Guide for Obtaining Data from Reaction to Fire Tests

To increase the gain from costly fire experiments and to facilitate engineering calculations of material performance in case of fire, there is an essential need for careful experimental design and proper characterization of material fire properties. In light of this necessity, the ASTM E1591 standard guide [1] provides a compilation of key material fire properties and explains how they may be obtained in consistence with modeling capabilities. Moreover, an engineering guide developed by the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) [2] provides detailed description of different pyrolysis modeling techniques and makes very useful recommendations on how to arrive at required material properties in accordance with the underlying assumptions in the models. The present document aims to supplement the aforementioned guides by providing simple guidelines on practical aspects of the experimental procedures and preparations for reaction to fire tests in particular, and how to extract useful data from fire tests in general. Essential requirements for quantifying the fire characteristics of materials are identified, including recommendations on how to select and characterize the sample materials, what testing techniques to adopt, and which measurements to opt for. It is noteworthy that in some sections, focus is made on specific materials such as wood or polymers because of their relevance and importance, but generally the provided guidelines apply to other combustible materials as well, unless stated explicitly otherwise.