Sample Case Study On Fire Behavior Student’s Name

Introduction

The term fire refers to an exothermic chemical combustive process which causes rapid oxidation of a given material. The aspect of rapidity as has been seen in the definition disassociates fire from rusting, heartburns and digestion since they are slower oxidative processes. There is modern and legacy fire.

Comparing and Contrasting a Modern Fire and a Legacy Fire

According to Asakawa (2013), the difference between a modern fire and a legacy fire is based on the environment in which the fire is burning. A modern fire burns with greater luminosity and therefore produces more smoke, unlike legacy fire which is less luminous. Modern fire spreads faster and lasts a shorter duration of time, compared to the legacy fire. Modern fire also engulfs more air and therefore is more lifted in the air and compact, compared to legacy fire.

Oxidation and Combustion

As previously seen in the definition, oxidation and combustion are related but not synonymous. To this effect, there are instances when oxidation is not combustion. In combustion, the element that acts as an oxidizing agent (fluorine or oxygen) reacts with a compound to produce a substance which is made up of compounds with oxidizing elements as a component of their chemistry. In oxidation, the compound’s oxidation state is altered by two processes: the redox process; and the reduction of the element of carbon to bring about CH4. In the redox process, the oxidation of carbon to give carbon dioxide (CO2) is a good example.
According to Pearson (2006), in the event that the combustion is taking place on an organic compound, the organic compound is burnt completely and is oxidized into water and CO2. In the event of oxidation, either ions of negative charges are lost or atoms from an element are given away. Conversely, combustion is different from oxidation since oxidation is simply the loss of the loss of hydrogen.

The Basic Mechanism of Fire Spread

The basic mechanisms of fire spread can be split into four: the oxidizing agent, the fuel, heat and the uninhibited chemical reaction. These four components are known as the four-sided geometry known as the tetrahedron. Fuel is the substance which can undergo combustion. Most fuels are organic and contain carbon. The same have combinations of oxygen and hydrogen, and to some extent, nitrogen. The fuel in this case may either be solid or liquid. Both kinds of fuel may occur above the surface of the fuel surface where vapors are created by heating the surface of the fuel.
Heat is another component of the tetrahedron and it determines the intensity of the fire. Fires spread to areas of intense heat. This may happen when the heat causes ignition, promotes fire growth, produces vapors and maintains a cycle of fuel ignition. When there is enough excess heat emanating from exothermic reaction, there is bound to be a self-sustained combustion which takes place. This is because the exothermic reaction will radiate the fuels that are producing vapors and thereby causing ignition, even when there is no original source of ignition.
The uninhibited chain reaction can take place in two ways: smoldering and flaming. Smoldering fires cause a transition to flaming after the production of total energy, or when the flow of air is present to catalyze the spread of fire and the rate of combustion.

References

Asakawa, S. (2013). Fire as tradition. Legacy Magazine, 24 (3), 14
Pearson, G. S. (2006). Oxidation & Combustion Reviews, Vol. I. American Scientist, 54 (3), 358A