SPILLED FUEL IGNITION SOURCES AND COUNTERMEASURERS SUMMARY REPORT

This report summarizes a program which defined the conditions under which motor vehicle crash fires are ignited and proposed practicable countermeasures to reduce the incidence of these fires. Both ignition sources and fuel spillage were investigated. Electrical sparks generated from damage to the vehicle's electrical system during a crash are studied as the most hazardous ignition sources. Vehicle headlight filaments are also ignition sources. Full-scale crash tests demonstrated how commercially available inertia switches will shut off the vehicle's electrical system during frontal, front-to-rear, and rollover crashes.

• Corporate Authors:

  Ultrasystems, Incorporated

  Dynamic Science Division, 1850 West Pinnacle Peak Road
  Phoenix, AZ  United States  85027

  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Publication Date: 1975-9

Media Info

• Pagination: 28 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Benefit cost analysis; Countermeasures; Crash tests; Crashes; Enviromental spills; Evaluation; Fire causes; Fire prevention; Fires; Frontal crashes; Fuel systems; Fuels; Ignition; Inertia; Prevention; Rollover crashes; Sparks; Testing; Tests; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Motor vehicle accidents; Switches
• Old TRIS Terms: Spillage
• Subject Areas: Energy; Highways; Research; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00093493
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: Dyn-Sci-2310-75-119 Final Rpt., DOT-HS-801-744
• Contract Numbers: DOT-HS-4-00872
• Files: NTIS, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Jan 14 1976 12:00AM