What is FDS?

FDS, or Fire Dynamics Simulator, is a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for simulating fire-driven fluid flow. It is developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). FDS solves numerically a form of the Navier-Stokes equations appropriate for low-speed, thermally-driven flow with an emphasis on smoke and heat transport from fires. It's commonly used in fire protection engineering to design fire suppression systems, perform fire reconstructions, and conduct virtual fire safety assessments of buildings and other structures. FDS is also used for research purposes to study fire phenomena.