Fire loading
Fire loading in a building or compartment measures the potential severity of a hypothetical future fire. It represents the heat output per unit floor area, typically expressed in kJ/m², calculated based on the calorific value of the materials present. Fire loading is essential for evaluating industrial safety risks.
An empty room with a cement floor and ceiling, cinderblock walls, and no flammable materials would have almost zero fire loading. Any fire entering such a room would find nothing to fuel it. However, items that make a room functional (like furniture, electrical appliances, or computer equipment) or attractive (like wood panelling, acoustic tiles, carpeting, curtains, or wall decorations) increase the fire loading.
Certain uses naturally have high fire loading. For example, an art gallery and studio likely contains large amounts of canvas, paints, solvents, and wooden framing. Similarly, buildings under construction or renovation often have high fire loads due to construction materials, solvents, and fuel for generators.
Determining fire loading is crucial for planning safety measures, such as ensuring adequate fire detection and evacuation routes or installing fire sprinkler systems and other fire suppression systems.
References
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- Backdraft
- Boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE)
- Boilover
- Combustibility and flammability
- Conflagration
- Dangerous goods (HAZMAT)
- Deflagration
- Detonation
- Dust explosion
- Enthalpy of vaporization
- Explosive
- Fire class
- Fire control
- Fire loading
- Fire point
- Fire triangle
- Flammability diagram
- Flammability limit
- Flammable liquid
- Flashover
- Flash point
- Friction loss
- Gas leak
- Heat transfer
- Jet fire
- K-factor (fire protection)
- Pool fire
- Pyrolysis
- Spontaneous combustion
- Structure fire
- Thermal radiation
- Water pressure
- Active fire protection
- Automatic fire suppression
- Condensed aerosol fire suppression
- Detonation flame arrester
- External water spray system
- Fire bucket
- Fire prevention
- Fire protection
- Fire retardant
- Fire-retardant fabric
- Fire retardant gel
- Fire-safe polymers
- Fire safety
- Fire sprinkler system
- Fire suppression system
- Firefighting foam
- Flame arrester
- Flame retardant
- Flashback arrestor
- Fusible link
- Gaseous fire suppression
- Hypoxic air technology for fire prevention
- Inerting system
- Intumescent
- Passive fire protection
- Personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Relief valve
- Spark arrestor
- Tank blanketing
- Vehicle fire suppression system
- Annulus (firestop)
- Area of refuge
- Booster pump
- Compartmentalization (fire protection)
- Crash bar
- Electromagnetic door holder
- Electromagnetic lock
- Emergency exit
- Emergency light
- Exit sign
- Fire curtain
- Fire cut
- Fire damper
- Fire door
- Fire escape
- Fire extinguisher
- Fire hose
- Fire hydrant
- Fire pump
- Fire sprinkler
- Firestop
- Firestop pillow
- Firewall (construction)
- Grease duct
- Heat and smoke vent
- Occupancy
- Packing (firestopping)
- Penetrant (mechanical, electrical, or structural)
- Penetration (firestop)
- Pressurisation ductwork
- Safety glass
- Smoke control
- Smoke damper
- Smoke exhaust ductwork
- Smokeproof enclosure
- Standpipe (firefighting)
and services
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- Template:Firefighting
- Template:HVAC
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