Forest fires involve a wide range of unknown variables, e.g. wind flow over complex terrain, atmospheric stability, vegetation burning characteristics, location and fuel type, etc. The main objective of the present work is to incorporate the Rothermel simplified combustible model into a 3D unsteady flow solver appropriated for convective atmospheric flows over complex terrain. The released combustion energy is taken into account in the enthalpy equation. The unsteady buoyant plume strongly influences the local wind speed direction and magnitude. A special interactive coupling procedure was developed that links the calculated location of fire front and fire energy release to the momentum and energy transport for each time step. The general computer algorithm includes several other features such as the effectdrag of trees on the momentum transport and the consequent modifications in the k and E turbulence model employed. The results include the prediction of fire development in flat terrain and in a valley and over hills covered by vegetation. A parametric study was conducted to detect the influence of wind speed, vegetation and fuel content on burning area, burning speed and wind speed direction.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.