Ch. 7: Reading Smoke Flashcards

1
Q

Smoke leaving a structure has four key attributes:

A

volume, velocity (pressure), density, and color

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2
Q

The product of incomplete combustion that includes an aggregate of solids, aerosols, and fire gases that are toxic, flammable, and volatile.

A

smoke

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3
Q

What can help the ISO determine the size and location of the fire, the effectiveness of fire streams, as well as the potential for a hostile fire event like a flashover?

A

A comparative analysis of the attributes of smoke.

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4
Q

What is a by-product of incomplete combustion, specifically particulates (solids) that were suspended in a thermal column?

A

Smoke

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5
Q

What is an explosive aggregate of solids, aerosols, and gases?

A

smoke

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6
Q

Good thing: The products of combustion are minimized because the burning process is more complete.

A

“Open flaming”

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7
Q

What happens when materials can only absorb so much heat before it starts to break down and “off-gas” without flaming?

A

Smoke becomes flammable.

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8
Q

_________ is extremely flammable and ultimately dictates fire behavior in a building.

A

Smoke

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9
Q

What are the two triggers that may cause accumulated smoke to ignite?

A

The right temperature and the right mixture.

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10
Q

What will the ignition of flame spread across surfaces of contents do to fire?

A

The fire spreads with the smoke flow.

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11
Q

What tells you how intense the fire is about to become as opposed to how bad it currently is?

A

Watching the smoke.

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12
Q

An event that can catch firefighters off guard and endanger them: flashover, backdraft, smoke explosions, and rapid fire spread.

A

Hostile fire event

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13
Q

All gases reach their ignition temperature at virtually the same time due to rapid heat buildup in the box.

A

Flashover

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14
Q

What event will show warning signs of turbulent smoke flow, rollover, and autoignition outside?

A

Flashover

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15
Q

What is suspected when there is sucking or puffing witnessed near a box?

A

Backdraft

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16
Q

What event happens when a spark or flame is introduced into trapped smoke that is below its ignition temperature but above its flashpoint?

A

Smoke explosion

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17
Q

What event happens when smoke reaches sustaining temperatures that are above the fire point of prevalent gases?

A

Rapid fire spread

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18
Q

The ISO must study the warning signs of hostile fire events and watch for the signs as part of the reading smoke process.

A

The ISO must study the warning signs of hostile fire events and watch for the signs as part of the reading smoke process.

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19
Q

Warning signs -

  • Turbulent smoke flow
  • Rollover
  • Autoignition outside
A

Flashover

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20
Q

Warning signs -

  • Yellowish-gray smoke
  • Bowing, black stained windows
  • Signs of extreme heat on outside of box/compartment
A

Backdraft

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21
Q

Warning signs -

  • Smoke that is being trapped above the fire
  • Signs of a growing fire
  • Signs of smoke starting to pressurize
A

Smoke explosion

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22
Q

Warning signs -

  • Increase in smoke speed
  • Smoke flowing from hallways and stairways faster than a firefighter can move
A

Rapid fire spread

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23
Q

What type of approach must an ISO take by watching the four smoke attributes?

A

A proactive approach

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24
Q

What can help the ISO understand fire behavior?

A

By comparing the smoke volume, velocity, density, and color.

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25
Q

What by itself tells very little about a fire, but it sets the stage for understanding the amount of fuel that are off-gassing in a given space?

A

smoke volume

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26
Q

A hot clean-burning fire.

A

Emits very little visible smoke

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27
Q

A hot, fast moving fire in an underventilated building.

A

Shows a tremendous volume of smoke.

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28
Q

What burns slowly and emits lots of smoke (typically of a lighter color)?

A

Dampened materials

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29
Q

The movement of smoke through a building that is rapid and violent and that has expansive velocity (sometimes referred to as “agitated,” “boiling,” or “angry” smoke); indicates that the building (or compartment) cannot absorb more heat and is precursor warning sign of a flashover.

A

Turbulent smoke flow

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30
Q

What characteristic means a flashover is likely to occur?

A

turbulent smoke flow

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31
Q

What is a precursor to flashover?

A

turbulent smoke flow

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32
Q

The “speed” at which smoke leaves a building is reffered to as ___________.

A

velocity

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33
Q

What is an indicator of pressure that has built up in the building?

A

smoke velocity

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34
Q

What are the two things from a practical fire behavior point of view that can cause smoke to pressurize in a building?

A

Heat or smoke volume

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35
Q

What is caused by the rapid molecular expansion of the gases in the smoke and the restriction of this expansion by the box (compartment)?

A

turbulent smoke flow

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36
Q

When smoke is leaving the building, its velocity is caused by?

A

Heat if it rises and then slows gradually.

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37
Q

What does smoke caused by restricted volume do?

A

Immediately slows down and becomes balanced with outside airflow.

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38
Q

What does the smooth and stable flow of smoke through a building indicate?

A

The building (or compartment) is still absorbing heat.

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39
Q

If the box is still absorbing heat, the heat of the smoke is subsequently absorbed, leaving a more stable and smooth flow characteristic that is referred to as ________ _________ _________.

A

laminar smoke flow

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40
Q

What word is used to describe the smooth movement of a fluid, and smoke is basically fluid when moving through a building?

A

“laminar”

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41
Q

What is the most important smoke observation?

A

Whether the smoke’s flow is turbulent or laminar.

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42
Q

What is ready to ignite and indicates a flashover environment that may be delayed by improper air mix?

A

Turbulent smoke

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43
Q

What can help the fire officer determine the location of the fire?

A

Comparing the velocity of smoke at different openings of the building.

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44
Q

What visual of smoke tells you its closer to the fire?

A

Faster smoke

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45
Q

What tells you how hot it is and where the fire is?

A

Velocity

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46
Q

What smoke attribute tells you how bad things are going to be?

A

Density

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47
Q

What refers to the thickness of the smoke?

A

density

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48
Q

What attribute of smoke tells you how much fuel is laden in the smoke?

A

density (thickness)

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49
Q

The thicker the smoke, the more spectacular the flashover or fire spread will be.

A

The thicker the smoke, the more spectacular the flashover or fire spread will be.

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50
Q

What attribute also sets up fuel continuity?

A

smoke thickness

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51
Q

What spreads a fire event (like flashover) farther than less dense smoke?

A

Thick smoke

52
Q

What can ignite because of the continuity of the fuel to the source?

A

thick, laminar-flowing smoke

53
Q

What reduces the chance life sustainability due to smoke toxicology?

A

Thick, black smoke in a compartment

54
Q

What is the firefighter crawling through zero-visibility smoke actually crawling through?

A

Ignitable fuel

55
Q

What indicates the “type” of material that is burning?

A

Smoke color

56
Q

What does smoke color tell the ISO?

A

The stage of heating and points to the location of the fire in a building.

57
Q

When smoke emits white, what is this mostly?

A

Moisture

58
Q

Virtually all solid materials emit a ________ “smoke” when first heated.

A

white

59
Q

What happens to the smoke color as a material dries out and breaks down?

A

The color of the smoke darkens.

60
Q

The more black the smoke you see, the hotter the smoke is.

A

The more black the smoke you see, the hotter the smoke is.

61
Q

What does it mean when black smoke that is high velocity and very thin (low density) mean?

A

It is flame pushed (open (and ventilated) flaming is nearby).

62
Q

What does brown smoke from structural spaces indicate?

A

The fire is transitioning from a contents fire to a structural fire.

63
Q

What does brown smoke from structural spaces containing glued trusses, OSB, or LVL can indicate?

A

That critical strength has been already lost.

64
Q

What does fast moving white smoke indicate?

A

That the smoke has traveled some distance.

65
Q

What is it most likely indicative of when white smoke is slow or lazy?

A

Early-stage heating

66
Q

What does the issuance of brown smoke from gabled-end vents, eaves, and floor seams a warning sign of?

A

Impending collapse

67
Q

What can help locate a fire?

A

Compare smoke velocity and color from various openings.

68
Q

Faster and/or darker smoke is closer to the fire seat, whereas slower and/or lighter smoke is…

A

farther away

69
Q

What indicates that unfinished wood is being heated?

A

Brown smoke from structural spaces.

70
Q

What should you start thinking when the smoke appears uniform - that is, it is the same color and velocity from multiple openings?

A

That the fire is in a concealed space (or deep-seated)

71
Q

What should the ISO inform the IC upon seeing smoke that is the same color and velocity being pushed from multiple building seams?

A

That the fire may have extended to concealed spaces.

72
Q

A slang term used to describe high-volume, turbulent, ultradense, and deep-black smoke; a sure sign of impending flashover.

A

Black fire

73
Q

What can reach temperatures of over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit?

A

Black fire

74
Q

What is a sure sign of impending autoignition and flashover?

A

Black fire

75
Q

What can change the appearance of smoke?

A

Weather, thermal balance, container size, and firefighting efforts.

76
Q

What can influence the smoke’s appearance once it leaves a building?

A

The outside weather

77
Q

When outside air temperatures are below freezing, hot smoke leaving the building will?

A

Turn white almost instantly.

78
Q

What can happen to firefighters engaged in an interior fire attack downwind of a wind-fed fire?

A

In danger of being overrun by the fire.

79
Q

What in the air increases resistance to smoke movement by raising air density?

A

Humidity

80
Q

A hot day finds the smoke rising much farther because cooling is more difficult.

A

A hot day finds the smoke rising much farther because cooling is more difficult.

81
Q

If the outside air is cooler than the smoke, the smoke should rise until the outside air _______ ______.

A

cools it

82
Q

What happens when hot, dry smoke contacts cold, humid air?

A

It changes white.

83
Q

What happens when hot, moist smoke contacts cold, dry air?

A

It turns white.

84
Q

What does the presence of low-lying smoke indicate in a sprinkled building?

A

That the fire is not being controlled by sprinklers.

85
Q

What is the notion that heated smoke rises and in doing so creates a draft of cool air into the flame (heat) source?

A

thermal balance

86
Q

What does sucking, puffing, and “breathing” signs indicate?

A

That a fire is out of thermal balance.

87
Q

From the ISO’s perspective, signs of air being sucked into a building indicate that the fire is intense, yet struggling for proper airflow.

A

A sudden inflow of air can cause the fire to take off - trapping firefighters.

88
Q

What concern does light, thin smoke from more than one opening of a very large building?

A

It is a significant observation.

89
Q

When a fire stream and ventilation efforts are appropriate, what should happen?

A

All four attributes of smoke should change in a positive, continuous manner.

90
Q

Who is usually in the best position to tell whether firefighting efforts are being successful?

A

The ISO

91
Q

What is contraindicated if smoke is turbulent (a flashover warning sign)?

A

PPV

92
Q

How can the ISO refine and rapidly apply principle to be incorporated into a process for rapid application?

A

Following three simple steps:

1) View VVDC of smoke.
2) Analyze the contributing factors to determine if affecting VVDC.
3) Determine the rate of change of each attribute.

93
Q

What should give ISOs a good understanding of the fire and help them predict what the fire will do next?

A

The three-step process

94
Q

What is founded on an understanding of the physical and chemical properties of smoke as well as the specific warning signs of impending hostile events?

A

Predicting fire behavior

95
Q

What can be compared to paint a picture of the fire in a building?

A

Smoke volume, velocity, density, and color.

96
Q

What is the smooth and stable flow of smoke through a

building called?

A

Laminar smoke flow

97
Q

Which is NOT considered a positive change in smoke

conditions once firefighting efforts are underway?

A

Contents that were flaming should start “smoking black”

98
Q

Which hostile fire event is preceded by an increase in
smoke speed and smoke flowing from hallways faster than a
firefighter can move?

A

Rapid fire spread

99
Q

What gas is produced when high temperatures break down nitrogen-containing products?

A

Hydrogen cyanide

100
Q

With black fire what is doing the damage?

A

Smoke

101
Q

What shortcut has been shared as the fastest way to find a fire in the building?

A

Look for the fastest smoke from the most resistive opening

102
Q

What should the smoke be doing on a hot, humid day?

A

Climbing straight up into the atmosphere

103
Q

Which is a trigger that may cause accumulated smoke to

ignite?

A

Right temperature

104
Q

Which is NOT a key attribute of smoke leaving a structure?

A

Odor

105
Q

What does smoke volume by itself set the stage for

understanding?

A

Amount of fuel that are off-gassing in a given space

106
Q

What color smoke from structural spaces can indicate the

fire is moving from a contents fire to a structural fire?

A

Brown

107
Q

Which is NOT a sign that the fire inside is out of thermal

balance?

A

Jetting

108
Q

What is moving smoke that is black, high velocity and very thin?

A

Flame

109
Q

What will most likely be seen when there is a deep-seated fire?

A

Same color and same velocity smoke from multiple openings

110
Q

Where is faster smoke seen in relation to the fire?

A

Closer to

111
Q

In which type of building would light, thin smoke showing
from more than one opening be a sign of significant fire
inside?

A

Large warehouse

112
Q

Which smoke is usually indicative of early-stage heating?

A

Slow moving white smoke

113
Q

At what temperature (degrees Fahrenheit) does the

flammable range of CO become a factor?

A

300

114
Q

What is the main content of white smoke?

A

Moisture

115
Q

What is smoke velocity an indicator of?

A

Pressure

116
Q

What ultimately dictates fire behavior in a building?

A

Smoke

117
Q

What gas do most plastics release when burning?

A

Benzene

118
Q

Which is a solid suspended in smoke?

A

Carbon

119
Q

What color smoke do virtually all solid materials emit

when first heated?

A

White

120
Q

Which hostile fire event is preceded by signs of a

growing fire and signs of smoke starting to pressurize?

A

Smoke explosion

121
Q

What does thick black smoke say about the survivability

within a compartment?

A

It is very low

122
Q

What smoke will most likely be seen when there is either a nearby fire that is well vented or flame-pushed smoke?

A

Thin, black smoke moving fast

123
Q

What is the byproduct of incomplete combustion?

A

Smoke

124
Q

Which hostile fire event is preceded by yellowish-gray

smoke and bowing, black stained windows?

A

Backdraft

125
Q

Which gas commonly found in smoke has a flashpoint of -15 degrees Fahrenheit?

A

Acrolein

126
Q

Which event is evidenced by turbulent smoke flow and

auto ignition outside?

A

Flashover

127
Q

Name 4 Hostile fire events

A

Flashover
Backdraft
Smoke Explosion
Rapid Fire Spread