Title: Explain key terms related to fire behavior.
Course: Firefighting I (15152-I) > Section: Understanding Fire Behavior

Explanation should include

- vapor density
- flammable range
- specific gravity
- backdraft
- smoke explosion
- boiling, liquid, expanding, vapor, explosion (BLEVE)
- stages of fire (i.e.,incipient, growth, fully developed, decay)
- endothermic and exothermic reactions
- flashover
- rollover
- thermal layering
- fire dynamics
- neutral plane
- ignition temperature
- lower and upper explosive limits
- classes of fire (i.e.,A–D/K)
- temperature measurements (e.g., Fahrenheit, Celsius, British Thermal Units [BTUs])
- states of matter (e.g., solid, liquid, gas).

Process/Skill Questions:

- Why is it important to understand the temperature at which elements change state?
- What effects does heat have on steam production?
- What are some examples of endothermic and exothermic reactions?
- What do chemical suffixes (e.g., -ines, -ates, and -ides) indicate about the nature of chemicals, their composition, and how to extinguish the fires with which they are associated?
- What is meant by thermal layering of gases?