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Effects of moisture, bulk density, orientation, and fuel type on the burning characteristics of three vegetative fuel types.

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Title: Effects of moisture, bulk density, orientation, and fuel type on the burning characteristics of three vegetative fuel types.
Authors: Sung, Kunhyuk1 (AUTHOR), Mueller, Eric1 (AUTHOR), Bundy, Matthew1 (AUTHOR), Hamins, Anthony1 (AUTHOR) anthony.hamins@nist.gov
Source: Fire Safety Journal. Jul2026, Vol. 162, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p.
Subjects: Moisture, Density, Flammable materials, Biomass burning, Combustion measurement, Combustion kinetics, Wildfires
Abstract: A series of experiments was conducted to better understand the global burning characteristics of three types of vegetative fuels and provide guidance for the development of wildland fire models. The fuels tested were little bluestem grass, excelsior wood fiber bundles, and Douglas-fir trees. Using oxygen consumption calorimetry along with various complementary measurements, the impact of moisture content, bulk density, fuel geometry, and fuel orientation on key combustion features, such as the heat release rate, mass loss, flame height, CO and smoke yields, and the radiative fraction, were investigated. The radiative fraction and product yield results were analyzed as the fire progressed from flaming to smoldering. For excelsior, the results showed that the radiative emission from the hot smoldering bundles disproportionately contributed to the total radiative emission of the fire and that the fractional smoke yields tended to increase with increasing bulk density. The results characterize the global combustion properties of the vegetative fuel types and provide insight into their complex burning behavior. The data and many of the results generated from the study are available on the NIST Fire Calorimetry Database (FCD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database: Engineering Source
Description
Abstract:A series of experiments was conducted to better understand the global burning characteristics of three types of vegetative fuels and provide guidance for the development of wildland fire models. The fuels tested were little bluestem grass, excelsior wood fiber bundles, and Douglas-fir trees. Using oxygen consumption calorimetry along with various complementary measurements, the impact of moisture content, bulk density, fuel geometry, and fuel orientation on key combustion features, such as the heat release rate, mass loss, flame height, CO and smoke yields, and the radiative fraction, were investigated. The radiative fraction and product yield results were analyzed as the fire progressed from flaming to smoldering. For excelsior, the results showed that the radiative emission from the hot smoldering bundles disproportionately contributed to the total radiative emission of the fire and that the fractional smoke yields tended to increase with increasing bulk density. The results characterize the global combustion properties of the vegetative fuel types and provide insight into their complex burning behavior. The data and many of the results generated from the study are available on the NIST Fire Calorimetry Database (FCD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:03797112
DOI:10.1016/j.firesaf.2026.104674