Upholstered Furniture Heat Release Rates: Measurements and Estimation

Abstract

A new instrument, termed a furniture calorimeter, has been constructed and placed into operation for measuring furniture heat release rates based on oxygen consumption. Using the furniture calorimeter, burning rate information has been obtained on a series of 13 chairs, loveseats, and sofas, most of them specially built to permit direct comparisons of construction features. A quantitative assessment is made of the effect of fabric types, padding types (cotton batting, ordinary polyurethane foam, and California-requirements foam), and frame types. The advantages of furniture calorimeter testing over normal room fire testing are discussed. Based on these measurements, a rule is presented for estimating the heat release rate based on design factors. Finally, implications for achieving both good flame resistance and good cigarette ignition resistance are discussed.

Keywords

burning rate chairs flammability tests furniture heat release rate plastics flammability textile flammability upholstered furniture.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Loftus, J.J. , Back-up report for the proposed standard for the flammability (cigarette ignition resistance) of upholstered furniture, PFF6-76, Nat. Bur. Std. (U.S.), NBSIR 78-1438 (1978).

Babrauskas, V. , Will the second item ignite? Fire Safety J. 4, 287-292 (1982).

Palmer, K.N. , Paul, K.T. and Taylor, W. , Test specifications for fire properties of bedding and upholstered furniture , Dept. of the Environment, Building Research Establishment , London (1979).

Requirements, test procedure and apparatus for testing the flame retardance of resilient filling materials used in upholstered furniture (Technical Information Bulletin 117 State of California Department of Consumer Affairs, Bureau of Home Furnishings, Sacramento (January 1980).

Babrauskas, V. , Full-scale burning behavior of upholstered chairs, Nat. Bur. Std. (U.S.) Tech. Note 1103 (1979).

Pape, R., et al. , Semistochastic approach to predicting the development of a fire in a room from ignition to flashover. Program documentation and users guide, RFIRES. IIT Research Institute, Chicago (1976). NTIS No. PB-278643.

Pape, R. and Waterman, T.E. , Understanding and modeling preflashover compartment fires, Design of Buildings for Fire Safety (ASTM STP 685, pp. 106-138, E.E. Smith and T.Z. Harmathy, eds., American Society for Testing and Materials, Philadelphia, PA (1978).

Mitler, H.E. and Emmons, H.W. , Documentation for CFC-V, The fifth Harvard computer fire code, Nat. Bur. Stand. (U.S.), NBS-GCR-81-344 (1981).

Fire Protection Handbook, pp. 4-122, National Fire Protection Association , Quincy, MA (1981).

10.

Huggett, C. , Estimation of rate of heat release by means of oxygen consumption measurements, Fire and Materials, 4, 61-65 (1980).

11.

Parker, W.J. , Calculations of the heat release rate by oxygen consumption for various applications, Nat. Bur. Std. (U.S.), NBSIR 81-2427 (1982).

12.

Babrauskas, V. , Lawson, J.R. , Walton, W.D. and Twilley, W.H. , Upholstered furniture burning rates measured with a furniture calorimeter, Nat. Bur. Std. (U.S.), NBSIR 82-2604.

13.

Babrauskas, V. , Combustion of mattresses exposed to flaming ignition sources, Part II. Bench-scale tests and hazard analysis, Nat. Bur. Std. (U.S.), NBSIR 80-2186 (1981).

14.

Fire research on cellular plastics: The final report of the Products Research Committee, Washington, D.C. (1980).