LAUSR

Predictions of both combustible material flammability and heat release parameters have been long goals in fire safety research, for its complex heat, mass transfer and chemical reaction process in gas phase. In this study, neural network method is employed to predict materials flammability considering its wide application in predicting key properties of engineering problems. The use of group method of data handling (GMDH) and feed forward back-propagation (FFBP) neural networks in predicting the heat of combustion and heat release capacity (HRC) from microscale combustion calorimetry has been examined. The study presented models with excellent predictability though GMDH out-performed FFBP. The deviation of the predicted and measured HRC data from this study was compared with the results of other predictive modelling techniques used in flammability studies. The GMDH neural network results presented the least mean deviation of 4.01 signifying accurate predictions. Hence, this study proposed the use of GMDH in predicting flammability characteristics of materials.