International Flame Research Foundation

The International Flame Research Foundation – IFRF is a non-profit research association and network created in 1948 in IJmuiden (Netherlands), established in Livorno (Italy) between 2005 and 2016 (Fondazione Internazionale per la Ricerca Sulla Combustione – ONLUS), and in Sheffield (UK) since 2017. Meredith Thring was one of the founders.

The IFRF Membership Network unites some 1000 combustion researchers from 130 industrial companies and academic institutions worldwide, around a common interest in efficient and environmentally responsible industrial combustion, with a focus on flame studies.

History
The IFRF can be traced to a proposal written in 1948 by Meredith Thring, head of the Physics Department in the newly formed British Iron and Steel Research Association (BISRA). Entitled Proposals for the Establishment of an International Research Project on Luminous Radiation, the document resulted in the formation of the International Flame Radiation Research Committee with representatives of the steel, fuel and appliance making industries in France, Holland and England - specifically the British Iron and Steel Research Association (BISRA), the Iron and Steel Research Association of France (IRSID) and the Royal Dutch Iron and Steel Company (KNHS).

Publications
The IFRF is the publisher of technical reports and regular publications: Theses publications are freely available on-line.
 * The Industrial Combustion Journal since 1999, named IFRF Combustion Journal between Sept. 1999 and Aug. 2009 ,
 * The Monday Night Mail - MNM - since 1999, in 1998 a few numbers of the IFRF Newsletter were also published,
 * The Combustion Handbook since 2001.

Events
The IFRF organises events to disseminate knowledge on combustion: conferences, technical meetings (called TOTeMs), common days with other technical or scientific associations and courses:

Topic Oriented Technical Meetings (TOTeM)
TOTeMs are organized since 1989, once or twice a year:

IFRF Conferences
IFRF Conferences (formerly Members Conference) are organized approximately every two or three years:

Short courses
The IFRF organises short courses:


 * IFRF Hydrogen Short Course 2024,
 * “Combustion & Emissions in Furnaces and Kilns – An Industrial Approach”, 16 to 18 October 2002, Villa Olmo – Como, Italy.
 * 5th Flame Research Course, Koningshof Congress Centre, Veldhoven, The Netherlands, 1992.
 * 4th Flame Research Course, Christal Hotel, Prague, Czechoslovakia, 9–13 September 1991.

Other events
The IFRF organises events with other scientific associations such as the Combustion Institute and special flame days with other national committees.

Structure
The IFRF is organised in 9 national committee plus the Associate Member Group (AMG) where no national committee exists.

Committees

 * American Flame Research Committee - AFRC
 * British Flame Research Committee - BFRC
 * Chinese Flame Research Committee - CFRC
 * Finnish Flame Research Committee - FFRC
 * French Flame (Comité français) - CF
 * German Flame (Deutsche Vereinigung für Verbrennungsforschung e.V.) - DVV
 * Italian Flame (Comitato Italiano) - CI
 * Dutch Flame (Nederlandse Vereniging voor Vlamonderzoek) - NVV
 * Swedish Flame Research Committee - SFRC

Governance
The IFRF in managed by a Council and an Executive Committee.

Locations
From 1948 to 2005 the IFRF facilities were located in the CORUS R&D centre at IJmuiden (Netherlands).

In 2005, the research station was relocated at ENEL facilities in Livorno (Italy), the measurement programme was restarted November 27, 2006.

In 2015 a relocation of the IFRF headquarters process was initiated. Leading to the designation of University of Sheffield and its PACT laboratory as the new IFRF location from 2017.