Research leader

A/Prof Khalid Moinuddin Research Leader

Research team

Dr Duncan Sutherland
Dr Duncan Sutherland Research Team
Andrew Ooi
Prof Andrew Ooi Research Team
Prof Graham Thorpe
Prof Graham Thorpe Research Team
Prof Vasily Novozhilov Research Team
Dr Jimmy Philip Research Team
Dr Nazmul Khan Research Team
Dr Mahmood Rashid Research Team

End User representatives

Brad Davies End-User
Andrew Stark
Andrew Stark End-User
Chris Wyborn End-User
Mike Wouters
Mike Wouters End-User
Paul Fletcher End-User
Laurence McCoy End-User
Jackson Parker End-User
Brian Levine End-User
Matt Chesnais End-User

Student researchers

Dr Rahul Wadhwani Student Reseacher
Jasmine Innocent Student Reseacher
Sesa Singha Roy Student Reseacher
Nitheesh George Student Reseacher
Amila Wickramasinghe Student Reseacher
Gavin Maund Student Reseacher

It is crucial for emergency and disaster management organisations to predict of the rate of spread and intensity of bushfires for operational planning, community warnings and the deployment of their resources.

In this project, the research team tested two established reliable physics-based models: Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) and FIRESTAR3D to simulate bushfire scenarios in three broad areas:

(1)  sub-canopy wind flow,

(2)  firebrand transport, and

(3)  propagation of grass and forest fires.

The team made significant inroads into providing usable outputs as well understanding various aspects of bushfire behaviour. 

This project was also established to create a capability and capacity in Australia to conduct research and understand physical-based wildfire modelling approaches. There are several international groups developing these models, and it is imperative that Australia can interact and work alongside these researchers to translate the findings to the Australian context. Overall, this project has obtained greater insight into bushfire physics and outcomes are now being utilised to parameterise various phenomena for operational models.

Read the final report here.

Year Type Citation
2023 Journal Article Hassan, A., Accary, G., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. Physics-based modelling of junction fires: Parametric study. International Journal of Wildland Fire (2023). at <https://www.publish.csiro.au/WF/justaccepted/WF22121>
2023 Journal Article Innocent, J., Sutherland, D., Khan, N. & Moinuddin, K. Physics-based simulations of grassfire propagation on sloped terrain at field scale: motivations, model reliability, rate of spread and fire intensity. International Journal of Wildland Fire (2023). doi:https://doi.org/10.1071/WF21124
2023 Journal Article Innocent, J., Sutherland, D., Khan, N. & Moinuddin, K. Physics-based simulations of grassfire propagation on sloped terrain at field scale: flame dynamics, mode of fire propagation and heat fluxes. International Journal of Wildland Fire (2023). doi:https://doi.org/10.1071/WF21125
2023 Journal Article Sutherland, D., Rashid, M., Hilton, J. & Moinuddin, K. Implementation of spatially-varying wind adjustment factor for wildfire simulations. Environmental Modelling & Software 163, 105660 (2023).
2023 Journal Article Khan, N., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. Simulated behaviour of wildland fire spreading through idealised heterogeneous fuels. International Journal of Wildland Fire (2023). doi:https://doi.org/10.1071/WF22009
2022 Journal Article Wickramasinghe, A., Khan, N. & Moinuddin, K. Determining firebrand generation rate using physics-based modelling from experimental studies through inverse analysis. Fire 5, (2022).
2022 Journal Article Wadhwani, R., Sutherland, D., Ooi, A. & Moinuddin, K. Firebrand transport from a novel firebrand generator: numerical simulation of laboratory experiments. International Journal of Wildland Fire 31, (2022).
2022 Journal Article Wadhwani, R. et al. A review of firebrand studies on generation and transport. Fire Safety Journal 134, (2022).
2021 Journal Article Moinuddin, K., Khan, N. & Sutherland, D. Numerical study on effect of relative humidity (and fuel moisture) on modes of grassfire propagation. Fire Safety Journal (2021). doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2021.103422
2021 Journal Article Sutherland, D., Sharples, J. J., Mell, W. & Moinuddin, K. A response to comments of Cruz et al. on: ‘Simulation study of grass fire using a physics-based model: striving towards numerical rigour and the effect of grass height on the rate of spread’. International Journal of Wildland Fire (2021). doi:https://doi.org/10.1071/WF20091
2021 Report Rashid, M. & Moinuddin, K. Studying leaf area density based wind adjustment factor in Spark. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2021).
2021 Report Khan, N., Wickramasinghe, A., Rashid, M. & Moinuddin, K. Fire spread across different fuel types: research and utilisation – final project report. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2021).
2020 Journal Article Accary, G. et al. Physics-Based Simulations of Flow and Fire Development Downstream of a Canopy. Atmosphere 11, (2020).
2020 Report Wickramasinghe, A., Khan, N. & Moinuddin, K. Physics-based simulation of firebrand and heat flux on structures in the context of AS3959. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2020 Report Rashid, M., Hilton, J., Khan, N., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. A report on WRF software development (preliminary). (Bushfire & Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2020 Report Khan, N., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. Recirculation regions downstream of a canopy on a hill. (Bushfire & Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2020 Report Rashid, M., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. Fire spread prediction across fuel types: annual report 2018-19. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2020 Report Khan, N., Sutherland, D. & Moinuddin, K. Simulation of flows through canopies with varying atmospheric stability. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2020 Report Moinuddin, K., Khan, T. & Sutherland, D. Effect of relative humidity on grassfire propagation. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2020).
2019 Conference Paper Parker, J. & Allen, A. Utilisation of fire spread simulators to assess power network fire risk . AFAC19 powered by INTERSCHUTZ - Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC Research Forum (Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience, 2019). at <https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/resources/australian-journal-of-emergency-management-monograph-series/>
2019 Conference Paper Moinuddin, K. & Sutherland, D. Simulations of radiation heat flux on a structure from a fire in an idealised shrubland . Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC Research Day AFAC19 (2019). at <https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/resources/australian-journal-of-emergency-management-monograph-series/>
2019 Journal Article Sutherland, D., Sharples, J. J. & Moinuddin, K. The effect of ignition protocol on grassfire development. International Journal of Wildland Fire 29, 70-80 (2019).
2019 Journal Article Moinuddin, K. & Sutherland, D. Modelling of tree fires and fires transitioning from the forest floor to the canopy with a physics-based model. Mathematics and Computers in Simulation (2019). doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matcom.2019.05.018
2019 Journal Article Khan, N., Sutherland, D., Wadhwani, R. & Moinuddin, K. Physics-Based Simulation of Heat Load on Structures for Improving Construction Standards for Bushfire Prone Areas. Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering 5, (2019).
2019 Report Khan, N., Sutherland, D., Philip, J., Ooi, A. & Moinuddin, K. A preliminary report on simulation of flows through canopies with varying atmospheric stability. (Bushfire and Natural hazards CRC, 2019).
2018 Conference Paper Sutherland, D., Wadhwani, R., Philip, J., Ooi, A. & Moinuddin, K. Simulations of the effect of canopy density profile on sub-canopy wind speed profiles. AFAC18 (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2018).
2018 Conference Paper Bates, J. Research proceedings from the 2018 Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC and AFAC Conference. Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC & AFAC annual conference 2017 (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2018).
2018 Conference Paper George, N., Philip, J. & Ooi, A. Direct Numerical Simulation of Confined Wall Plumes. 21st Australasian Fluid Mechanics Conference (2018). at <https://people.eng.unimelb.edu.au/imarusic/proceedings/21/Contribution_790_final.pdf>
2018 Journal Article Moinuddin, K., Sutherland, D. & Mell, W. Simulation study of grass fire using a physics-based model: striving towards numerical rigour and the effect of grass height on the rate of spread. International Journal of Wildland Fire 27, 800-814 (2018).
2018 Report Sutherland, D., Philip, J., Ooi, A. & Moinuddin, K. Literature review: modelling and simulation of flow over tree canopies. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2018).
2018 Report Moinuddin, K., Roy, S. Singha, Sutherland, D. & Khan, N. Improvements to wind field generation in physics-based models to reduce spin-up time and to account for terrain, heated earth surface. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2018).
2018 Report Sutherland, D., Wadhwani, R., Philip, J., Ooi, A. & Moinuddin, K. Simulations of the effect of canopy density profile on sub-canopy wind speed profiles. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2018).
2017 Conference Paper Rumsewicz, M. Research proceedings from the 2017 Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC and AFAC Conference. Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC & AFAC annual conference 2017 (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2017).
2017 Conference Paper Sutherland, D., Moinuddin, K. & Ooi, A. Large-eddy simulation of neutral atmospheric surface layer flow over heterogeneous tree canopies. AFAC17 (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2017).
2017 Journal Article Wadhwani, R., Sutherland, D., Moinuddin, K. & Joseph, P. Kinetics of pyrolysis of litter materials from pine and eucalyptus forests. Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry (2017). doi:10.1007/s10973-017-6512-0
2017 Journal Article Wadhwani, R., Sutherland, D., Ooi, A., Moinuddin, K. & Thorpe, G. Verification of a Lagrangian particle model for short-range firebrand transport. Fire Safety Journal 91, 776-783 (2017).
2017 Report Moinuddin, K. & Sutherland, D. Numerical modelling of fires on forest floor and canopy fires. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2017).
2016 Journal Article MacDonald, M., Chan, L., Chung, D., Hutchins, N. & Ooi, A. Turbulent flow over transitionally rough surfaces with varying roughness densities. Journal of Fluid Dynamics October 2016, (2016).
2016 Report Moinuddin, K., Sutherland, D. & Thorpe, G. Fire spread prediction across fuel types: Annual project report 2015-2016. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016).
2015 Presentation Chung, D. et al. The spread of fires in landscapes. (2015).
2015 Report Thorpe, G. Fire spread prediction across fuel types: Annual project report 2014-2015. (Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2015).
2015 Report Thorpe, G. Fire Spread Across Fuel Types Annual Report 2014. (2015).
Date Title Download Key Topics
21 Mar 2014 Fire spread prediction across fuel types PDF icon 1.49 MB (1.49 MB) fire, modelling, prescribed burning
08 Sep 2014 Next generation models for predicting the behaviour of bushfires PDF icon 1.12 MB (1.12 MB) fire, modelling
27 Oct 2014 Next generation models for predicting the behaviour of bushfires fire, modelling
04 Dec 2014 Challenges in physics based bushfire modelling PDF icon 885.16 KB (885.16 KB) fire, fire severity, modelling
22 Mar 2016 Severe and High Impact Weather - cluster overview File 0 bytes (0 bytes) fire, modelling, scenario analysis
24 Oct 2016 Fire spread across fuel types PDF icon 3.44 MB (3.44 MB) fire impacts, fuel reduction, modelling
25 Oct 2016 Next generation fire modelling PDF icon 1.35 MB (1.35 MB) fire impacts, fire severity, fire weather
07 Jul 2017 Building bushfire predictive services capability PDF icon 9.97 MB (9.97 MB) fire, fire weather, modelling
07 Jul 2017 Building bushfire predictive services capability - Simon Heemstra File 0 bytes (0 bytes) fire, fire impacts, modelling
07 Sep 2017 Large-eddy simulation of neutral atmospheric surface layer flow over heterogeneous tree canopies PDF icon 885.3 KB (885.3 KB) fire, modelling, propagation
07 Sep 2017 Mapping the efficacy of an Australian fuel reduction burn using Fuels3D point clouds PDF icon 1.6 MB (1.6 MB) fuel reduction, modelling, prescribed burning
31 Oct 2017 Fire spread across fuel types PDF icon 1.1 MB (1.1 MB) fire, forecasting, modelling
18 Sep 2018 Simulations of the effect of canopy density profile on sub-canopy wind speed profiles PDF icon 1.08 MB (1.08 MB) fire, fuel reduction
23 Nov 2018 Fire spread prediction across fuel types by physics-based modelling PDF icon 2.02 MB (2.02 MB) fire, fire impacts, fuel reduction
27 Aug 2019 Simulation Of Heat Fluxes On A Structure From A Fire In An Idealised Shrubland PDF icon 495.46 KB (495.46 KB) decision making, fire
17 Oct 2019 Fire Spread Across Fuel Types PDF icon 3.21 MB (3.21 MB) fire weather, fuel reduction
Next generation models for predicting the behaviour of bushfires: Challenges and prospects
25 Aug 2014
Bushfires occur on a scale that may be measured in kilometers.  However, a challenge faced in developing next...
Flow Prediction Through Canopies
18 Aug 2015
A simple model of flow through a tree canopy and comparison with large-eddy simulations.
Refinement and Validation of Firebrand Transport Sub Model for a Physics Based Bushfire Prediction Model: Design of  a Firebrand Generator
18 Aug 2015
Firebrands are burning pieces of, for example, bark, leaf litter, and twigs. Firebrands can be transported by...
Duncan Sutherland Conference Poster 2016
14 Aug 2016
Operational fire models rely on wind reduction factors to relate the standard meteorological measured or...
Simulated rate-of-spread of a grassfire propagating under a tree canopy
29 Jun 2017
Simulations of a fire entering, propagating under and leaving a tree canopy are conducted using FDS [1], a...
Physics-based modelling of fires transitioning from the forest floor to the canopy
19 Sep 2018
Can a physics-based model predict a transition from a surface fire to a crown fire?
27 Aug 2019
Is it feasible to model firebrand load on structure using a physics-based model in WUI?
31 Aug 2020
Key findings: Dynamic wind reduction factors have considerable effects on forest fires where variable canopy...
31 Aug 2020
Key findings: Validation of firebrand model in fire dynamic simulator with tree burning experimental data,...