Pinus pinea emissions and combustion characteristics of limonene potentially involved in accelerating forest fires

• Published in: International journal of thermal sciences 2012-07, Vol.57, p.92-97
• Main Authors: Courty, L., Chetehouna, K., Lemée, L., Mounaïm-Rousselle, C., Halter, F., Garo, J.P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accelerating forest fires; Biological and medical sciences; Burning rate; Clouds; Combustion; Emittance; Engineering Sciences; Flame thickness; Forest and land fires; Forest fires; Forestry; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Laminar; Laminar burning speed; Markstein length; Mathematical analysis; Phytopathology. Animal pests. Plant and forest protection; Pinus pinea emissions; Premixed flames; Weather damages. Fires
• ISSN: 1290-0729; 1778-4166
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2012.02.012

It has been reported in the literature that under some conditions forest fires with normal behaviour suddenly start to propagate at unusual and very fast rate of spread. A possible explanation of these accelerating forest fires, based on the ignition of a Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) cloud, has been discussed in the literature. Most of vegetal species when heated emit volatile substances. We have shown using a flash pyrolysis apparatus that a typical Mediterranean species, Pinus pinea, emits fourteen components, mainly limonene. P. pinea needles are preheated between 373 and 473 K and the maximum emission is found at 433 K. Combustion characteristics, namely laminar burning speeds, Markstein lengths and flame thicknesses of limonene/air premixed flames are determined using the spherical expanding flames method coupled to a nonlinear methodology. Experiments are performed in a spherical combustion chamber at atmospheric pressure and at elevated temperatures. An empirical correlation is developed to calculate the laminar burning speeds as a function of equivalence ratio and temperature. Experimental results of limonene are compared to the computed values of JP-10 and n-decane. ► VOCs emissions of Pinus pinea are measured at elevated temperatures. ► Combustion characteristics of limonene/air mixtures are determined for different preheat temperatures. ► Numerical simulations of laminar burning speeds of JP-10 and n-decane are performed. ► The combustion characteristics will be used to investigate the thermochemical approach for accelerating forest fires.