, Tara M. Strand

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

Live fuel comprises a significant portion of the fuel consumed in forest and scrub crown fires. However, its flammability remains poorly understood. Although live fuel differs from dead fuel in moisture content, chemical composition, cellular structure and physiological characteristics, its higher moisture content masks the effect of other characteristics on its flammability.

Aims

The aim of the study was to delineate and assess the effects of live/dead condition, moisture content and particle size on flammability of gorse (Ulex europaeus L.).

Methods

Live and dead gorse material of three size classes (0–3, 3–6, and 6–10 mm in diameter) at six moisture contents (0, 10, 25, 50, 75 and 100%) was tested in a cone calorimeter to evaluate its flammability using new sample preparation and moisture conditioning techniques.

Key results

On average, live fuel ignited 21% slower, reached 11% higher peak heat release rate, and had a 12% shorter burn duration than dead fuel of the same moisture content. These differences were most pronounced in coarser material.

Conclusions

For gorse, fine dead fuels increase the likelihood of ignition, fine live fuels contribute to high burning intensities, and coarser live and dead fuels prolong combustion.

Implications

These findings highlight the need to account for flammability differences between live and dead fuels in fire behaviour models beyond those driven by variations in moisture content.

查看原文本刊更多论文

用锥形量热计测量活/死状态、含水量和颗粒大小对戈壁草（Ulex europaeus）可燃性的影响

背景活燃料在森林和灌丛树冠火灾所消耗的燃料中占很大一部分。然而，人们对其可燃性仍然知之甚少。虽然活燃料在含水量、化学成分、细胞结构和生理特征方面与死燃料不同，但其较高的含水量掩盖了其他特征对其可燃性的影响。研究目的这项研究的目的是界定和评估活/死状态、含水量和颗粒大小对戈壁草（Ulex europaeus L.）可燃性的影响。方法采用新的样品制备和水分调节技术，在锥形量热计中测试了六种水分含量（0、10、25、50、75 和 100%）下三种大小级别（直径 0-3、3-6 和 6-10 毫米）的活体和死体戈壁草材料，以评估其可燃性。主要结果与相同水分含量的死燃料相比，活燃料的平均点燃速度慢 21%，峰值放热率高 11%，燃烧持续时间短 12%。这些差异在较粗的材料中最为明显。结论对于戈壁草来说，细死燃料会增加点燃的可能性，细活燃料会导致高燃烧强度，而较粗的活燃料和死燃料会延长燃烧时间。启示这些发现突出表明，在火灾行为模型中需要考虑到活燃料和死燃料之间的可燃性差异，而不是由含水量变化引起的差异。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Journal of Wildland Fire 农林科学-林学

CiteScore

5.50

自引率

9.70%

发文量

审稿时长

12-24 weeks

期刊介绍： International Journal of Wildland Fire publishes new and significant articles that advance basic and applied research concerning wildland fire. Published papers aim to assist in the understanding of the basic principles of fire as a process, its ecological impact at the stand level and the landscape level, modelling fire and its effects, as well as presenting information on how to effectively and efficiently manage fire. The journal has an international perspective, since wildland fire plays a major social, economic and ecological role around the globe. The International Journal of Wildland Fire is published on behalf of the International Association of Wildland Fire.