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Flame Height

Authored By: A. Long
Flame height is used to estimate radiation intensities of flames, which are directly related to hazards to fire crews and a fire’s rate of spread (Johnson and Miyanishi 2001). It can also be an important predictor of the spread of firebrands from a fire and the potential for development of a crown fire.

Two theoretical definitions of flame height are: the height where flames reach the maximum temperature, which is difficult to measure in wildland fires because of varying flame heights; and the vertical distance from the flame base or ground to the time-averaged yellow flame tip as shown in the figure (Johnson and Miyanishi 2001).

Flame characteristics
Flame characteristics

Measurements of the visible flame tip require height markers positioned in the fire and either ocular observation or videotaping a moving fire (Adkins 1995, Hamins et al. 1996). A motor-driven 35mm still camera or a video camera can be used to record the fire for measuring characteristics such as flame angle and height (Johnson and Miyanishi 2001). For a smoke-covered flame, an infrared camera can be used to penetrate the smoke and measure the maximum flame temperature and visible flame tip (Johnson and Miyanishi 2001).


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Encyclopedia ID: p466



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