Field-scale methodology for the assessment of water-based wildfire suppression efficiency

Field-scale methodology for the assessment of water-based wildfire suppression efficiency | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Field-scale methodology for the assessment of water-based wildfire suppression efficiency Martin Hofmann, David Zenz, Jorge Raposo, Alba Agueda, Eulalia Planas, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Critical water volumes needed for wildfire containment are currently estimated using theoretical energy balance models. The actual suppression efficiency of water-based systems remains largely unvalidated at operationally relevant fireline intensities, as prior critical water volume studies have been restricted to low-intensity experimental fires (typically \((< 1000 \text{ kW/m})\) ). To scale the empirical assessment to operationally relevant fireline intensities, a reliable and repeatable methodology, together with a custom apparatus, has been developed. The proposed protocol utilizes a custom soaker hose system, characterized for its wetting pattern under wind, to create pre-wetted strips of vegetation in the path of advancing fires in experimental and prescribed burn scenarios. The soaker hose system enabled the empirical quantification of water deposition depths \((\text{(d}_\text{w}; mm))\) and verifiable containment outcomes. Ten fire tests were conducted in Portugal and Spain, delivering applied \((\text{d}_\text{w})\) between \((0.9 \text{ mm})\) and \((3.1 \text{ mm})\) , exposed to advancing fire fronts with fireline intensities ranging from roughly \((2500 \text{ kW/m})\) up to \((5500 \text{ kW/m})\) . Field data presented in this work successfully narrow the large theoretical operating window of this bespoke soaker hose. This methodology provides a repeatable framework for the field-based study of the suppression efficiency of water-carrying appliances at relevant fireline intensities. Wildland fire Resource efficiency Suppression efficiency Delivery efficiency Prescribed burns Field experiments Incident management Full Text Additional Declarations Competing interest reported. D.Z. is a shareholder of the company responsible for the development of the bespoke soaker-hose system described in this study. The company was established as a vehicle to attract funding specifically for the research and development of sustainable and resource-efficient wildfire management. The author receives no salary from the company. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 05 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 21 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 13 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 25 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 16 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 16 Feb, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 31 Jan, 2026 First submitted to journal 26 Jan, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8703039","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":592024814,"identity":"787a5473-771c-46f4-8b05-eb8ec253ff83","order_by":0,"name":"Martin Hofmann","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABH0lEQVRIie2RvWrDMBCATwScReBVJoOfoFBjEA2472JTcJbEiyFjERiuSx/Aj9EuJVsNBk1us3rI0BJwFw8JXdqt/iEEgpKshehb7gc+7k4C0Gj+K/4uIQLMLtn09fURgYhOMXrFEm1MzylwqAzoCeXq4e3r43MBkWknckMWHms6cn2LKxuGyQtTKLyYOCIoILbQuEtJETJeRBN3hpUjqJwrlSwkIkAIniR1gWB+z7MpH80w94FNuVJZVr3yKs3vVmF8WfPRuFXsWq2UuykGHfRK2Uwh3RR6RKlIGiCLmQxdCLC5pay59fheOUjD+Ea5WAjbX/QiM8nXsEWvWaw54We+ss1h/lyqXrmH+V3w952s+6hT+IeN7Iyg0Wg0F8QfbN1jAQdkmV8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Martin","middleName":"","lastName":"Hofmann","suffix":""},{"id":592024817,"identity":"a0923778-274e-4d11-97cd-b16161596972","order_by":1,"name":"David Zenz","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"HoZe Solutions GmbH","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"David","middleName":"","lastName":"Zenz","suffix":""},{"id":592024823,"identity":"a72c7c99-fc7f-4cbd-a996-cf71807bf0e5","order_by":2,"name":"Jorge Raposo","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade Lusófona","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jorge","middleName":"","lastName":"Raposo","suffix":""},{"id":592024824,"identity":"9987d9d1-d5cb-4e55-993f-44ea89fdaece","order_by":3,"name":"Alba Agueda","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Alba","middleName":"","lastName":"Agueda","suffix":""},{"id":592024826,"identity":"072e43c4-bed8-4510-b505-c130177a5cae","order_by":4,"name":"Eulalia Planas","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eulalia","middleName":"","lastName":"Planas","suffix":""},{"id":592024828,"identity":"ffd9f6c0-6fb8-4913-8af4-afc8af91e782","order_by":5,"name":"Elsa Pastor","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Elsa","middleName":"","lastName":"Pastor","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-01-26 18:11:28","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":104397590,"identity":"6b550816-a20c-4db4-8ba4-69391c9c7a4b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-11 11:52:28","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":6755801,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Fieldscalemethodologyfortheassessmentofwaterbasedwildfiresuppressionefficiency.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8703039/v1_covered_7e1f96ad-b66a-408b-a56e-6390a63b7403.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"Competing interest reported. D.Z. is a shareholder of the company responsible for the development of the bespoke soaker-hose system described in this study. The company was established as a vehicle to attract funding specifically for the research and development of sustainable and resource-efficient wildfire management. The author receives no salary from the company.","formattedTitle":"Field-scale methodology for the assessment of water-based wildfire suppression efficiency","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"fire-technology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"fire","sideBox":"Learn more about [Fire Technology](http://link.springer.com/journal/10694)","snPcode":"10694","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/10694/3","title":"Fire Technology","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Wildland fire, Resource efficiency, Suppression efficiency, Delivery efficiency, Prescribed burns, Field experiments, Incident management","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eCritical water volumes needed for wildfire containment are currently estimated using theoretical energy balance models. The actual suppression efficiency of water-based systems remains largely unvalidated at operationally relevant fireline intensities, as prior critical water volume studies have been restricted to low-intensity experimental fires (typically \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((\u0026lt; 1000 \\text{ kW/m})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e). To scale the empirical assessment to operationally relevant fireline intensities, a reliable and repeatable methodology, together with a custom apparatus, has been developed. The proposed protocol utilizes a custom soaker hose system, characterized for its wetting pattern under wind, to create pre-wetted strips of vegetation in the path of advancing fires in experimental and prescribed burn scenarios. The soaker hose system enabled the empirical quantification of water deposition depths \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((\\text{(d}_\\text{w}; mm))\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e and verifiable containment outcomes. Ten fire tests were conducted in Portugal and Spain, delivering applied \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((\\text{d}_\\text{w})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e between \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((0.9 \\text{ mm})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e and \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((3.1 \\text{ mm})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e, exposed to advancing fire fronts with fireline intensities ranging from roughly \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((2500 \\text{ kW/m})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e up to \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\((5500 \\text{ kW/m})\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e. Field data presented in this work successfully narrow the large theoretical operating window of this bespoke soaker hose. This methodology provides a repeatable framework for the field-based study of the suppression efficiency of water-carrying appliances at relevant fireline intensities.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Field-scale methodology for the assessment of water-based wildfire suppression efficiency","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-02-25 00:36:15","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8703039/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-06T01:29:49+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-21T16:15:01+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-13T07:45:56+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"57685000786320851794949122404704688077","date":"2026-03-25T12:10:48+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"2658067626511842705177085157546336718","date":"2026-03-18T02:18:41+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-16T21:47:38+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-02-16T09:47:28+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-01-31T07:30:16+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Fire Technology","date":"2026-01-26T17:57:51+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"fire-technology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"fire","sideBox":"Learn more about [Fire Technology](http://link.springer.com/journal/10694)","snPcode":"10694","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/10694/3","title":"Fire Technology","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"b2bf8a58-8568-4b95-a980-435ed1e546b3","owner":[],"postedDate":"February 25th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-06T01:29:49+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"in-revision","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-06T01:41:48+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-02-25 00:36:15","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8703039","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8703039","identity":"rs-8703039","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}