Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products

Fire is a combustion reaction where fuel reacts with oxygen in the presence of heat, releasing energy as light, heat, and flames. The main components of fire are fuel, oxygen, and heat. All three components must be present to cause a fire. Fire is a significant threat to residential and commercial b...

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Main Authors: Kunigal Shivakumar, Bharath Kenchappa, Dhruva Shivakumar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Fire
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2571-6255/8/5/176
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author Kunigal Shivakumar
Bharath Kenchappa
Dhruva Shivakumar
author_facet Kunigal Shivakumar
Bharath Kenchappa
Dhruva Shivakumar
author_sort Kunigal Shivakumar
collection DOAJ
description Fire is a combustion reaction where fuel reacts with oxygen in the presence of heat, releasing energy as light, heat, and flames. The main components of fire are fuel, oxygen, and heat. All three components must be present to cause a fire. Fire is a significant threat to residential and commercial buildings, often intensified by high fuel content in building materials such as wood and synthetics. This paper summarizes fire types and damages, loss of property and life, fuel content in building materials, and a method to reduce fire risk by minimizing the building material’s fuel content. This method uses minerals (coal combustion residual (CCR)), primarily inorganic oxides bonded with a small percentage of polyurethane binder, to manufacture a composite material moldable into multiple building products. The composite was tested as per the ASTM for mechanical, thermal, and fire safety performance. ASTM D635-based fire testing showed self-extinguishing behavior with significantly reduced burn rate and lengths (1–2 mm). A low calorific value of 6.6 MJ/kg was determined separately. The test results demonstrate that CCR-based mineral composites offer a fire-resistant, structurally sound, and eco-friendly alternative to wood products. This research supports recycling inorganic minerals into fire-resistant building products that enhance safety.
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spelling doaj-art-ce73efda235843ee82292fb771197aed2025-08-20T02:33:48ZengMDPI AGFire2571-62552025-04-018517610.3390/fire8050176Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building ProductsKunigal Shivakumar0Bharath Kenchappa1Dhruva Shivakumar2Department of Mechanical Engineering, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, 1601 E Market St., Greensboro, NC 27411, USAARIS Inc., 5124 Hedrick Drive, Greensboro, NC 27410, USAARIS Inc., 5124 Hedrick Drive, Greensboro, NC 27410, USAFire is a combustion reaction where fuel reacts with oxygen in the presence of heat, releasing energy as light, heat, and flames. The main components of fire are fuel, oxygen, and heat. All three components must be present to cause a fire. Fire is a significant threat to residential and commercial buildings, often intensified by high fuel content in building materials such as wood and synthetics. This paper summarizes fire types and damages, loss of property and life, fuel content in building materials, and a method to reduce fire risk by minimizing the building material’s fuel content. This method uses minerals (coal combustion residual (CCR)), primarily inorganic oxides bonded with a small percentage of polyurethane binder, to manufacture a composite material moldable into multiple building products. The composite was tested as per the ASTM for mechanical, thermal, and fire safety performance. ASTM D635-based fire testing showed self-extinguishing behavior with significantly reduced burn rate and lengths (1–2 mm). A low calorific value of 6.6 MJ/kg was determined separately. The test results demonstrate that CCR-based mineral composites offer a fire-resistant, structurally sound, and eco-friendly alternative to wood products. This research supports recycling inorganic minerals into fire-resistant building products that enhance safety.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-6255/8/5/176fire mitigationlow-fuel building materialsmineral compositescoal combustion residuals (CCR)fire-resistant constructionpolyurethane composites
spellingShingle Kunigal Shivakumar
Bharath Kenchappa
Dhruva Shivakumar
Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
Fire
fire mitigation
low-fuel building materials
mineral composites
coal combustion residuals (CCR)
fire-resistant construction
polyurethane composites
title Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
title_full Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
title_fullStr Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
title_full_unstemmed Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
title_short Fire and Fire Mitigation by Low-Fuel Building Products
title_sort fire and fire mitigation by low fuel building products
topic fire mitigation
low-fuel building materials
mineral composites
coal combustion residuals (CCR)
fire-resistant construction
polyurethane composites
url https://www.mdpi.com/2571-6255/8/5/176
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AT bharathkenchappa fireandfiremitigationbylowfuelbuildingproducts
AT dhruvashivakumar fireandfiremitigationbylowfuelbuildingproducts