Model Fire in a Two-Storey Timber Building

This book addresses the performance of a multi-storey timber building subjected to a model fire that represents a real, potentially devastating internal fire. Readers will learn about factors concerning fire hazards in buildings; the mechanisms of how fires start and spread; and the degrading impact of fire on wood and wood-based materials, especially their mechanical properties. The book also discusses the fire resistance of timber buildings and the design principles for fire safety, summarised in Eurocodes. In turn, a fire test on a full-size wooden structure demonstrates the principles discussed. The test makes up an essential part of the book, as to its individual steps: the development, planning, execution and subsequent assessment. This is complemented by detailed temperature monitoring at hundreds of individual spots and the reaction of the wood constructions, illustrated in extensive photo documentation. The temperature and fire development presented there show the fire’s initial mechanism and its further behaviour in a wood construction. The test proved the feasibility of fire protection and safe design of timber buildings, offering insights that can be generally applied in research, material and construction development. Accordingly, the book will be especially useful for architects, building and fire engineers, as well as researchers dealing with the fire performance of timber buildings.