Plan to arrive between 4:00 and 4:15pm and park in the AEI back parking lot, accessable through our main gate and to the back of the building. We will have the burn cell, test equipment and seating set up in our front lot.
If you arrive after the fire has been started, we ask that you park in the Safety One parking lot adjacent to our facility. Thank you.
Contact
Carol Chavez, Business Manager & Development LeadAEI Corporation
303-339-3223
carol@AEIengineers.com
Flashover Fridays
One of the most powerful learning tools in understanding fire behavior is to see it live. AEI Corporation, leaders in fire investigation anad forensic engineering, will be hosting the first in a series of live burns on June 27, 20144 at our office in Littleton, CO.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) sites cooking fires as the number one cause of home fires and injuries. At the top of that list, you will find unattended cooking as the leading cause. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission published a study finding that 75% of range or stove fires started with food ignitions. Of those, 43% started with cooking oil. Of all the people injured in non-fatal home cooking fires from 2005 - 2009, 58% were injured when they attempted to fight the fire themselves.
The NFPA has completed extensive testing on cooking oil fires using soybean (vegetable), corn, canola and peanut oil as well as beef shortening and pork lard. The smoke point of an oil refers to the temperature at which the oil starts to decompose and give off visible fumes. The unpleasant odor that accompanies that breakdown is called acreolein.
The flash point of oil is about 320 degrees C and at 400 degrees C oil is heated to its fire point. At flash point you will notice tiny wisps of fire begin to leap from the surface of the pan and at fire point you will see the surface ablaze.
It is important to remember that you never want to use water in an attempt to extinguish an oil fire. The water will splatter the oil and spread the fire more quickly. Smothering the flames or using a fire extinguisher specifically formulated for oil fires are correct ways to attack oil fires.
AEI Corporation's trained professionals will be conducting a live burn in order to collect scientific data about these types of fires in a simulated kitchen setting, as well as to demonstrate to attendees the behavior of this type of fire.
AEI will set-up a burn cell on our 2 acre lot on Friday June 27, 2014 and we invite you to stop by, have a cold one, a dog or a burger, and witness real-world fire scenarios in a casual atmosphere.