Post-Flashover Fires in Simulated Shipboard Compartments - Phase 3. Venting of Large Shipboard Fires

Abstract : As part of the Internal Ship Conflagration Control Project, post- flashover compartment fires were created in small and large scale shipboard compartments. The venting test series described in this report was an extension of earlier work which quantified the heat transfer characteristics from post- flashover fires in steel enclosures. The objective of the tests was to quantify the effects of venting a large fire, particularly natural venting and its effect on thermal insults. Tests were conducted both in a steel mock-up at NRL CBD and on board the NRL research test ship, ex-USS SHADWELL. Venting of both the fire compartment and adjacent spaces was investigated. As anticipated, large vent areas are required to achieve significant reductions in the thermal insult to spaces adjacent to the fire compartment. Smaller vents may be effective in relieving smoke, which could help firefighters gain access to the fire. Mechanical ventilation, in the form of a portable water motor fan, was demonstrated to be more effective than natural venting for relieving heat in a compartment adjacent to a fire.... Heat venting, Natural ventilation, Water motor fan, Post-flashover fire, Fire model, Shipboard firefighting, Marine fire protection, Fire test