NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 52
The Science of
FL A ME JETTING
cause report. No criminal charges were
filed against the science teacher. (My
thanks to Kerwin McNamara, battalion
chief with the Fairfax County, Virginia,
Fire and Rescue, for sharing case information used in this article.)
Flame jetting isn't limited to laboratory
or educational settings-the phenomenon
has been observed in a variety of situations and settings, in some cases with
NO WARNING Photographs from ATF testing depict the blowtorch effect of flame
jetting, which occurs rapidly and without damaging the portable flammable liquid
container. The sequence here takes place in about three tenths of a second.
information to be certain. Fairfax County
fire investigators contacted our lab and
requested additional testing to evaluate
their fire origin and cause hypothesis.
The ATF FRL conducted 49 tests
using ethyl alcohol in various types
and sizes of containers, including glass
and plastic containers in one-liter and
one-gallon sizes. (The container in the
Virginia chemistry lab demonstration
had a one-gallon capacity.) All containers had "necked" openings, and none
included nozzles. Flame jetting occurred
in all 49 of those tests. Investigators
regularly witnessed flame jets in excess
of 15 feet during the FRL testing, results
that were consistent with witness statements and the documented fire damage
in the classroom. Virginia investigators
described the scientific data as "invaluable" and the testing validated their
ignition hypothesis in the fire origin and
52 | NFPA JOURNAL * S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7
fatal results. A solution to this hazard
exists in the form of flame arrestors,
simple devices that are essentially thin
metal or plastic screens that typically cost
less than 50 cents. Flame arrestors have
been shown in testing to prevent flame
jetting from portable flammable liquid
containers that would otherwise produce
jets in certain conditions.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently working with
researchers (including ATF) and the
American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) to develop the first standard
to evaluate the effectiveness and durability of flame mitigation devices for
portable flammable liquid containers.
The purpose of the standard is to ensure
that flame mitigation devices meet
minimum effectiveness criteria and
remain intact after repeated use prior to
widespread installation in these types of
containers. The new ASTM flame mitigation device standard is expected to be
completed sometime this year.
The need for research
Our initial research into flame jetting
began seven years ago when Michigan
investigators charged a man with the
burning death of his six-year-old daughter. The father was allegedly pouring
diesel fuel-a detail that was later determined to be inaccurate-onto a fire in
a fire pit when his daughter became
engulfed in flames, but he couldn't
explain exactly how she was ignited.
"She was at a safe distance. I was pouring the container and all of a sudden,
there's just fire everywhere. I don't know
what I did," the man told investigators.
Law enforcement officials decided that
more information was needed, and
asked the ATF Fire Research Lab in
Maryland to perform forensic fire testing and collect scientific data related
to the case. The ATF FRL is the world's
largest forensic fire research facility and
is tasked with conducting experiments
in support of fire investigation and fire
research. Many of these experiments
require constructing a portion of the fire
scene in the ATF FRL's burn rooms and
conducting a series of fire tests.
The father speculated the flames
from the fire pit may have entered
ATF FIRE RESEARCH LABORATORY
The lab where I work, the Fire
Research Laboratory (FRL) at the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives (ATF), had previously
conducted testing on the phenomenon
known as flame jetting, and Virginia
investigators were aware of our work.
They immediately suspected flame jetting was to blame for what had occurred
in the science lab, but they needed more
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - September/October 2017
Contents
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - BB1
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - BB2
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - Cover1
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - Cover2
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 1
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - Contents
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 3
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 4
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 5
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 6
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 7
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 8
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NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 15
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 16
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 16a
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 16b
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 17
NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 18
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