 Mark A. Dietenberger, Ph.D. | Mark A. DietenbergerBuilding and Fire SciencesUnit: FPL-4716 Research General Engineer One Gifford Pinchot Drive Madison, WI United States 53726-2398 Phone: 608-231-9531 Fax: 608-231-9592 mark.a.dietenberger@usda.gov |
Current Research
Research goals are to develop component processes, test methods for thermophysical properties, and physical mathematical modeling for 1) performance-based fire protection engineering related to wood-based materials used in WUI, 2) economical gasification of biomass and synthesis of syngas into biofuels, and 3) fundamentals of wood pyrolysis and combustion essential to wood thermal degradation and fire growth. This work is being used for predicting fire development on exterior building surfaces and ornamental vegetations for WUI fire scenarios. Thermophysical properties derived from modified test apparatuses are provided for NIST?s Wildland Fire Dynamics Simulator as well as for analytical fire growth models, which are provided as a basis for animated-like 3-D fire growth in real time using desktop computers that has Architectural CAD in conjunction with Google Earth. Fundamental knowledge of wood degradation along with prior private-sector research on process analysis of jet turbine engines are being applied to develop new and economical process for small-scale biomass gasification and conversion of syngas to biofuels. A special bench scale apparatus was built using the liquid metal as heat and mass carriers for directly producing syngas statically from wood, with primarily CO and H2 emissions measured. A continuous biomass flow apparatus has been planned and will be built at unique university facility to investigate conversion efficiency. Other projects included the process modeling of conventional biomass gasification and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis as a biorefinery attached to wood and paper mills in the support of the excellent generic business case of the concept. Various research collaborations nationally and internationally are being developed to promote the above research areas.
Research Interest
- Fire growth research as applied to wood products
- Wildland-urban interface fire and moisture science
- Thermochemical biomass to biofuels conversion
Below are the 65 US Forest Service publications sorted by year. You may re-sort the list by: Title, Date Posted, Category, Publication or Year.
| Publication Year: 2018 | |
 Highlight ID: 1317 | Pyrolysis and Combustion Material Properties of Naturally Heterogeneous Fuel Beds of Southern Pine Forests Detailed computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models for fire behavior of various live and dead foliage can benefit from the Forest Products Laboratory's detailed fundamental measurements for composition, thermal, moisture, pyrolysis, and combustion pr ... |
| Publication Year: 2017 | |
 Highlight ID: 1291 | Evaluating fire-damaged components of historic covered bridges Arson continues to claim many historic covered bridges including the most recent one: Cedar Covered Bridge ... |
| Publication Year: 2015 | |
 Highlight ID: 622 | Developing the Next Generation of Forest Fire Behavior Models Efforts are underway to develop the next generation of forest fire behavior models, and Forest Service researchers are extending their knowledge of the fire behavior of wood materials to the realm of forest materials. ... |
| Publication Year: 2014 | |
 Highlight ID: 589 | Intumescent Coating for Fire Protection of Structures After years of development by industry, Forest Service scientists conducted specialized fire tests to prove the value of intumescent coating for fire protection. They developed a hot metal test to verify the superiority of commercial intumescent coat ... |
| Publication Year: 2012 | |
 Highlight ID: 13 | Cone Calorimetry Takes Center Stage in Evaluating Fire Retardancy of Wood Products Evaluations of cone calorimeter tests are now documented in handbook ... |
| Publication Year: 2011 | |
 Highlight ID: 289 | Developing a fire model for homeowner-sized plats - Protecting lives and properties through proper selection of building and landscape materials This research is directed to development of fire growth model for the homeowner sized plat that would guide the user on better and aesthetic selections of building and landscaping construction to significantly reduce impact of an encroaching wild lan ... |
 Highlight ID: 303 | Engineering and Economic Modeling of Biofuels Production FPL researchers developed a flexible and customizable computer model that allows users to do a preliminary evaluation of the feasibility of incorporating a biomass gasification plant into an existing pulp mill. The user can model the biomass gas pro ... |
| Publication Year: 2010 | |
 Highlight ID: 170 | Centennial Edition, Wood Handbook—Wood as an Engineering Material The Wood Handbook—Wood as an Engineering Material serves as a primary reference document for a wide variety of users-from the general public through architects and design engineers who use wood in highly engineered structures. ... |
| Title | Date Posted |
|---|---|
 FPL's Fire Safety Team Recognized:Following up on yesterday's post about fire safety, Lab Notes is pleased to announce a special recognition award mentioned at FPL's length of service award ceremony today... | 08-19-2014 |
 All Hands on Deck to Lessen Wildland Fire DamageBecause wildland fires pose a significant societal threat, it is important to understand how to mitigate their damage. Lives and structures are at risk, particularly in the wildland-urban interface (WUI), where homes are constructed near or among areas prone to these fires... | 06-24-2014 |