Review of Parameters Correlated with the Maximum Heat Release Rate in Flames of Polyurethane Foams of Various Cuboid Shapes

The heat release rate is an important physical quantity that can quantitatively analyze the scale and intensity of fires. Recently, studies have been conducted to analyze the correlation between various parameters of combustibles and the maximum heat release rate measured in fire experiments, and to predict the maximum heat release rate of combustibles through correlation equations. However, the suitability of various parameters of combustibles that can be applied in the correlation has not yet been fully investigated. In this study, fire experiments were conducted using polyurethane (PU) foams of various shapes. Besides, the correlations between various combustible parameters and the maximum heat release rate were quantitatively compared and analyzed. The results confirmed that by appropriately using the combustible parameters, the relative error of the maximum heat release rate predicted by the correlation equation could be reduced from 34% to 12%.