NATS 1575 Chapter Notes - Chapter 13: Fire Investigation, Arson, Air Interface
16 Aug 2016
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Chapter 12 // forensic aspects of fire investigation. Arson investigations often present complex and difficult circumstances to investigate due to the fact that perpetrator has thoroughly planned the act, is not present during the act, and the destruction is so extensive. The criminalists function is rather limited to detecting and identifying relevant chemical materials collected at the scene and reconstructing and identifying igniter mechanisms. Chemically, fire is a type of oxidation, which is the combination of oxygen with other substances to produce new substances. To start fire, the minimum temperature needed to spontaneously ignite fuel, known as ignition temperature, must be reached. Heat of combustion - heat evolved when a substance burns. Besides the liberation of energy, needed to explain fire is the rate or speed at which the oxidation reaction takes place. A fuel will achieve a reaction rate with oxygen sufficient to produce a flame only when it is in the gaseous state.
