FIRES ON OFFSHORE PROCESS INSTALLATIONS

Fires on offshore process installations are different to those in process plants onshore, and especially different from normal building fires. The effect of enclosure on fire severity both for liquid pool fires and gas fires, the devastating effect of impinging jet fires from high-pressure gas leakages, the threat to people from smoke and heat are major considerations for fire modellers and experimenters. Recent research into fire behaviour, the effectiveness of fire protection materials exposed to jet fires, and the effectiveness of water mist for fire suppression are among the activities summarized in this article.