1. Experimental and numerical investigation of the fire behavior of double-glass building integrated photovoltaic modules with PVB interlayersWanning Yu, Lizhong Yang, Xinyang Wang, Dimeng Lai, Grunde Jomaas, Kim M. Liew, Xiaoyu Ju, 2025, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Amid rising global energy demands and environmental concerns, energy-efficient, or ‘green’, buildings are becoming mandatory in building regulations worldwide. In that context, building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), which merge photovoltaic (PV) modules with architectural design, are gaining widespread adoption. To assess fire safety aspects of BIPV, the fire performance of double-glass PV modules with polyvinyl butyral (PVB) encapsulation in BIPV façade systems was studied experimentally and numerically. More specifically, fire experiments were conducted under varying radiative heat fluxes to evaluate thermal degradation, fire behavior, and toxic gas emissions. Key parameters, including ignition time, heat release rate per unit area (HRRPUA), mass loss rate (MLR), and gas composition, were analyzed. The results confirm that a higher external heat flux markedly reduces ignition time while increasing HRRPUA and MLR for BIPV, which is in line with results for other materials. The primary toxic gases emitted during combustion were CO, CO2, H2, and SO2, with CO and CO2 emissions rising significantly at elevated heat fluxes. To complement the experimental results, a numerical model coupling transient heat conduction and pyrolysis kinetics was developed to predict the pre-ignition thermal response of the multilayer structure. The model employed layer discretization and temperature-dependent boundaries, demonstrating close agreement with experimental data. Therefore, it enabled systematic analyses of the sensitivity of PV module material flammability to incident radiative heat fluxes, material properties, and geometric configurations. This combined experimental and numerical approach offers a predictive framework for assessing fire risks and optimizing the fire safety design of BIPV systems.
Ključne besede: fire behavior, combustion stages, PV modules, heat conduction pyrolysis model, module toxicity, fire safety
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 13.01.2026; Ogledov: 18; Prenosov: 7
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2. PV-related rooftop fires – national statistics and the impact of reporting methodsNik Rus, Vincenzo Puccia, Aleš Jug, Grunde Jomaas, 2025, objavljeni znanstveni prispevek na konferenci Povzetek: PV-related fires have caused significant property damage over the last decade, and their numbers are still rising, thus potentially undermining solar power's intended contributions towards sustainability. Robust solutions are needed to ensure risk reduction, and incident reporting is an important part of the risk analysis process. Statistics on the adverse events provide a good insight into the more prevalent failure modes and establish the failure frequency. An assessment of the data on PV-related fires shows that Italy can expect about 10 fires per GW annually, while Slovenia can expect about 37 fires per GW annually, compared to a previously established number for an international average of 29 fires per GW. Although the rates for both countries are in the same order of magnitude as the international average, the differences can be attributed to different methods of data collection, as well as to some differences in legislation and installation requirements in the two countries. Importantly, while acceptable risk levels are typically in the order of 10⁻⁶, the observed rates are in the order of 10⁻⁴, which is in a range that demands immediate risk management actions.
Ključne besede: fire safety, photovoltaic systems, statistics
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 28.11.2025; Ogledov: 275; Prenosov: 127
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3. Principles for the fire performance of external wall systemsAndrea Lucherini, Rauan Adikey, Grunde Jomaas, Jose L. Torero, 2025, objavljeni znanstveni prispevek na konferenci Povzetek: Recent high-profile fires involving combustible façades have exposed significant gaps in both the understanding and regulation of external wall systems. Modern façade designs frequently employ polymers as insulation and/or laminated composite materials that, while improving energy efficiency, can inadvertently create pathways for vertical fire spread. Thus, there is a need to establish fundamental principles for evaluating the fire spread performance of these systems. Drawing on notable incidents, it is shown how uncontrolled flame spread can defeat compartmentation strategies, compromise occupant egress, and overwhelm firefighting efforts. Extending on previous studies, a performance-based approach to fire spread is proposed, examining four levels of relevance: material properties, product characteristics, assembly configuration, and overall building context. Key factors include combustibility, ventilation effects, and real-world variables (e.g., building characteristics). Case studies of testing methods illustrate both utility and limitations in capturing metrics relevant to façade design. Ultimately, it is advocated that there is an urgent need for rigorous, tailored assessment protocols supported by professional competence, thereby ensuring that complex external wall systems can be designed and managed to balance fire safety with sustainability and safety objectives.
Ključne besede: fire safety, facades, external wall systems, fire spread
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 28.11.2025; Ogledov: 178; Prenosov: 79
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4. Compartment fire dynamics in taller timber buildings : guidance for performance-based fire safety engineeringIan Pope, Antonela Čolić, Chamith Karannagodage, Ahmed Ahmed Ali Awadallah, Andrea Lucherini, 2025, samostojni znanstveni sestavek ali poglavje v monografski publikaciji Povzetek: In comparison to non-combustible construction materials commonly used for taller buildings, timber elements can significantly alter the fire dynamics in a compartment. This fundamentally challenges many of the conventional fire safety strategies and design approaches for mid-rise and high-rise buildings. Consequently, many building industry practitioners are questioning the limitations of existing methodologies, while searching for additional ways to account for this different fire behaviour in the design, construction, and operation of timber buildings. In seeking to address these questions, this chapter describes the state-of-the-art and recent advances in understanding the fire behaviour in compartments with areas of exposed timber (e.g., engineered wood products), and protected timber elements that may contribute to the fire if their encapsulation fails. Relevant experimental findings and engineering approaches to date are summarised and discussed, and design guidance is provided in relation to the typical phases of realistic or ‘natural’ fires, namely the growth phase, the fully-developed phase, the fire decay, and the cooling phase. Critical fire phenomena and their impacts on the fire safety strategy are addressed, such as fire spread; active fire suppression; heat induced delamination and char fall-off; and self-extinguishment.
Ključne besede: timber, fire dynamics, fire safety, self-extinguishment, heat induced delamination, char fall-off
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 18.11.2025; Ogledov: 212; Prenosov: 83
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5. Structural fire behaviourFelix Wiesner, Daniel Brandon, Andrea Lucherini, Pedro Palma, 2025, samostojni znanstveni sestavek ali poglavje v monografski publikaciji Povzetek: Fire safety and fire protection objectives require that buildings and parts of buildings do not collapse during a fire. This requires that the load-carrying capacity is maintained to a minimum acceptable level during a fire. This chapter briefly describes the historical background and state of the art of fire resistance and its determination for timber members through testing or calculations. The thermal and mechanical principles that underpin structural behaviour of wood at elevated temperatures are explained in the context of explicit calculation methods that enable explicit evaluation of the structural capacity beyond fire resistance, which is a formalised and codified assessment of structural elements against a standard fire. The importance of connections to the overall structure in fire is explained along with suitable design considerations. Ultimately, knowledge gaps with respect to novel and more complex engineered timber products for taller timber buildings are highlighted alongside potential limitations of established design parameters.
Ključne besede: fire resistance, fire safety, structures, load-carrying capacity, timber, connections
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 18.11.2025; Ogledov: 211; Prenosov: 88
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6. Investigating the thermal penetration in structural timber elements exposed to natural firesAndrea Lucherini, Vladimír Mózer, 2025, objavljeni znanstveni prispevek na konferenci Povzetek: This study investigates fire-induced charring and thermal penetration in structural timber elements exposed to natural fire conditions, with a focus on the critical role of the cooling phase. A simplified 1D heat transfer model, based on Eurocode 5 temperature-dependent material properties, is implemented to simulate the thermal response of timber members subjected to Eurocode parametric fire curves. The analysis quantifies the char depth (300 °C isotherm) and the zero-strength layer, using both temperature-based (80-300 °C and 120-300 °C) and reduced mechanical properties approaches (tension and compression). Results show that, while the char depth predominantly develops during the heating phase, the zero-strength layer continues to grow during cooling, often reaching a thickness comparable to the char layer. The effective char depth (char depth + zero-strength layer) typically reaches its maximum towards the end of the cooling phase, representing the most critical condition for load-bearing capacity. The most severe conditions arise in low ventilation and high fuel load scenarios, characterised by long-duration fires rather than the highest temperatures. The findings highlight the need to explicitly consider the cooling phase in performance-based fire design for timber structures.
Ključne besede: timber structures, fire safety, charring, zero-strength layer, cooling
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 16.07.2025; Ogledov: 429; Prenosov: 281
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7. Experimental study on thermal runaway characteristics and fire hazards of lithium-ion batteries in semi-confined space of transportationLulu Song, Zhizuan Zhou, Xiaoyu Ju, Boxuan Wang, Wilson Ulises Rojas Alva, Xiaodong Zhou, Lizhong Yang, 2025, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Fire incidents involving lithium-ion batteries during transportation have become increasingly frequent, causing significant property damage and posing serious health risks to individuals nearby. Despite growing concerns over these incidents, the effects of spatial confinement during transportation on battery thermal runaway and fire behavior remain insufficiently understood. In this study, considering that batteries during transportation are often in space-limited scenarios, a comparative experiment was conducted to investigate lithium iron phosphate batteries’ thermal runaway characteristics and fire hazards in semi-confined space with top openings. The research demonstrates that semi-confined space accelerates the thermal runaway process and exacerbates the fire hazard. Furthermore, as the state of charge increases, the severity of thermal runaway and the associated fire hazard escalate. Notably, as the size of the top opening increases, the battery deflagration transitions from extinction to stable continuous combustion, with gas toxicity initially increasing and then decreasing. This paper emphasizes the critical role of semi-confined space in influencing the fire behavior of lithium-ion batteries. It underscores the importance of effective smoke venting designs to mitigate the risks of battery thermal runaway during transportation. These findings can provide valuable insights for formulating regulations on lithium-ion battery transportation and designing smoke venting systems for transportation containers.
Ključne besede: lithium-ion batteries, transportation safety, thermal runaway, fire hazard
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 10.06.2025; Ogledov: 702; Prenosov: 316
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8. Fire safety of timber buildings – the case of photovoltaic systems : a recent exampleNik Rus, Andrea Lucherini, Grunde Jomaas, Mohammad Derikvand, 2025, drugi znanstveni članki Povzetek: Photovoltaic (PV) systems play an important role in reducing society’s dependence on carbon-based energy sources, and their coupling with timber buildings is an interesting and expected solution for meeting sustainability requirements in the modern built environment. However, both PV systems and timber structures have unique fire safety challenges, and their combination may introduce additional risks. Therefore, relevant fire hazards associated with each of the technologies and their pairing are discussed. The findings highlight the importance of revising fire testing standards and developing tailored safety measures to identify and manage these risks.
Ključne besede: fire safety, timber buildings, photovoltaics, sustainability
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 17.03.2025; Ogledov: 835; Prenosov: 545
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9. Experimental study of fire propagation on sloped roof with building applied photovoltaicsReidar Stølen, Janne Siren Fjærestad, Ragni Fjellgaard Mikalsen, Grunde Jomaas, 2024, objavljeni znanstveni prispevek na konferenci Povzetek: Photovoltaic modules have been shown to influence how a fire propagates across a flat roof, but the circumstances for which building attached photovoltaic (BAPV) modules promote fire propagation on a sloped roof is not studied in detail. Therefore, a series of small-medium- and large-scale experiments on a sloped roof with a BROOF(t2)-rated bituminous roof membrane on a wood chipboard substrate has been performed. Steel plates mimicking non-combustible photovoltaic (PV) modules were placed at different distances above the roof. Different sized wood cribs placed in the gap between the roof and the PV module were used as the ignition source. Similarly to findings for flat roofs, the experiments showed that the gap distance and the size of the ignition source are key factors for how far the fire propagates from the starting point. This supports that BAPV installations affect the fire dynamics on roofs. As such, the complete system of roof composition and PV installation needs to be considered as a whole to ensure adequate fire safety levels.
Ključne besede: photovoltaic systems, fire propagation, roof safety, ignition source, heat flux
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 12.02.2025; Ogledov: 577; Prenosov: 333
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10. Predicting the effective char depth in timber elements exposed to natural fires, including the cooling phaseAndrea Lucherini, Daniela Šejnová Pitelková, Vladimír Mózer, 2023, objavljeni znanstveni prispevek na konferenci Povzetek: This paper presents a numerical study on the effect of the heating and cooling phases on the reduction of the effective cross-section of timber elements, in particular on the evolution of the char depth (300°C isotherm) and zero- strength layer. An advanced calculation method based a finite-difference heat transfer model is compared to the simplified approach suggested by Eurocode 5. For the heating phase, defined as the standard fire curve (ISO 834), the simplified Eurocode 5 method generally provides more conservative char depths, while the zero-strength layer is under-predicted. Nevertheless, the values of effective char depth are comparable. Including the cooling phase evidences that, during this phase, the heat wave penetration leads to a significant increase in the char depth and zero-strength layer. Particularly, this increase directly depends on the fire cooling rate: a slower cooling phase further reduces the effective cross-section of timber members. As a result, this research highlights how the heat wave penetration during the fire cooling phase can significantly reduce the load-bearing capacity of timber elements.
Ključne besede: timber structures, fire safety, heat transfer, charring, zero-strength layer, cooling
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 14.01.2025; Ogledov: 875; Prenosov: 441
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