Smouldering Fires and Natural Fuels

Rein, Guillermo

doi:10.1002/9781118529539.ch2

Cited by 124 publications

(136 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Organic soils and peat store around 25% of the planet's terrestrial organic carbon -approximately the same mass of carbon as found in the atmosphere -despite peatlands occupying only 3% of the Earth's surface (Gorham 1994;Turetsky et al 2015). Globally, these fires contribute greatly to greenhouse gas emissions, and result in widespread destruction of ecosystems and regional haze events, examples being the recent megafires in Southeast Asia, North America and Northern Europe (Rein 2013). During the 1997 extreme haze event in Indonesia, peat fires released the equivalent of 13-40% of global manmade carbon emissions for the same year (Page et al 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Smouldering is the dominant phenomenon in the burning of natural deposits of peat, which are the largest and longest burning fires on Earth (Page et al 2002;Turetsky et al 2015;Rein 2013). Locally, smouldering wildfires cause severe and long-term damage to the soil system (Ryan and Frandsen 1991;Stephens and Finney 2002;Rein et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Smouldering combustion is the slow, low-temperature, flameless burning of porous fuels and the most persistent type of combustion -different from flaming combustion in its chemistry, transport processes and time scales (Ohlemiller 1985;Rein 2013). Smouldering is the dominant phenomenon in the burning of natural deposits of peat, which are the largest and longest burning fires on Earth (Page et al 2002;Turetsky et al 2015;Rein 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Computational study of critical moisture and depth of burn in peat fires

Huang

Rein

2015

Int. J. Wildland Fire

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Abstract. Smouldering combustion is the slow, low-temperature, flameless burning of porous fuels and the most important phenomenon of wildfires in peatlands. Smouldering fires propagate both horizontally and vertically through organic layers of the ground and can reach deep into the soil. In this work, we develop a one-dimensional computational model of reactive porous media in the open-source code Gpyro. We investigate the vertical in-depth spread of smouldering fires into peat columns 20 cm deep with heterogeneous profiles of moisture content (MC), inert content (IC) and density. The model solves the species, momentum and energy conservation equations with five-step heterogeneous chemistry, to predict the transient profiles of temperature, species concentration, reaction rates and depth of burn from ignition to spread and to extinction. Modelling results reveal that smouldering combustion can spread over peat layers with very high MC (.250%) if the layer is thin and located below a thick, drier layer. It is shown that the critical moisture for extinction can be much higher than the previously reported critical MC for ignition (e.g. extinction MC up to 256% for low-IC peat, with critical ignition MC of 117%). The predicted critical MC values and depths of burn are compared with experimental measurements for field samples in the literature, showing good agreement. This study provides the physical understanding of the role of moisture in the ignition and extinction of smouldering peat fires, and explains for the first time the phenomenon of smouldering in very wet peat layers.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Computational study of critical moisture and depth of burn in peat fires

Huang

Rein

2015

Int. J. Wildland Fire

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“…Similarly, the increasing activity of El Niño Southern Oscillation in the modern era has reduced the amount of rainfall in northern Mexico (Magaña et al, 2003). Nevertheless, similar disasters can be prevented in the near future by prohibiting surface fire and burning activity, sealing off surface fissures and subsurface hollows to prevent air circulation to the subsurface peat layers, and regulating the ground water extraction so that the water table is always maintained The greenhouse gasses released from the peat fire have an adverse effect on the present day global warming (Rein, 2013). Likewise, the lowering of soil fertility, ground water pollution, and health hazards of local population are reported from different parts of the world (Saharjo et al, 2006;Blake et al, 2009;Prat et al, 2011;Betha et al, 2013;Moreno and Jimenez, 2013).…”

Section: Remedial Measure and Recommendationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The sulfur crystals deposited along the fissures ( Figure 2D) are the result of the condensation of a part of SO 2 in the cooler surface conditions. Both Dommain et al (2014) and Rein (2013) have reported the release of a large amount of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere from the combustion of peatlands in Indonesia. The combustion of the peat layer present at 200-280 cm depth in Valle del Potosí led to the creation of sub-surface hollows at different places within the basin.…”

Section: Reasons For Subsurface Fire and Subsidencementioning

confidence: 99%

Subsurface fire and subsidence at Valle del Potosí (Nuevo León, Mexico): Preliminary observations

Roy

Rivero-Navarrete

Sánchez‐Zavala

et al. 2014

BSGM

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Since the last three decades, Valle del Potosí basin (western part of Nuevo León) has been experiencing subsurface fire and subsidence. Preliminary field observations relate the subsurface fire to smoldering of a peat layer at 200-280 cm depth. Subsidence was caused by the associated volume reduction as a result of peat burning. We hereby present the chemical composition of the peat layer and report about the possible reasons of subsurface fire and subsidence.Keywords: subsurface fire; subsidence; smoldering; peat; Nuevo León. Resumen Desde las últimas tres décadas, la cuenca de Valle del

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In Situ Tropical Peatland Fire Emission Factors and Their Variability, as Determined by Field Measurements in Peninsula Malaysia

Smith

Evers

Yule

et al. 2018

Global Biogeochemical Cycles

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Fires in tropical peatlands account for >25% of estimated total greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and degradation. Despite significant global and regional impacts, our understanding of specific gaseous fire emission factors (EFs) from tropical peat burning is limited to a handful of studies. Furthermore, there is substantial variability in EFs between sampled fires and/or studies. For example, methane EFs vary by 91% between studies. Here we present new fire EFs for the tropical peatland ecosystem; the first EFs measured for Malaysian peatlands, and only the second comprehensive study of EFs in this crucial environment. During August 2015 (under El Niño conditions) and July 2016, we embarked on field campaigns to measure gaseous emissions at multiple peatland fires burning on deforested land in Southeast Pahang (2015) and oil palm plantations in North Selangor (2016), Peninsula Malaysia. Gaseous emissions were measured using open‐path Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The IR spectra were used to retrieve mole fractions of 12 different gases present within the smoke (including carbon dioxide and methane), and these measurements used to calculate EFs. Peat samples were taken at each burn site for physicochemical analysis and to explore possible relationships between specific physicochemical properties and fire EFs. Here we present the first evidence to indicate that substrate bulk density affects methane fire EFs reported here. This novel explanation of interplume, within‐biome variability, should be considered by those undertaking greenhouse gas accounting and haze forecasting in this region and is of importance to peatland management, particularly with respect to artificial compaction.

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Smouldering Fires and Natural Fuels

Cited by 124 publications

References 33 publications

Computational study of critical moisture and depth of burn in peat fires

Computational study of critical moisture and depth of burn in peat fires

Subsurface fire and subsidence at Valle del Potosí (Nuevo León, Mexico): Preliminary observations

In Situ Tropical Peatland Fire Emission Factors and Their Variability, as Determined by Field Measurements in Peninsula Malaysia

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