Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
3.5
3.2
Journals
Fire
Special Issues
Understanding and Managing Extreme Wildland Fires
share announcement

Understanding and Managing Extreme Wildland Fires

A special issue of Fire (ISSN 2571-6255). This special issue belongs to the section "Fire Science Models, Remote Sensing, and Data".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 3620

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Khalid Moinuddin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Sustainable Industries and Livable Cities, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC 3030, Australia
Interests: computational fluid dynamics, enclosure fire dynamics; wildland fire modelling; fire detection and suppression; fire risk analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Duncan Sutherland

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Science, University of New South Wales, P.O. Box 7916, Canberra, ACT 2610, Australia
Interests: computational fluid dynamics; bushfire dynamics; mathematical modelling

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue of Fire entitled “Understanding and Managing Extreme Wildland Fires”. The occurrence of extreme wildfires is increasing considerably around the globe. Unfortunately, we only have a limited understanding of the phenomena driving these fires.

This Special Issue will focus on topics including pyro-cumulonimbus formation, ember generation, transport and storms, fire whirls, fire tornados, eruptive fire, vortex-driven lateral spread, and fire merger with a view to developing an improved knowledge of the hazards, which can inform fire management strategies.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Case studies or data-driven empirical studies of extreme fire events around the globe;
  • Numerical simulation or empirical studies of the phenomena driving extreme wildfire events (pyrocumulonimbus formation, ember storms, vorticial fire events, eruptive fire, and merger);
  • Development of models or correlations, including machine-learning models, for the prediction of extreme fire behaviour;
  • Proposed strategies for improving the operational management of extreme wildfires and post-fire management.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Khalid Moinuddin
Dr. Duncan Sutherland
Guest Editors

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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.

Keywords

  • wildfire
  • extreme
  • megafires
  • physics-based simulation
  • coupled fire atmosphere events
  • pyro-cumulonimbus
  • empirical fire studies
  • ember generation
  • ember transport
  • ember storms
  • fire whirls
  • fire tornados
  • vortex-driven lateral spread
  • and fire merger

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

24 pages, 9306 KiB  
Article
Quantifying Firebrand and Radiative Heat Flux Risk on Structures in Mallee/Mulga-Dominated Wildland–Urban Interface: A Physics-Based Approach
by Amila Wickramasinghe, Nazmul Khan, Alexander Filkov and Khalid Moinuddin
Fire 2023, 6(12), 466; https://doi.org/10.3390/fire6120466 - 13 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1494
Abstract
Fire spread in the Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) can occur due to direct flame contact, convection, radiation, firebrand attack, or their combinations. Out of them, firebrand attack significantly contributes to damaging structures. To improve the resistance of buildings in wildfire-prone areas, the Australian Standards [...] Read more.
Fire spread in the Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) can occur due to direct flame contact, convection, radiation, firebrand attack, or their combinations. Out of them, firebrand attack significantly contributes to damaging structures. To improve the resistance of buildings in wildfire-prone areas, the Australian Standards AS3959 provides construction requirements introducing Bushfire Attack Levels (BAL) based on quantified radiation heat flux. However, quantifying firebrand attack presents challenges, and the standard does not provide specific recommendations in this regard. This study aims to address this research gap by quantifying firebrand flux on houses according to the BALs in Mallee/Mulga-dominated vegetation using physics-based modelling. The study follows the AS3959 vegetation classifications and fire-weather conditions. The study considers Fire Danger Indices (FDI) of 100, 80, and 50 and identifies the housing components most susceptible to firebrand attack and radiant heat flux. The findings reveal an increasing firebrand flux with higher BAL values across all FDIs, with a greater percentage difference observed between FDIs 50 and 80 compared to FDIs 80 and 100. Furthermore, an exponential relationship is found between radiative heat flux and firebrand flux. This research contributes the development of effective strategies to mitigate the firebrand danger and enhance the resilience of structures to enhance AS3959. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Understanding and Managing Extreme Wildland Fires)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

34 pages, 11675 KiB  
Article
Field-Scale Physical Modelling of Grassfire Propagation on Sloped Terrain under Low-Speed Driving Wind
by Jasmine Innocent, Duncan Sutherland and Khalid Moinuddin
Fire 2023, 6(10), 406; https://doi.org/10.3390/fire6100406 - 20 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1477
Abstract
Driving wind and slope of terrain can increase the rate of surface fire propagation. Previous physical modelling under higher driving wind (3–12.5 m/s) on slopes (Innocent et al., IJWF, 2023, 32(4), pp. 496–512 and 513–530) demonstrated that the averaged rate of fire [...] Read more.
Driving wind and slope of terrain can increase the rate of surface fire propagation. Previous physical modelling under higher driving wind (3–12.5 m/s) on slopes (Innocent et al., IJWF, 2023, 32(4), pp. 496–512 and 513–530) demonstrated that the averaged rate of fire spread (RoS) varied from that of empirical models. This study investigates the potential for better agreement at lower wind velocities (0.1 and 1 m/s), since empirical models are typically developed from experimental studies conducted under benign wind conditions. The same physical model WFDS is used. The results are analysed to understand the behaviour of various parameters (RoS, fire isochrone progression, fire intensity, flame dynamics, and heat fluxes) across different slopes. The RoS–slope angle relationship closely fits an exponential model, aligning with the findings from most experimental studies. The relative RoSs are aligned more closely with the Australian and Rothermel models’ slope corrections for 0.1 and 1 m/s, respectively. The relationship between flame length and fire intensity matches predictions from an empirical power–law correlation. Flame and plume dynamics reveal that the plume rises at a short distance from the ignition line and fire propagation is primarily buoyancy-driven. The Byram number analysis shows buoyancy-dominated fire propagation at these lower wind velocities. Convective heat fluxes are found to be more significant at greater upslopes. The study confirmed that “lighter & drier” fuel parameters accelerated the fire front movement, increasing the RoS by approximately 57–60% compared to the original parameters. Overall, this study underscores the nuanced interplay of wind speed, slope, and other factors in influencing grassfire behaviour, providing valuable insights for predictive modelling and firefighting strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Understanding and Managing Extreme Wildland Fires)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop