Computational simulation of heat conduction on different surfaces

Abstract

The heat conduction from the initiation source to the adjacent surfaces, is a physical phenomenon worth considering in the process of analysing the fire. This complex phenomenon describes how the transport, the exchange, and the redistribution of the thermal energy are carried out. It is based on the theoretical knowledge that describes the initiation and fire evolution in time. The flames transfer heat from nearby surfaces through two distinct physical processes, namely convection and radiation. Another way of heat transfer is conduction, in which case the transfer of heat implies the existence of an environment that can be of a gaseous, liquid or solid nature. This paper illustrates a brief presentation of how the heat transfer is carried out, the influence of the three phenomena on the mechanism of initiation and development of the fire, and can be seen as well as a case study aimed at the computerized simulation of a fire, having as a source of initiation the radiative transfer of heat to the surrounding combustible surfaces. The ignition of the different materials in a room, due to radiation exposure emitted by an incandescent source at a certain distance from them, even without having a direct contact to the flames, is a common reality in the case of fires that occur in both residential and industrial environments. This fact justifies the importance of thermal radiation study.