Zone model
Definition
A simplified fire model that divides a compartment into two well-mixed zones (upper hot layer and lower cool layer), predicting temperature and smoke-layer height over time. Faster to run than CFD but less spatially detailed.
Related terms
- Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS)
- Computational fluid dynamics software developed by NIST that models fire-driven fluid flow and heat transfer. Used in landmark investigations including Station Nightclub...
- Flashover
- The near-simultaneous ignition of all exposed combustible surfaces in a compartment, occurring when the upper gas layer reaches approximately 600°C and radiative...
- Fuel-limited burning
- A fire regime in which oxygen is plentiful and the burning rate is controlled by the mass of combustible material available and...
- Heat release rate (HRR)
- The rate at which a burning material releases energy, measured in kilowatts (kW) or megawatts (MW). Measured by cone calorimetry for material...
- Ventilation-limited burning
- A fire regime in which the available oxygen supply, governed by opening size and position, constrains the burning rate. The fire produces...
Explained in
- Fire Origin Engineering and Heat ReleaseA simplified fire model that divides a compartment into two well-mixed zones (upper hot layer and lower cool layer), predicting temperature and smoke-layer hei...