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Title: Fire-Induced Response in Foam Encapsulants

Abstract

The paper provides a concise overview of a coordinated experimental/theoretical/numerical program at Sandia National Laboratories to develop an experimentally validated model of fire-induced response of foam-filled engineered systems for nuclear and transportation safety applications. Integral experiments are performed to investigate the thermal response of polyurethane foam-filled systems exposed to fire-like heat fluxes. A suite of laboratory experiments is performed to characterize the decomposition chemistry of polyurethane. Mass loss and energy associated with foam decomposition and chemical structures of the virgin and decomposed foam are determined. Decomposition chemistry is modeled as the degradation of macromolecular structures by bond breaking followed by vaporization of small fragments of the macromolecule with high vapor pressures. The chemical decomposition model is validated against the laboratory data. Data from integral experiments is used to assess and validate a FEM foam thermal response model with the chemistry model developed from the decomposition experiments. Good agreement was achieved both in the progression of the decomposition front and the in-depth thermal response.

Authors:
; ; ; ; ; ; ;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
US Department of Energy (US)
OSTI Identifier:
5686
Report Number(s):
SAND99-0807C
TRN: AH200115%%93
DOE Contract Number:  
AC04-94AL85000
Resource Type:
Conference
Resource Relation:
Conference: 44th International SAMPE Symposium and Exhibition, Long Beach, CA (US), 05/23/1999--05/27/1999; Other Information: PBD: 2 Apr 1999
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
42 ENGINEERING; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; EVAPORATION; POLYURETHANES; VAPOR PRESSURE; FOAMS; FIRES; RESPONSE FUNCTIONS; MATHEMATICAL MODELS; CONTAINMENT SYSTEMS; CONTAINERS; RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS; TRANSPORT; DECOMPOSITION

Citation Formats

Borek, T T, Chu, T Y, Erickson, K L, Gill, W, Hobbs, M L, Humphries, L L, Renlund, A M, and Ulibarri, T A. Fire-Induced Response in Foam Encapsulants. United States: N. p., 1999. Web.
Borek, T T, Chu, T Y, Erickson, K L, Gill, W, Hobbs, M L, Humphries, L L, Renlund, A M, & Ulibarri, T A. Fire-Induced Response in Foam Encapsulants. United States.
Borek, T T, Chu, T Y, Erickson, K L, Gill, W, Hobbs, M L, Humphries, L L, Renlund, A M, and Ulibarri, T A. 1999. "Fire-Induced Response in Foam Encapsulants". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/5686.
@article{osti_5686,
title = {Fire-Induced Response in Foam Encapsulants},
author = {Borek, T T and Chu, T Y and Erickson, K L and Gill, W and Hobbs, M L and Humphries, L L and Renlund, A M and Ulibarri, T A},
abstractNote = {The paper provides a concise overview of a coordinated experimental/theoretical/numerical program at Sandia National Laboratories to develop an experimentally validated model of fire-induced response of foam-filled engineered systems for nuclear and transportation safety applications. Integral experiments are performed to investigate the thermal response of polyurethane foam-filled systems exposed to fire-like heat fluxes. A suite of laboratory experiments is performed to characterize the decomposition chemistry of polyurethane. Mass loss and energy associated with foam decomposition and chemical structures of the virgin and decomposed foam are determined. Decomposition chemistry is modeled as the degradation of macromolecular structures by bond breaking followed by vaporization of small fragments of the macromolecule with high vapor pressures. The chemical decomposition model is validated against the laboratory data. Data from integral experiments is used to assess and validate a FEM foam thermal response model with the chemistry model developed from the decomposition experiments. Good agreement was achieved both in the progression of the decomposition front and the in-depth thermal response.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5686}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Apr 02 00:00:00 EST 1999},
month = {Fri Apr 02 00:00:00 EST 1999}
}

Conference:
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