Combustible materials offer great benefit to builders and architects. The use of combustible materials in exterior wall assemblies is regulated via building codes to limit potential fire spread. Acceptable performance is based on NFPA 285. NFPA 285 is a rigorous full scale fire test whose cost per test is high. This cost severely limits its use by manufacturers for design iterations to optimize their products. Using a previously designed intermediate scale fire test rig, the goal of this project was to design a source fire that simulates the fire of NFPA 285. By utilizing existing 2D plume theory and adapting heat transfer principles; this project developed a source fire to replicate the thermal insult of NFPA 285 which will allow for economical testing related to assembly optimization.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Cornachini, Blake Joseph
• Knight, Scott Sheppard
• Ritchey, Thomas John
• Foley, Matthew Wheelock

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• E-project-043015-012746

Advisor

• Dembsey, Nicholas A.

Year

• 2015

Sponsor

• Kreysler & Associates

Date created

• 2015-04-30

Resource type

• Major Qualifying Project

Major

• Civil Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering

Rights statement

• In Copyright