Vehicle Fires Resulting from Hot Surface Ignition of Grass and Leaves 2017-01-1354

One potential fire ignition source in a motor vehicle is the hot surfaces on the engine exhaust system. These hot surfaces can come into contact with combustible and flammable liquids (such as engine oil, transmission fluid, brake fluid, gasoline, or Diesel fuel) due to a fluid leak, or during a vehicle collision. If the surface temperature is higher than the hot surface ignition temperature of the combustible or flammable liquid in a given geometry, a fire can potentially ignite and propagate. In addition to automotive fluids, another potential fuel in post-collision vehicle fires is grass, leaves, or other vegetation. Studies of hot surface ignition of dried vegetation have found that ignition depends on the type of vegetation, surface temperature, duration of contact, and ambient conditions such as temperature and wind speed. Ignition can occur at surface temperatures as low as 300 °C, if the vegetation is in contact with the surface for 10 minutes or longer. At surface temperatures of 400 °C, ignition can occur in 3 minutes, and at surface temperatures of 500 °C, ignition can occur in a few seconds. We made measurements of the surface temperature at various locations along the exhaust system of a passenger vehicle, including on the catalytic converter, under different transient conditions. The temperatures were measured using thermocouples welded to the exhaust system. The tests show that the maximum external surfaces temperatures occur under transient conditions after the vehicle comes to a sudden stop. Thus, testing that only measures steady-state temperatures or temperatures while the vehicle is moving will not necessarily capture the worst-case temperatures. For the vehicle tested, exhaust system components can reach temperatures of 400 °C and these temperatures can be sustained for minutes after the vehicle stops, and thus are capable of igniting dried vegetation.