TCFP FIRE INVESTIGATOR EXAM/TCFP FIRE INVESTIGATOR EXAM PREPARATION/
TCFP FIRE INVESTIGATOR PRACTICE EXAM ACTUAL EXAM 180 QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS 2025/2026 (100% VERIFIED ANSWERS) |A+GRADE
Combustion - ......ANSWER........Chemical process of oxidation that occurs at a rate fast
enough to produce heat and usually light, in form of glow or flames
Conduction - ......ANSWER........Heat transfer by direct contact
Convection - ......ANSWER........Heat transfer by circulation via medium, such as gas or
liquid
Diffusion flame - ......ANSWER........Flame in which fuel and air mix or diffuse together at
region of combustion
Energy - ......ANSWER........Property of matter manifested as an ability to perform work, by
moving an object against a force, or by transferring heat
Exothermic reaction - ......ANSWER........A reaction that releases energy in the form of heat
Fire - ......ANSWER........Rapid oxidation process / chemical reaction resulting in evolution
of light and heat in varying intensities
Fire dynamics - ......ANSWER........The detailed study of how chemistry, fire science, and
the engineering disciplines of fluid mechanics and heat transfer interact to influence fire
behavior.
Fire point - ......ANSWER........The temperature at which enough vapors are given off to
support continuous burning.
,2 of 21
Flashover - ......ANSWER........Stage of a fire at which all surfaces and objects within a
space have been heated to their ignition temperature, and flame breaks out almost at once
over the surface of all objects in the space.
Flash point - ......ANSWER........Minimum temperature at which a liquid gives off enough
vapors at sufficient rate to support a momentary flame across its surface.
Fuel controlled fire - ......ANSWER........A fire in which the heat release rate and growth rate
are controlled by the characteristics of the fuel, such as quantity and geometry, and in
which adequate air for combustion is available.
Fuel - ......ANSWER........A material that will maintain combustion under specified
environmental conditions.
Fuel items - ......ANSWER........Any articles that are capable of burning.
Fuel package - ......ANSWER........A collection or array of fuel items in close proximity with
one another such that flames can spread throughout the array.
Heat - ......ANSWER........Form of energy characterized by vibration of molecules that can
initiate and support chemical changes and changes of state
Heat flux - ......ANSWER........The measure of the rate of heat transfer to a surface,
expressed in kilowatts
Heat release rate (HRR) - ......ANSWER........The rate at which heat energy is generated by
burning.
, 3 of 21
Heat transfer - ......ANSWER........The flow of thermal energy from higher temperature to
lower temperature
Neutral plane - ......ANSWER........The line where the flow of the hot gas and cooler air
changes.
Oxidizing agent - ......ANSWER........Substance that promotes oxidation during combustion
process
Plume - ......ANSWER........The column of hot gases, flames, and smoke rising above a fire;
also called convection column, thermal updraft, or thermal column.
Premixed burning - ......ANSWER........Burning in which the fuel and oxidizer are mixed prior
to combustion, as in a laboratory Bunsen burner or a gas cooking range; propagation of the
flame is governed by the interaction between flow rate, transport processes, and chemical
reaction.
Pyrolysis - ......ANSWER........The decomposition of solid organic matter by heat
Radiation - ......ANSWER........Heat transfer by way of electromagnetic energy
Stoichiometric ratio - ......ANSWER........The optimum ratio in a fuel air mixture at which
point combustion will be most efficient (above the lel and below the uel).
Temperature - ......ANSWER........Degree of sensible heat of a body as measured by
thermometer or similar instrument
Thermal conductivity - ......ANSWER........Measure of amount of heat that will flow across a
unit area with a temperature gradient of 1 degree per unit of length (w/m-k, btu/hr.-ft-f)