by Sam Charles, University Relations
New insights into how chemical additives can dramatically improve water mist fire suppression have earned a University of Waterloo researcher one of the highest honours in combustion science.
Dr. Vinny Gupta, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering and director of Waterloo's Fire Research Laboratory, received the Silver Combustion Medal from The Combustion Institute for research that reveals how chemically enhanced water mist systems suppress large turbulent fires more effectively than water alone.
The award recognizes an outstanding paper presented at the previous International Symposium on Combustion and is widely regarded as one of the field's most prestigious distinctions.
The medal will be formally presented at the 41st International Symposium on Combustion in Kyoto, Japan. First awarded in 1958, the Silver Combustion Medal is presented biennially to authors of a distinguished paper that demonstrates exceptional quality, achievement and significance in advancing combustion science.
The recognition is particularly notable because fire-related research has rarely received the award. Since the Silver Combustion Medal was established nearly seven decades ago, only a small number of fire science papers have been selected.
Dr. Vinny Gupta is being recognized for award-winning research that advances the understanding of chemical and water mist fire suppression technologies.
Gupta and his collaborators received the honour for their paper, Joint OH-PLIF and Mie scattering imaging of enhanced water mist suppression of buoyant fires, which was presented at the symposium in Milan in 2024.
The paper was selected by a committee from more than 1,000 papers considered across the international combustion research community.
"In our field, this is the most coveted award for a research paper," Gupta says. "It is a tremendous honour for our team and recognition of years of work combining advanced diagnostics with practical fire safety challenges."
The award-winning research uses high-speed laser diagnostic techniques to reveal how water mist droplets interact with large turbulent fires.
The team studied how adding small amounts of alkali metal salts to water mist can dramatically improve fire suppression performance. Traditional water mist systems suppress fires primarily through cooling. Gupta's research demonstrated that doping chemical additives can act as inhibitors that interfere with the chemistry of the combustion process itself, significantly enhancing the effectiveness of fire suppression beyond what water alone can achieve.
"Our experiments allowed us to visualize both the physical and chemical processes occurring inside the flame at very high speeds," Gupta says. "That level of detail helps us understand why certain suppression strategies are more effective and how they can be optimized."
The findings have potential applications in a variety of settings where rapid and efficient fire suppression is critical, including industrial facilities, transportation systems and other high-risk environments.
The international research team included Gupta, Tony Xiao of FM, Matthew J. Dunn from The University of Sydney and Assaad R. Masri from The University of Sydney. The international collaboration brought together expertise in fire dynamics, combustion science and advanced optical diagnostics.
For Waterloo Engineering, the award highlights the growing global impact of research being conducted in the Fire Research Facility and reinforces the University's reputation for advancing solutions to complex engineering and safety challenges.
"This recognition reflects the strength of the collaboration and the importance of fundamental research in addressing real-world problems," Gupta says. "Ultimately, our goal is to develop knowledge that leads to safer and more effective fire protection technologies."