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RINGS OF FIRE Full Scale Test The results from the medium and full scale test burns cannot be quantified until The full scale test burn was conducted in further experiments have been conducted. open air experiments on a concrete slab of But, the difference between the heat flux 25' by 50'. One hundred whole tires, 8' X necessary to ignite a tire, and the radiant 12' X 5', were stacked on the up-wind side heat flux emitted from the open burning of the slab. These tires were ignited by a of a tire pile, suggests that it takes more combination of diesel fuel and newspaper. energy to ignite tires but less energy to sustain combustion. Radiant heat and temperature was recorded through a series of heat flux These experiments were conducted in a transducers placed at 10' and 15' cleared area of a scrap tire recycling respectively down-wind from the tire pile center containing about six million tires. as well as 10' off to the side of the pile. And though the pile of tires looked small, Barrel stacked target piles were placed in comparison to the surrounding storage next to the transducers on the down-wind yard, it was not difficult to imagine the side of the experiment. Additionally, a environmental impact of the entire storage infrared thermographer was directed yard in flame. The smoke from our test towards the stack of 100 tires. This burn rose to an estimated height of 2,000 experiment was repeated with an feet and extended 20 miles to the equivalent pile of chipped tires (one ton) southeast. That was the effect of only one and bundled tires (six bundles contained hundred tires burning simultaneously. approximately 108 tires). A fire fighter can appreciate the amount The thermographer recorded peak of energy represented in these temperatures of 1,145 degrees centigrade experiments by a comparison provided by about 2,093 degrees fahrenheit. Dr. Williamson. The radiant heat flux of the full scale test burn for a surface area Each stack of target tires had three heat of 96 square feet was 35KW/m2. The flux transducers placed at different flash-over of a fully involved room 10' by heights. The heat flux transducers farthest 10', or 100 square feet, is between 20 and from the whole tire pile recorded 4 to 6 25 KW/m2 at floor level! Kw/m2, while the closest recorded 10 to 12 KW/m2. The heat flux transducers to the side of the pile provided corollary data with peaks of 10.5 to 11.5 KW/m2. In these experiments the heat flux did not ignite the target stacks of tires. Although vaporization was noted on the target stacks closest to the fire. 32