Reconstruction of the Grenfell Tower fire – Part 4: Contribution to the understanding of fire propagation and behaviour during horizontal fire spread

Abstract

Summary The tragic events at Grenfell Tower in 2017, involving a combustible façade system, have raised concerns regarding the fire risk that these systems pose. In this series of articles, so far published, fire development inside the initial apartment has been investigated using an appropriate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. Several scenarios including different fire sources and ventilation conditions were addressed. Fire propagation through the window to the external façade and to higher apartments was modelled. This model was validated by comparing the numerical results with the visual observations reported in the Grenfell Inquiry. A CFD model of the complete east face of the Grenfell Tower was then created. This paper details CFD modelling of the complete Grenfell Tower façade during the late horizontal phase of fire spread. As the physics of lateral flame spread is different from that for upward flame spread, it is important to assess the validity of the model, thus far developed, for this configuration. Fire propagation over the whole façade is modelled and compared with observations from the real disaster. This provides a better understanding of its fire behaviour and of the contribution of architectural details and their impact on fire spread.

Fire Resistance of Geopolymer Foams Layered on Polystyrene Boards

“…The technical characteristics of these innovative materials make it possible to mitigate problems such as fire propagation. An example is the Grenfell tower fire on 14 June 2017 [ 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 ], where a fire started by a fridge malfunctioning on the fourth floor. The fire spread rapidly up the building’s exterior in less than 15 min, bringing fire and smoke to all the other residential floors.…”

A fire investigation methodology for buildings

“…The main fire-related modifications were to the building's facade, with replacement of the thermal insulation material and replacement of the windows. This was a fire characterized by speed, ferocity and lethality, with seventytwo deaths and several wounded [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] (Fig. 6).…”

Evaluating the fire risk associated with cladding panels: An overview of fire incidents, policies, and future perspective in fire standards

“…Bezas et al 172 Guillaume et al has conducted a series of comprehensive case study on the Grenfell Tower fire incident in numerical modeling approaches. [175][176][177][178] In order to investigate the fire propagation and spread behavior, a large-scale CFD model of the Grenfell Tower has been constructed under the LES framework. The comprehensive numerical studies have replicated and analyzed the fire initiated from the compartment to the cladding system, 176 the vertical, 177 and horizontal fire propagation on the surface of the façade surface.…”

“…The comprehensive numerical studies have replicated and analyzed the fire initiated from the compartment to the cladding system, 176 the vertical, 177 and horizontal fire propagation on the surface of the façade surface. 178 tem but also can be further employed to study internal tenability conditions, for instance, toxic emission and thermal ambiance.…”

“…For example, the series of numerical investigations conducted by Guillaume et al on the Grenfell Tower fire. [175][176][177][178] The simulations were broken up into three parts, (a) single level of the apartment, GROMACS 181 and CHARMM, 182 and commercial MD packages are also available. Atomistic-scale computational techniques provide a powerful means for exploring, developing, and optimizing promising properties of novel materials.…”