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Vehicle Fires Resulting from Hot Surface Ignition of Grass and Leaves

2017-03-28
2017-01-1354
One potential fire ignition source in a motor vehicle is the hot surfaces on the engine exhaust system. These hot surfaces can come into contact with combustible and flammable liquids (such as engine oil, transmission fluid, brake fluid, gasoline, or Diesel fuel) due to a fluid leak, or during a vehicle collision. If the surface temperature is higher than the hot surface ignition temperature of the combustible or flammable liquid in a given geometry, a fire can potentially ignite and propagate. In addition to automotive fluids, another potential fuel in post-collision vehicle fires is grass, leaves, or other vegetation. Studies of hot surface ignition of dried vegetation have found that ignition depends on the type of vegetation, surface temperature, duration of contact, and ambient conditions such as temperature and wind speed. Ignition can occur at surface temperatures as low as 300 °C, if the vegetation is in contact with the surface for 10 minutes or longer.
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