An Integral Model for the Transient Pyrolysis of Solid Materials

The modelling of the spread of fire and its extinguishment still represents a significant challenge. As part of a combined experimental and computational study of fires we have developed a general Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model of fire spread and extinguishment. The primary objective was to produce a flexible computational tool which can be used by engineers and scientists for design or research purposes. The present paper deals with the description and validation of a solid pyrolysis model which has been applied, as a sub-model, in this general computer fire code. The pyrolysis model has been formulated using the heat-balance integral method. The model can be applied to slabs of char forming solids, such as wood, as well as non-charring thermoplastic materials, such as PMMA. Results are compared with analytical solutions, numerical simulations and experimental data. In all cases the integral model performs well. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.