Meet Hazelab. Join Hazelab

Fire is all around us and almost unavoidable. Hazelab studies fire science to create a safer world. However, much more work is needed and we will succeed at solving more problems as our group grow. Join us!

A Tour of Hazelab

Hello, my name is Francesca, a PhD student at Hazelab. In this virtual tour, I will be guiding you through our labs here at Imperial College London. I will tell you a bit about the experimental works that in done in the lab and show you some of the equipment. Let's go! 

Fire Engineering Course at Imperial College London

Professor Guillermo Rein introduces a new online course in Fire Engineering.

The course consists of four lectures, each 25 minutes in length which will be made available online. 

An Overview of Battery Fire Safety

This is the seminar given by Prof. Guillermo Rein in December 2023 to the fire engineering group at DBI Denmark. It covers the basics of battery fires, initiation routes, hazards, his worries about the problem, gaps in the science, and possible engineering solutions.

Fire Safety in Green Buildings and Sustainability

Professor Guillermo Rein gave this invited talk as part of the 'Green' Fire Safety Issues Conference held in London in May 2023.  

The title is "Fire Safety Challenges in Green Buildings and Sustainability".

Wildfires are becoming more dangerous – here's why

From London to the Arctic, wildfires are an increasing threat we have to understand better, says Professor Guillermo Rein.

Wildfires are getting bigger and more intense – and are burning in places never seen before. A big contributing factor is global warming drying vegetation and soil out, and creating more combustible material. But wildfire science has only relatively recently become a part of climate change discussions and science.

To find out more, we spoke to Guillermo Rein, Professor of Fire Science in the Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Science and Society.

Smouldering Combustion in Wildfires - 2023 SSFSS

Professor Guillermo Rein gave an invited lecture on "Smouldering Combustion in Wildfires" at the Burgers Program and Combustion Institute Summer School on Fire Safety Science - Wildland/WUI Fire Behavior in Maryland, USA, July 2023.

The course consisted of the following core topics:

1. What is smouldering?
2. Why is it important? 
3. How does it ignite, spread and emit? 

Research at King's College on Wildfire Ignition

Information video on research done at King's College London focusing on Wildfire ignition, fire spread, and fire suppression. They look at problems like the wildland urban interface (WUI), fire spread, fire suppression, ignition criteria, to have a better fundamental understanding of how these fires start and spread, and how to prevent risk to people, environment, and property.

How Fire Science contributes to Fire Engineering

Professor Guillermo Rein explained how science contributes to reduce the worldwide burden of accidental fires and protect people, their property, and the environment. Every year, fires kill more than 150,000 people in the world. But scientists still don’t know enough about the science of fire. “As an engineer I try to make sure our knowledge can be used for the benefit of society,” says Guillermo Rein, Professor of Fire Science. “I’m happy if our research leads to new technologies that might truly help save lives and protect the environment.”

Research into Facade Fires

Professor Guillermo Rein gave this invited talk at the 7th International High Rise/Tall Building Fire Safety Conference in May 2022.

The title is "Research into Facade Fires".

This was the first conference attended by Prof. Rein since before covid along with his PhD students Francesca Lugaresi and Rikesh Amin. 

Combustion Science, Climate Change and Safety

Professor Guillermo Rein gave this Invited Lecture at the 59th Symposium (Japanese) on Combustion, 22 Nov 2021.

The title is "Wildfires, Tall Timber and Battery Fires: Combustion Science at the Crossroads with Climate Change and Safety".

Smouldering Combustion in Science and Technology

Plenary Lecture delivered by Professor Guillermo Rein in April 2021 at the 10th European Combustion Meeting. The lecture introduces the chemical and physical nature of smouldering combustion in building fires and wildfires.

It highlights the importance of understanding its fundamental to protect life, property and the environment. It ends with a revision of the top four scientific challenges in the topic.

How do you fight wildfires?

Every year wildfires rage across thousands of kilometres of Earth's surface in an annual season that destroys ecosystems, property and costs lives.
Guillermo Rein, Professor of Fire Science at Imperial College London explains how wildfires spread and why they appear to be getting worse.

Introduction to Smouldering Wildfires

Invited lecture delivered by Professor Guillermo Rein in Feb 2021 to an ITN Pyrolife class of early-stage researchers studying wildfires.

The lecture is comprised of introductory material to what is smouldering, why is it important in wildfires, and how it ignites, spreads, and emits.

Introduction to Combustion Science in Wildfires

Invited lecture delivered by Professor Guillermo Rein in Feb 2021 to a ITN Pyrolife class of early-stage researchers studying wildfires.

The lecture is comprised of introductory material to what makes bad and good fires, the key concepts of fire safety and layers of fire protection, and how we understand ignition and flame spread processes.

Science and Technology of Battery Fires

Invited seminar delivered by Professor Guillermo Rein in Feb 2021 to the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers.

The Lithium-ion battery (LIB) is an important technology for the present and future of energy storage, transport, and consumer electronics. However, many LIB types display a tendency to ignite or release toxic gases. This talk provides an overview of the existing research, the industrial challenges, the causes of LIB fires, and the layers of protection. 

Mega-fire Documentary

Guillermo was interviewed in a documentary on mega-fire for the french-german tv channel ARTE. He describe the phenomenon of smouldering fires, these fire occurs every year in dry seasons and can burn for months. Shots of the field experiment Gambut carried out by peatland fire scientists in Indonesia are included in the documentary. Eirik and our Imperial fire lab also featured

The Science of Fire

Live-streamed on October 3rd, 2019

Professor Guillermo Rein delivers his inaugural lecture on fire science and talks about his research efforts to overcome fire challenges.

Watch the lecture to learn about Guillermo's broad vision and why he is doing all this science.

What really sank the Titanic?

New evidence suggests there was a fire on board the Titanic before it set sail from Belfast. Dr Guillermo Rein explains all.

Material Flammability Matters

See the difference it makes when flame-retardants are added to a material.

Sirocco Fire-Whirl

A short demonstration of Hazelab's fire-whirl, Sirocco, given by our own Francesco Restuccia. See how streams of air modify a flame into a fire vortex.
This demonstation was give during the Imperial Festival 2017. Come visit our stand at the next festival!

Imperial Festival Podcast

Francesco made it to the festival podcast!
If you want to know a bit more about fires and fire tornados have a little listen at 4:50min.

Imperial Festival

We had a fantastic time at Imperial Festival 2017. It was great fun letting people know a bit about what we do. Check out the highlights here, with a guest appearance from Guillermo!