Houlin Ying

This paper explores the smoke flow characteristics in tunnel fires, giving a particular emphasis on the effects of different distances between the smoke outlets and the fire source. It examines the smoke behavior under different conditions, including variations in heat release rates, exhaust volumetric flow rates, spacing between smoke outlets, and the longitudinal fire source positions. Results indicate that altering the fire source positions and the smoke outlets in the tunnel leads to variations in the properties of smoke flow both the fire source upstream and downstream; the distance between fire source and smoke outlet increases gradually, airflow rate decreases initially and eventually reaches a stable state. Similarly, smoke mass flow rate exhibits an increasing trend that eventually reaches a stable state. Moreover, the heat exchange between the tunnel walls and hot smoke increases as the smoke outlet moves further away from the fire source. This interaction leads to a reduction in the heat exhaust coefficient and a decrease in the distance the smoke spreads. This study investigates the impact of altering the relative longitudinal fire source positions and smoke outlet on smoke flow characteristics by numerical simulation. A theoretical analytical method is used to give a predictive model for the heat exhaust coefficient and the smoke spreading distance. This research can support the theory and technical process of tunnel smoke exhaust prevention and control.

The model-scale tunnel is used in this investigation to analyze the maximum smoke temperature rise of the interconnected tunnel for various longitudinal ventilation velocities, blockage ratios, and heat release rates where the fire is at the confluence of the underground interconnected tunnel. The results showed that the longitudinal ventilation velocities of both the ramp upstream of the fire source and the adjacent ramp influenced the maximum temperature rise under the underground interconnected tunnel, and the ventilation of both ramps jointly affected the maximum temperature rise. The change in the maximum temperature rise depends on who is more affected by the longitudinal ventilation velocity or the vehicle blockage ratio. As the longitudinal ventilation velocity in the interconnected tunnel increases, the convective heat transfer near the fire source increases, resulting in a decrease in the maximum temperature rise, and the effect of the blockage ratio on the maximum temperature rise is reduced. In this paper, a maximum temperature rise prediction model suitable for the case of blockage in the interconnected tunnel is proposed.

The tunnel width and the transverse fire’s position both impact the heat exhaust coefficient, which is a critical component of the lateral smoke exhaust in tunnel fires. In this research, the tunnel width and the transverse location of the fire source are varied to analyze the heat exhaust coefficient of lateral smoke exhaust. When tunnel width increases, there is a noticeable decrease in the longitudinal temperature of the entrained air and smoke layer in the fire plume. Furthermore, the heat exhaust coefficients are reduced. An increase in the distance between the exhaust vent and the fire source causes an increase in the proportion of hot smoke in the smoke exhaust mass flow, which increases the heat exhaust coefficient. A calculated heat exhaust coefficient was developed using the fire source’s location and the tunnel’s width as inputs, which agrees well with the simulation results. This method can predict the heat exhaust coefficient of the lateral smoke exhaust in tunnel fires. The findings of this study provide insight into how the tunnel width and the location of a transverse fire influence the heat exhaust coefficient.