Project: Fire Behaviour

Firebrand ignition of building materials

Firebrands are small, often smoldering embers which break off of vegetative or structural materials during wildland fires and can loft up to several kilometers ahead of the main fire front, igniting new spot fires. They have been found to be responsible for a large fraction of structure losses in the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) by increasing the rate of fire spread, via direct ignition of structures, or by serving as the source of structure-to-structure fires spread. This project aims to determine the mechanism of ignition of building materials by firebrands and to identify key building material properties that define their propensity to ignite when subjected to firebrand showers. The knowledge acquired during this work will form a foundation for development of a standard test method for measuring building materials’ propensity to ignite when exposed to firebrand showers.

Project timeline: 09/2021 – 09/2023

More Projects

Mulching as a fuel management technique

Fire managers use a range of methods to manage fuels as a means of reducing bushfire risk. Mulching is one such method where the understorey vegetation is shredded, chipped or mulched to reduce the bushfire hazard and make fire suppression more ...

Wet forest ignitability

Wet eucalypt forests (dominated by Mountain Ash or Alpine Ash) are usually too wet to burn but when they dry out enough to become flammable they are one of our most dangerous fuel types. Despite this fire threat, we understand very little about ...

Understanding the origin and development of extreme and mega bushfires

Extreme and megafires result in significant damage to property and infrastructure and are associated with large suppression costs. These events form when separate fires merge. Their increase occurrence in recent seasons highlights the ...

Calling for PhD Candidates…

X