Class FireHeatLoadCalculator

java.lang.Object

neqsim.process.util.fire.FireHeatLoadCalculator

public final class FireHeatLoadCalculator
extends Object

Utility methods for estimating fire heat loads for blowdown and relief calculations.

The calculator supports the legacy API 521 pool fire correlation as well as a generalized Stefan-Boltzmann formulation that can account for configuration factors. The values are expressed in SI units to make them easy to integrate with the rest of the NeqSim process equipment model.

Field Summary

Fields

Modifier and Type	Field	Description
static final double	STEFAN_BOLTZMANN	Stefan-Boltzmann constant in W/(m^2*K^4).

Constructor Summary

Constructors

Modifier	Constructor	Description
private	FireHeatLoadCalculator()

Method Summary

Modifier and Type	Method	Description
static double	api521PoolFireHeatLoad(double wettedArea, double environmentalFactor)	Calculates total heat input from a pool fire using the API 521 correlation.
static double	generalizedStefanBoltzmannHeatFlux(double emissivity, double viewFactor, double flameTemperatureK, double surfaceTemperatureK)	Calculates radiative heat flux using a generalized Stefan-Boltzmann approach.

Methods inherited from class Object

clone, equals, finalize, getClass, hashCode, notify, notifyAll, toString, wait, wait, wait

Field Details

STEFAN_BOLTZMANN

public static final double STEFAN_BOLTZMANN

Stefan-Boltzmann constant in W/(m^2*K^4).

See Also:

• Constant Field Values

Constructor Details

FireHeatLoadCalculator

private FireHeatLoadCalculator()

Method Details

api521PoolFireHeatLoad

public static double api521PoolFireHeatLoad(double wettedArea,
 double environmentalFactor)

Calculates total heat input from a pool fire using the API 521 correlation.

The API 521 pool-fire heat load (Eq. 5.15) is expressed as:

Q = 6.19e6 * F * A^0.82 [W]

where F is the environmental factor and A is the wetted surface area [m2]. This metric form is derived from 21,000,000 * F * A^0.82 [Btu/hr].

Parameters:

wettedArea - Wetted surface area exposed to fire [m2]

environmentalFactor - API 521 environmental factor, unitless (e.g., insulation quality)

Returns:

Heat input from pool fire in Watts

generalizedStefanBoltzmannHeatFlux

public static double generalizedStefanBoltzmannHeatFlux(double emissivity,
 double viewFactor,
 double flameTemperatureK,
 double surfaceTemperatureK)

Calculates radiative heat flux using a generalized Stefan-Boltzmann approach.

This method supports modern fire heat load calculations that use configuration/view factors instead of a pure point-source assumption.

Parameters:

emissivity - Effective flame emissivity (0-1)

viewFactor - Geometric view/configuration factor between flame and surface (0-1)

flameTemperatureK - Flame or source temperature [K]

surfaceTemperatureK - Current surface temperature [K]

Returns:

Radiative heat flux toward the surface in W/m2