THE ROLE OF TEMPERATURE ON CARBON-MONOXIDE PRODUCTION IN COMPARTMENT FIRES

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of temperature on carbon monoxide production in compartment fires in order to resolve t he difference between global equivalence ratio-yield correlations obta ined in simplified upper layer environments and more realistic compart ment fires. The chemical reactivity of upper layer gases was studied u sing a detailed chemical kinetics model. An analysis of the modeling a nd experimental data in the literature provided insights into the effe ct of temperature on carbon monoxide production. The effect of changin g temperature on compartment fire upper layer composition is twofold: (1) the generation of species in the fire plume is changed; and (2) ox idation of post-flame gases in the layer is affected Elevated compartm ent temperatures correlate with increased fire plume temperatures and more complete oxidation of the fuel to CO2 and H2O within the plume. T he layer temperature dictates post-flame oxidation in the layer. For m ost situations, upper layer temperatures below 800K indicate chemicall y unreactive layers. As such, combustion within the fire plume dictate s final CO production in the compartment. Reactions in the upper layer dictate final CO levels when upper layer temperatures are about 900K and higher.