Large test methods of the fire performance of façades in which a full façade is exposed to flaming impingement from what resembles the external plume from a post-flashover fire are common for assessing regulatory compliance of façade systems. Unlike many other fire performance tests, this type of testing is only marginally harmonised internationally, and test methods vary greatly in size, fuel sources and assessment criteria. Many European regulatory systems, including the proposed future pan-European method, define fuel sources of several 100 kg of wood cribs. While wood cribs are historically reliable, they also induce problems for harmonisation between countries and regulations. This paper provides raw data of the exposure to an incombustible façade using the proposed European façade test method with wood cribs. We also show that one can obtain similar thermal exposure using propane gas burners by tailoring the test setup dimensions. The use of gas burners improved repeatability and can allow for lower total heights of the test elements.

The liquid lithium loop included as part of the EuroFusion IFMIF-DONES facility presents a unique fire risk via the possibility of lithium leaks. While the least reactive of the alkali metals lithium can react violently with oxygen, nitrogen, CO2 and water. This risk doesn’t fit with any typical fire testing apparatus, and so to investigate the potential for fires arising from a leak, and the potential of mitigation measures new apparatus was needed to be designed. This paper documents the design of a new piece of apparatus, consisting of 2 chambers (for preparing and then exposing the lithium to reactants) and a contenting device for melting the lithium. Some initial testing of the apparatus was undertaken and its performance evaluated, with weaknesses identified and a route forward for future studies decided.

The report presents a review of current literature, testing and modelling in support of guidelines how to address current risks with batteries from e-bikes and e-scooters. It has been shown that a fire initiated in a battery module can have an exceedingly fast fire growth and may pose new risks that cannot be accommodated within the current design methodology. The data from measurements indicated that the fire growth in terms of heat release rates may be faster than the currently used models. The tests present typical heat release rates from open fire tests in combination with release of toxic and flammable gases from cells and modules. Using accelerating rate calorimetry, conditions when single cells enter a thermal runaway could be determined. Utilizing the information from the testing, simulations of a module were performed to investigate the effect of mass ejection from cells during the thermal runaway, complementing the knowledge how the thermal propagation was disrupted in the module.

The information gathered from literature, testing and modelling was used to propose a design fire. Although, the fully developed fire is no more severe than a usual fire the very fast fire growth rate may cause deflagration type events that compromises the fire resistance properties.

Note that while the proposals are general, they mainly influence possible future dwellings thus dissemination of current risks to the public is necessary. Some of the recommendations can be summarized as follows; Being mindful of batteries and where to charge battery modules; Keep a watch on the health of your batteries, which includes but are not limited to observing if they have been damaged in any way or become unusually hot during operation and perhaps most importantly do not charge batteries where escape routes can be compromised.   

Post-flashover fires inherently lead to external fire plumes, constituting a hazard for rapid fire spread over façades. As multi-storey mass timber buildings with internal visible timber surfaces become more common, there are concerns that such buildings would produce larger external plumes and hazards (assuming all other parameters equal). The literature reveals only indications of this, and how the actual exposure relates to different test methods for assessment is unknown. Here we utilise a series of full-scale mass timber compartment tests to quantify the exposure to the external façade. An incombustible external façade is instrumented with gauges at positions corresponding to reference data from several different assessment methods. The results show that there is an increase in plume duration, height, and temperatures when increasing the areas of exposed timber, but that this increase is less for normal- to large-opening compartments, than was previously seen in small-opening compartments. Also, normal variations in external wind speed have a larger influence on plume heights than the effect of doubling exposed timber surfaces. Test methods used for regulatory compliance differ significantly not only in exposure but also in pass/fail criteria. The proposed European large exposure method and the BS8414 method exhibit exposures on par with the severe end of what could be expected from mass timber compartments, whereas methods like SP Fire 105 and Lepir II produce significantly less severe plumes. However, the safety level is always a combination of exposure and assessment criteria. This data can help justify assessment criteria from a performance perspective. © 2023 The Authors. 

The project BREND investigated risk with alternative fuel vehicles inside ro-ro spaces. BREND 2.0 is a continuation and has in particular investigated two of the major risks identified in BREND, namely the risk of toxic gases from electric vehicle fires and the risk of a pressure vessel explosion for fire exposed biogas or hydrogen vehicle tanks. Simulations of electric vehicle fires inside a ro-ro space based on real input fire data has been performed. Field experiments that investigate the conditions that can lead to pressure vessel explosion were made with fire exposed biogas and hydrogen tanks. Recommendations are given about how ro-ro space fires in alternative fuel vehicles, or indeed any vehicle fire, can be managed.

Electric vehicles (EVs) and other vehicles with alternative energy carriers (such as hydrogen) are becoming increasingly common, and with them new fire risks. This report provides the technical details of computational fluid dynamics simulations carried out as part of the BREND 2.0 project to assess the tenability conditions within a ro-ro space from EV fires, via assessment of temperatures, radiation and spread of toxic species. The simulations primarily considered variation in compartment ventilation and fuel source. In all scenarios a selection of gaseous species, gas temperatures and radiative intensity are recorded at point locations and as 2D slices across the ro-ro space. From the gaseous species fractional effective concentrations, for irritant gases, and fraction effective doses, for asphyxiants, can be calculated to provide an assessment for tenability conditions in each scenario. This report contains the results of the simulations and some general observations but no detailed analysis of the implications of the results in terms of safety of EV fires on a ro-ro space.

Thermal propagation is one of the major challenges when batteries will be used in dwellings in large scale. It means the exothermic reactions in the cell are out of control and can lead to a fast release of flammable and toxic gases. In a system involving a large number of cells, thermal runaway can rapidly propagate from one battery cell to the whole system, which means substantial fire and explosion risks, an event that is important to mitigate and prevent. Multi-physics simulations together with full-scale testing is a cost-effective method for designing safer batteries. This project aims at simulating thermal runaway initiation and propagation using a multi-physics commercial software GT-Suite. 

A battery thermal runaway model containing 12 prismatic cells based on 3-D Finite Element approach was built using GT-Suite. The computed thermal runaway time instants versus thermal runaway cell number were compared with full-scale experimental data with reasonable agreement. Quantitative sensitivity study on the model input parameters and model space and time resolutions on the computed start time instant and time duration of thermal runaway were performed. The thermal runaway model was then extended with an electric equivalent sub-model to simulate the short circuit. With the electrical model acting as the input to the thermal model, the most interesting output of the simulation is the change in temperature of the cells, dependent on the current in the cells, with respect to time. The current is determined by the value of the external resistance through which the short takes place and the voltage level of the battery pack. The obtained results from the above short circuit simulations can only be used as a starting point and not as absolute values for neither triggering the thermal model nor for accurately simulating a battery under an electrical load. Furthermore, GT-Suite was applied to simulate the gas dispersion inside a room. A comparative study of the dispersion of toxic gases during thermal runaway, utilising an arbitrary release of HCN to represent the battery gases, in a small compartment with natural ventilation was investigated and the results compared the same situation simulated in FDS. The pipe based modelling supported by GT-Suite has limited applicability and overestimated the concentrations close to the ceiling whereas the lateral concentrations where underestimated. 

The multi-physics model for battery thermal runaway process is promising and worth to be applied with care for designing safer batteries in combination with full-scale testing. 

The level of protection for personal protective equipment (PPE) in firefighting is important for Swedish shipowners; they want to be sure that the equipment they provide is sufficiently safe for the types of fires that can occur onboard. Shipowners also want to be updated on risks related to the carriage of alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs). Safety products and equipment used onboard ships with a European flag must be certified in accordance with the Marine Equipment Directive (MED) and follow the regulations in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). For fire suits, this means that they must be certified according to one of three standards listed in MED. Two of these standards cover suits used in special cases, with very intense radiant heat, and should only be worn for short periods. The third standard, EN 469, is the same standard that is referred to the PPE Regulation 2016/42, making EN 469-approved fire suits used among European firefighters ashore. However, EN 469 contains two different performance levels where the lower level is not suitable for protection against risks encountered when fighting fires in enclosures. Based on a user study and a risk assessment for AFVs, a set of suggested changes to MED and SOLAS were prepared, together with a set of recommendations for operators that were found important but not subject for regulations. A ready-to-use quick guide, containing the most important results, has been developed for operators.

Façade fire testing has been high on the agenda worldwide due to the increased hazard of many occurrences of severe fire spread on façades. There is also international work going on to create a European standard for façade fire testing. In this context it is interesting to clarify what different national test methodologies are based on. This report is a review of the development that led to the Swedish standard for assessing fire performance of façades, SP Fire 105. The review starts from the development in the 1950s with assessing fire exposure from compartment fires and follows further development until 1990s. The fire exposure in the first edition of SP Fire 105 published 1985 was based on two test campaigns including external flames from room fires performed at Lund University during the late 70-ties and early 80-ties. In the early 90-ties the geometry of the air intake in the combustion chamber and the opening under the test specimen was slightly reduced leading to a lower effective thermal exposure of the façade than in the first edition of SP Fire 105. An important observation done already in the 1950s at the Swedish fire laboratory in Stockholm and in the late 1970s at Lund University was that the wind is influencing the test results when doing experiments outside.

The aim of this project is to provide the basis for risk assessments relating to the risk of lithium leaks in the DONES project. This report firstly summarizes the current knowledge of risks and reaction features at different scales with liquid lithium. Note that the review is limited to fire behaviour of lithium in its liquid state and does not consider additional risks connected with breeding tritium or corrosive effects of impurities. Some of the questions important for this project are to limit the lithium reaction with water, limit the spread of fire started by a reaction with lithium and extinguish flame of lithium induced fires. The second part of the report consists discussion of some initial small-scale experiments, undertaken to provide a basis for limiting the extent for further larger tests, and a proposal for an experimental device where lithium reactions can be studied in a controlled environment, i.e. with controlled amount of oxygen, nitrogen or humidity in the experiment. This will then be the basis for risk assessment for liquid lithium loop in the DONES facility.