A NEW MODEL OF WILDLAND FIRE SIMULATION

A new mathematical algorithm has been developed to model the propagati on of a moving flame front in forests or grasslands in order to simula te the spread of the perimeter of a wildfire. The fire is defined as a closed contour propagating outwards at a velocity directly linked to the physical process of combustion. This approach separates the propag ation of the flame front from the combustion itself The aim of the pre sent work is to estimate the propagation of a flame front with time an d to assess the actual abilities of this new mathematical description of the contour. The fire contour is modelled by a complex Fourier seri es function. The model of the digital simulation code PROLIF is presen ted with a description of the first tests. (C) 1998 Published by Elsev ier Science Ltd.