Protection of Ships against Fire and Personnel Evacuation

Dear Colleagues,

The study of shipboard fires and personnel evacuation is a critical field of research within maritime safety and disaster management. As the global maritime industry continues to expand and evolve, so too do the challenges associated with ensuring the safety of ships, crew members, passengers, and cargo. Understanding the current research status in this area is paramount for improving emergency response strategies, enhancing safety measures, and preventing catastrophic incidents at sea.

Shipboard fires are a persistent and potentially devastating threat. They can ignite due to various factors, including equipment failures, electrical faults, chemical hazards, and human error. Understanding the ignition sources, fire dynamics, and propagation mechanisms is crucial for effective fire prevention and response. Evacuating individuals from a ship in the event of a fire is a complex endeavor, heavily influenced by factors such as vessel design, onboard infrastructure, fire location, sea conditions, and evacuation protocols. Current research seeks to enhance our comprehension of these variables to improve evacuation efficiency and reduce response time. In conclusion, shipboard fires and personnel evacuation represent a dynamic and evolving research area that plays a pivotal role in safeguarding maritime operations and protecting lives and the environment. Continuous exploration of these topics contributes to safer maritime practices and bolsters the industry's resilience in the face of unforeseen challenges.

This Special Issue aims to invite scholars to conduct research on fire-resistant materials and technologies, human-centred evacuation technologies, and parameters of combustion characteristics of ship fires, as well as to build a predictive model of the fire development process and to contribute to the reduction of fire losses.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: oil pool fires on ships in different wind environments, multiple ignition source fire combustion characteristics of ships, safe evacuation of personnel and so on.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Shaohua Mao
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fire is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.