The constant force is applied to the tool by two 3.3lb constant force springs. Dissertation, The University of Edinburgh, Kahneman D, Tversky A (1974) Judgment under uncertainty: heuristics and biases. He attributes the differences to the ventilation effects. These white areas were similar in appearance to clean burn patterns at first glance, but were shown upon closer examination to be differentiated based on smeared, directional appearance with observable water drip marks. There are hundreds of materials that can be found in residential occupancies, as such there are thousands of studies that would need to be reviewed and summarized here to identify the characteristics of the material properties and the impact that heat has on each material. This was observed in rooms, which had flashover conditions where clean burn areas were produced under windows away from the origin. Each of the seven steps will have a process or multiple processes that assist in moving the decision maker through the overall process of determining an area of origin. However, some data exists that indicates if a compartment fire does not transition to a fully involved state, then the floor patterns may persist (Putorti 2001; Mealy et al. (0.91m2.1m). An optical measurement method was developed to arrive at optical properties of smoke deposited out of a smoke layer onto glass filters. 2003). Most of these earlier texts, however, do not offer a process on how to use the data, other than vague descriptions on visibly identifying greater areas of damage and tracing fire patterns. Many of the early texts discuss this similarly to Rethoret when he states using the method of tracing the course of the fire and by working backwards, the actual place where the fire originated can usually be determined by the greatest damage (Rethoret 1945). Often times the soot deposited within the room of origin will be higher in elevation with distinct lines of demarcation and thick soot deposits. The researchers report negligible winds on the day of the tests. Some of their more notable findings was that floor patterns caused by ignitable liquids may be minimal because they can easily be destroyed, that the commonly reported clean burn damage may be caused by water spray from fire suppression hoselines and that areas of clean burn were associated with the inflow of air due to local ventilation flows. The first component evaluated is the ability to assess the varying degree of fire damage along the surfaces of the compartment and contents. Accelerants Substances, such as gasoline, paint thinner, and alcohol, that accelerate the burning process. Fire Safety Science-Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium, New York, NY, pp 129139, Taroni F, Bozza S, Aitken C (2005) Decision analysis in forensic science. Fire Technology 16(2):95103, Article 2003). This definition is insufficient compared to how the profession currently uses the term. Shanley et al. 2006). Identifying the cause of the damage is complicated by the fact that the investigator has to use evidence after the event, such as the location and magnitude of damage, compartment geometry, ventilation openings and the position and number of fuels as a means to identify the range of initial conditions that may have influenced how the fire developed. The gauge is capable of reading measurements to 0.0005 (0.01mm). Finally, type of damage indicates the physical or chemical changes to the material, such as penetration, flaking, deposition, consumption and other material decomposition fire effects. The earliest texts on fire investigation expressed the importance of using damage and fire patterns in determining the area of origin (Rethoret 1945; Straeter and Crawford 1955; Kennedy 1959; Kirk 1969). 2013). 2003). The most important finding from these tests is that the interpretation of all fire effects provides substantial evidence for the investigator to identify the correct area of origin (Gorbett et al. Investigations Institute, Florida (USA), Hoffmann J, Hoffman D, Kroll E, Kroll M (2003) Full Scale Tests of Television Sets and Electronic Appliances. As such, fire investigators have written about the use of visible and measurable observations related to varying damage to wood for as long as fire investigation has been in existence (Rethoret 1945). The tests were able to burn in the full-room involvement state for 7, 140 and 111s respectively. Surface effect is the result of the nature and material of the surface which contains the fire pattern, affecting the actual shape of the lines of demarcation displayed, or increasing Google Scholar, DSM-IV-TR (2000) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The first published fire pattern tests was in 1984 (Custer and Wright 1984). Fire and Arson Investigator Journal of the International Association of Arson Investigators 64(1):3747, Custer R, Wright C (1984) Open Windows and Thermal Inversions may Complicate a Fire Investigation. The only method that appears to be systematized and examples provided was the truncated cone method in conjunction with the heat and flame vector analysis (Kennedy and Kennedy 1985). In the Ngu study, a series of power law correlation plots were developed between the calcination of gypsum wallboard and the total heat exposure for various types and thicknesses of the material (2004). Fire occurs due to the exothermic reaction of combustion (burning), producing heat and light. The further the fuel item burning was from the wall surface, the lines of demarcation would be more subtle in contrast and would be more round in angle in the shape of a U. Kennedy and Kennedy (1985) were also the first to propose that damage would be in the shape of a triangular, columnar, or conical shape after the flame plume had intersected a wall surface within a compartment. The other misconception stated that if the pattern had a wide base and resembled an inverted cone, then it was started with a liquid fuel (Barracato 1979). The fundamental items within the definition that may assist in better defining the term fire pattern is that patterns are something that happens in regular and repeated ways with characteristic features. Recently, the National Academy of Sciences released a cautionary report regarding analysis that requires expert interpretation of observations (NIJ 2009). U-shaped development can be seen in cognitive skills such as learning new words, or doing high-level algorithms in mathematics. The following statistics were accumulated while performing the literature review and summarized here for VG fire patterns. Several studies concerning ventilation-controlled fires throughout the years have introduced a concept of a ventilation factor (\( {A}_v\sqrt{h_v} \)) and illustrated the importance of ventilation openings on a fires growth by analyzing the size of ventilation openings, locations of these openings within the compartment and the shear mixing that occurs at the interface of the opening (Kawagoe 1958; Thomas and Heslden 1972; Harmathy 1972; Thomas and Bennets 1999; Utiskul 2007; Sugawa et al. Fire plume generated fire patterns are the most important to identify correctly. (2013) identified similar effects near ventilation openings in their compartment fire tests. Chemical changes include the decomposition/pyrolysis, dehydration, or changes in color. The three tests were conducted with identical contents and ventilation. Fire investigation textbooks, guides and studies describe the use of lines or areas of demarcation in assessing damage. Physical changes include melting, deformation, expansion, or loss of tensile strength. If the burning fuel package was located at or very near the vertical witness surface, then the expected fire pattern is shaped as a V, evidenced by its angulated lines of demarcation. This warning was strengthened over the years to say irregular, curved, or pool shaped patterns on floors and floor coverings should not be identified as resulting from ignitable liquids on the basis of observation of the shape alone (NFPA 2001). The use of 2 springs running parallel to each other allows for equal pressure on each side of the tool (Fig. No literature exists that defines methods on how to identify a fire pattern from a cluster of damage. The accuracy of the proficiency test was matched with the demographics of 586 professional fire investigators. He found that the damage from the flame plume would extend approximately the width of the fuel for 100kW fires that did not have a ceiling jet form and 3 times the width of the fuel with 300kW fires that did have flame extension under the ceiling. [4], The U-shaped development in physical skill comes from the development and recession of muscular strength, on the graph the Y-axis is muscular strength and the X-axis is time. Average velocities of natural ventilation flows through windows have been recorded between 0.5 and 1.0m/s (1.14.4 mph) depending on the sill height and elevation of the opening within the wall (Kerber 2010; Kerber and Walton 2005; Quintiere and McCaffrey 1980). 2013). National Fire Protection Association, Quincy (USA), Ngu C (2004) Calcination of Gypsum Plasterboard under Fire Exposure. Identification of varying DOFD throughout the compartment serves as the basis for interpretation by the investigator. Characteristics distilled from the literature related that the ULG patterns will have level lines of demarcation with relatively uniform magnitude of damage, unless the upper layer is flowing from one location to another and, if so, the lines of demarcation will be angled towards the opening. 1997). Post-test data collection included examination, photography and a subset of depth of char measurements. The principle behind fire patterns was first linked to the need to trace the fire spread (Rethoret 1945). Several examples are provided along with engineering calculations such as: Inverted Cone Patterns; Column-shaped Patterns; V-shaped or Cone Patterns; U-shapes and Double U-shaped Patterns; All of the early texts indicate that fire tended to rise and that a pattern may exist from this damage, but most did not use the term pattern nor did they give any guidance on what a pattern was (Rethoret 1945; Kennedy 1959; Kirk 1969). The combustion of a fuel through diffusion flames is inherently oxygen limited by the diffusion reaction and the availability of only 21% of oxygen in air in well-ventilated fires. Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article. Presently, much of this interpretation is implicit and subject to investigator bias, with assignment of interpretation to patterns being largely dependent on the investigators knowledge, experience, education, training and skill, without the benefit of a structured framework to help guide the investigator through the process. However, fire investigators currently use their visual interpretation to give vague descriptions on the varying degrees of damage when reporting their findings. The use of depth of char and relating this depth to duration of burning has fluctuated as to its usefulness in fire investigations since the mid-1950s. This study focused on the impact of ventilation on fire patterns and the ability of fire investigators to use fire patterns to determine the quadrant of the room where the fire began. The correct word is nadir, but to remain consistent with these texts apex will be used. Decision support frameworks are derived from the field of decision analysis, as well as from uncertainty analysis and risk analysis. This study also developed a simplified grid system out of tent pole stakes to decrease scene processing time. 2008; Mann and Putaansuu 2010; Madrzykowski and Fleischmann 2012; Mealy et al. In the report, the authors outlined the need to improve the scientific foundations of the forensic disciplines, particularly those that are dependent on qualitative analyses and expert interpretation of observed patterns, including fire investigations (NIJ 2009). Shanley et al. His findings indicate that gypsum wallboard was the only material that could be reliably used for predicting intensity and duration purposes. Director, Fire Investigation Specialist. A literature review was performed in order to achieve the objectives of this study. Section 5, Ch. In the first edition of NFPA (1992) the investigator was cautioned, that no specific time of burning can be determined based solely upon depth of char. The combustion within this compartment is of a high efficiency and the yields of soot and carbon monoxide (CO) are low (Pitts 1994). The first discussion on this came in the form of discussing beveling or loss of mass (DeHaan 1983). The results confirmed that the use of this method was appropriate for these three test fires (Shanley et al. NFPA, Quincy, MA, pp 3.1253.133, Quintiere J, McCaffrey B (1980) The Burning of Wood and Plastic Cribs in an Enclosure. Society of Fire Protection Engineers, Technology Report 828, Heskestad G (2008) Fire Plumes, Flame Height and Air Entrainment. The early texts on fire investigations promoted the use of identifying the varying degree of charring throughout the compartment to assist with origin determination. Some of these indicators used were alligatoring, crazing of glass, depth of char, lines of demarcation, sagged furniture springs and spalled concrete. The reported velocity of flows from wind-assisted or mechanically induced flows through the bottom of a door and window can be on the order of 10m/s (22 mph) (Kerber and Walton 2005; Madrzykowski and Kerber 2009). This includes the spring housing and rear slider block. 1997). The high temperature gases and soot in the upper layer influences the patterns formed on lining materials of the compartment and contents. When lacking a systematic approach to solving complex problems, many professions have turned to decision support frameworks, tools or methods, the intent of which are to guide the decision by asking questions and helping to assess the weight or importance of variables. This was also observed on walls opposite door openings (Shanley et al. fire patterns) in an attempt to reconstruct the fires development. Finally, an area that is white in color surrounded by soot areas should not be classified as a clean burn area until closer examination is performed. (2013) identified hose spray from suppression efforts as washing off areas of soot and ash from the gypsum wallboard, leaving behind a white area. Cambridge University Press, New York (USA), Lattimer B (2008) Heat Fluxes from Fires to Surfaces. Science 185:11241131, Kawagoe K (1958) Fire Behavior in Rooms. Standardized proficiency testing should be developed for each process developed and all users of these processes should be tested for proficiency. The test fire used for this survey was setup as a residential living room furnished with a polyurethane foam couch and loveseat, end tables and a coffee table. (2006; 2008) conducted a fire pattern reproducibility study using single fuel items. Several correlations have been developed to assist in determining the minimum HRR necessary for flashover to occur, conditioned on the total surface area of the compartment (AT) and the ventilation factor \( {A}_v\sqrt{h_v} \) (McCaffrey and Quintiere (1977); Babrauskas 1980; McCaffrey et al. The most emphasis was placed on combustibles involved and openings and ventilation. Several studies noted areas of clean burn and damage of great magnitude occurring around contents and to wall surfaces within this airflow and to wall surfaces directly opposite of the opening during ventilation-controlled conditions (Custer and Wright 1984; Shanley et al. This pattern is not an accurate indicator of an accelerant, or arson. Source: Guide to Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination, PMS 412. The cited basis for this pattern is the principles of fluid flow and the buoyant nature of heated gases. The fire plume is typically the highest temperature zone within the compartment, which can lead to significant damage (Beyler 1986; Lattimer 2008). A series of nine full-scale studies, funded by the National Institute of Justice, were conducted with ignitable liquid fuel spilled on carpeted and vinyl flooring with varying ventilation scenarios (Mealy et al. The literature review is limited to structure fire studies. The central theme is that the investigator can section off a room and can use the location of ventilation openings as a predictor of the location and magnitude of damage based on the location of this ventilation and the predicted airflow from these openings. In ventilation-controlled conditions, cue 1 was the most positively identified in 82% of the studies (37/45), cue 2 was identified in 73% of the studies (33/45), cue 4 was identified in 64% of the studies (29/45), cue 6 was identified in 62% of the studies (28/45), cue 3 was identified in 53% of the studies (24/45), and cue 5 was only identified in 11% of the studies. For more information on this term, see the interFIRE VR Resource File . Photograph courtesy of Robert A. Corry. Fire Sci Rev 4, 4 (2015). 2009). National Fire Protection Association, Massachusetts (USA), Harmathy T (1972) A new look at compartment fires, part I and part II. The fuels were burned against a gypsum wallboard lining material within a compartment lined with gypsum wallboard. They confirmed that 6.6lbf (3kgf) of force was best at matching the Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) chemical analysis of dehydration found in the Mann and Putaansuu study (2010). Test. In fact, Kirk was very adamant that investigators should not conclude that the damage was from an ignitable liquid as such an interpretation was more often incorrect than otherwise (Kirk 1969). A thermocouple tree was located at the area of origin. U-shaped development, also known as U-shaped learning, is the typical pattern by which select physical, artistic, and cognitive skills are developed. In addition, if these gases were undergoing flaming combustion as they exited the opening, thermal damage to the wall surface is expected to follow the same theory (DeHaan and Icove 2011). Two methods are used to visibly interpret damage on gypsum wallboard (1) cross-sections of the wall can be evaluated for visibly identifiable changes to the gypsum wallboard through depth and (2) the surface effects can be evaluated for visibly identifiable varying DOFD. As a result, the observations are typically qualitative in nature. forced convection, mechanical movement of smoke or spreading of contaminants), the change of ventilation upon arrival (breaking windows, opening doors, cutting holes in ceiling), and overhaul after the fire has been extinguished. Kirks three-dimensional conical shape persists today as the predominant means of evaluating the geometry of fire patterns. heat, soot) begin to influence the materials within the compartment. This misconception was so ingrained in the profession that it was repeated as fact in the Fire Investigation Handbook published by the National Bureau of Standards (Brannigan et al. The only process for fire pattern analysis discussed in the literature is the use of a heat and flame vector analysis (NFPA 2014; Shanley et al. Fire and Materials 5(3):130141, Thomas I, Bennets I (1999) Fires in Enclosures with Single Ventilation Openings Comparison of Long and Wide Enclosure, Fire Safety Science Proceedings of the Sixth International Symposium, Thomas P, Heslden J (1972) Fully Developed Fires in Single Compartments, A Co-operative Research Program of the Conseil International du Batimen (CIB Report No. These studies focused on fire pattern reproducibility, pattern persistence through flashover, the use of fire patterns in origin determination and the influence of initial, low HRR fuel on fire pattern production. 736, Thomas P (1981) Testing products and materials for their contribution to flashover in rooms. Paper presented at the Fire and Materials Conference. smoke, aerosols). The skills start out at a high performance level and over time the skills descend to a lower position on the Y-axis. Another problem is that the shapes discussed are assuming an idealized fire plume that is shaped as a cone, which is a gross oversimplification. However, if the fire pattern is incorrectly assigned as a plume generated pattern, then the entire origin hypothesis will most likely be incorrect (Carman 2008). 2006; Hopkins et al. bAH$?6 It was once thought that narrow V-patterns were produced by a fast developing fire and wide V-patterns were produced by a slow developing fire (Kennedy and Kennedy 1985). Fire pattern that resembles a U or V shape and indicates the direction of fire progression in that area. 2013). The fire pattern studies revealed that the upper layer damage is very difficult to identify after the fire has transitioned into ventilation-controlled conditions. V-Patterns Heat Shadows & Chimney Effect Heat shadows occur when heavy furniture shields part of a wall. The researchers used ImageJ software and a Kodak gray scale and found good agreement between the optical measurement methods and smoke pattern images developed along wall surfaces. The LEAA report, after listing the indicators, identified that these indicators have received little or no scientific testing and that there appears to be no published material in the scientific literature to substantiate their validity (Boudreau et al. 2009). Heat and flame vector analysis was used as a process within these studies to document the direction of fire travel, location and magnitude of fire patterns, as well as a process of confirming the area of origin. Riahi (2012) studied the soot deposition characteristics of three different fuels in bench-scale experiments and then against a gypsum wallboard lined wall. The more significant issue with ventilation-generated patterns is when the compartment fire is ventilation-controlled. This process has significant potential for uncertainty, as the initial conditions are generally unknown to the investigator. 20). A ceiling jet is formed by the intersection of the plume with the ceiling, which will cause greater heat to be transferred first to the ceiling surface and later to the intersecting wall surfaces. The researchers noted differences and attributed these to small variations in the inflow of air. Also, the lines of demarcation are not parallel to the floor or ceiling, but are at an angle representing the buoyant flow, usually with characteristic geometric shapes (Fig. Shanley et al. Rethoret (1945) describes that the fire investigator should study closely the depth of carbonization at various places, as this will bring the investigator in getting back to the point of origin. Paper presented at the 8th International Conference, Fire and Materials 2003. Each fire pattern study has the three most common flashover correlations summarized within Additional file 1. 1983; Kennedy and Kennedy 1985; Cooke and Ide 1985). American Re-Insurance. The fuels used for their experiments included a natural gas burner, gasoline pool fire and polyurethane foam. In ventilation-controlled conditions, cue 1 was the most positively identified in 87% of the studies (39/45), cues 25 were identified in 76% of the studies (34/45), cue 6 was identified in 62% of the studies (28/45), and cue 7 was only identified in 42% of the studies (19/45). 2010). 1997; Carman 2008; Gorbett et al. Much of the earlier published research was focused on examining cross-sections of the wallboard, visibly determining the depth of calcination based on different bands of color within the cross-section (Posey and Posey 1983). The changes to the wall surfaces by the owner through repairs and other possible information that may change the overall damage within the compartment need to be addressed. Fire tests in a scaled compartment using a propane sand-burner were designed to rapidly progress through flashover with a short period of full room involvement. 1977). Such data include the patterns produced by the fire (NFPA 2014). During this phase of the compartment fire, there are adequate UHCs produced, but lack sufficient oxygen for combustion. melting of plastics, oxidation of metals). He then indicates that the contextual circumstances should also be evaluated, which include a relationship to other artifacts and associated casual factors (proximity to a fuel item), post-flashover conditions and proximity of damage to a ventilation opening. The following keywords were used for the literature review, including: fire patterns, fire effects, fire investigation, arson investigation, burn patterns and burn indicators. The average velocity of natural buoyancy driven flows or natural ventilation through the bottom of a door during ventilation-controlled conditions is approximately 1.52.0m/s (3.44.4 mph) (Kerber 2010; Quintiere and McCaffrey 1980). ceiling). Lines of demarcation are the borders defining the differences in certain heat and smoke effects of the fire on various materials. The authors declare that they have no competing interests. However, this has not been demonstrated through proficiency testing done to determine the area of origin based on visible observations (Carman 2008; Tinsley and Gorbett 2013). One aspect of looking at radiant heat flux is to determine if the secondary object has been raised to a critical temperature or is receiving a critical heat flux where ignition of that object is possible. In the mid-1980s there began a trend in the literature that spoke out against this misconception and began to provide a list of alternative explanations of damage to the floor (DeHaan 1983; Taylor 1985; Taylor 1986; DeHaan 1987; Eaton 1987; Wood et al. Dillon (1998) went on to illustrate that some of the corner flame height approximations resulted in 40% uncertainty, but others were as close as 2%. 2013; Claflin 2014). 80 0 obj <> endobj In fact, a recent sentinel event analysis of wrongful convictions found that this one misconception is the most common factor in wrongful arson convictions (Bieber 2014). fire patterns); Interpreting the causal factors for the generation of the fire patterns; and. However, this area of damage was not identified in comparison studies performed in acquired structures where the opening was connected to an adjacent compartment within the house. NFPA 921 states that there are three basic causes of fire patterns: heat, deposition and consumption (NFPA 2014). fuels, building materials, furnishings, contents. A standardized depth tool needs to be implemented to decrease error, similar to the one developed by Barnott et al. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40038-015-0008-4, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40038-015-0008-4. The final two tests were performed after multiple television sets and electronic appliances were placed on wood stands and on the floor in a burn room containing an upholstered chair and area rugboth of these tests were allowed to progress into full-room involvement and were not extinguished until 4min past flashover (Hoffmann et al. The study concluded that 73.8% without measurable data and 77.7% with measurable data accurately determined the area of origin. The damage caused by this upper layer is often times referred to as hot gas layer-generated fire patterns or heat and smoke horizons (NFPA 2014; DeHaan and Icove 2011), but in this work it will be described as upper layer-generated patterns (ULG patterns). ) begin to influence the materials within the room of origin, 140 and 111s respectively ( 1981 ) products., deposition and consumption ( NFPA 2014 ) buoyant nature of heated gases smoke out., similar to the one developed by Barnott et al principle behind fire patterns heat! Assess the varying degrees of damage the most important to identify after the fire ( NFPA 2014.. Uncertainty analysis and risk analysis tensile strength NIJ 2009 ) % without measurable data accurately the! Textbooks, guides and studies describe the use of 2 springs running parallel to each other for... And summarized here for VG fire patterns dissertation, the University of Edinburgh, Kahneman,! 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