Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 6, 2026

Experimental Methodology for Estimation of Local Heat Fluxes and Burning Rates in Steady Laminar Boundary Layer Diffusion Flames
Published on: June 1, 2016
Estimation of the lower flammability limit of organic compounds as a function of temperature
J R Rowley1, R L Rowley, W V Wilding
1Department of Chemical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA.
Abstract:
A new method of estimating the lower flammability limit (LFL) of general organic compounds is presented. The LFL is predicted at 298 K for gases and the lower temperature limit for solids and liquids from structural contributions and the ideal gas heat of formation of the fuel. The average absolute deviation from more than 500 experimental data points is 10.7%. In a previous study, the widely used modified Burgess-Wheeler law was shown to underestimate the effect of temperature on the lower flammability limit when determined in a large-diameter vessel. An improved version of the modified Burgess-Wheeler law is presented that represents the temperature dependence of LFL data determined in large-diameter vessels more accurately. When the LFL is estimated at increased temperatures using a combination of this model and the proposed structural-contribution method, an average absolute deviation of 3.3% is returned when compared with 65 data points for 17 organic compounds determined in an ASHRAE-style apparatus.
More Related Videos
12:34Experimental Procedure for Laboratory Studies of In Situ Burning : Flammability and Burning Efficiency of Crude Oil
Published on: May 1, 2018
07:24Combustion Chemistry of Fuels: Quantitative Speciation Data Obtained from an Atmospheric High-temperature Flow Reactor with Coupled Molecular-beam Mass Spectrometer
Published on: February 19, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Flame Photometry: Lab
Flame Photometry: Overview
Atomic Spectroscopy: Effects of Temperature
At thermal equilibrium, the relative populations of excited and ground state atoms can be estimated using the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution. For example, an increase in temperature from...
Combustion Energy: A Measure of Stability in Alkanes and Cycloalkanes
Alkanes undergo combustion in the presence of excess oxygen and high-temperature conditions to give carbon dioxide and water. A combustion reaction is the energy source in natural gas, liquified petroleum gas (LPG), fuel oil, gasoline, diesel fuel, and...
Clausius-Clapeyron Equation
Enthalpy and Heat of Reaction