POTENTIAL OF FAST FIRE SPREAD IN LARGE COMPARTMENTS WITH EXPOSED TIMBER

Although research on wooden materials has been carried out for decades, there is still a lack of test data for really large experiments, and especially with high ceiling heights. This is problematic as CLT now is used in a variety of different rooms, including open-plan offices, lobbies, canteens, dwellings, kindergartens, schools, etc. In other words, the great variation in the use of CLT, including room size, geometry, and orientation, challenges the current understanding of how exposed CLT affects a fire in really large compartments. This paper presents some unpublished experimental data of a large-scale auditorium test in a wooden corner configuration, and insights from the fire development of a fire in a school gym with several wooden surfaces.