What are the three basic causes of fire patterns?

The three basic causes of fire patterns are best represented by heat, deposition, and consumption.

Heat is the primary factor that initiates and sustains the combustion process. It determines how the fire spreads and influences the creation of various fire patterns. For instance, different materials respond to heat differently, affecting the fire’s intensity and duration.

Deposition refers to how materials within the vicinity of the fire may break down or change due to the heat. This can lead to the formation of different residues or patterns that can be observed after the fire has been extinguished.

Consumption relates to the burning of the fuel, which can alter the appearance of the materials involved in the fire. As materials burn, they transform from solid to gas, and this conversion impacts the distribution and nature of the fire patterns created during the event.

While the other choices may include important concepts regarding fire behavior and investigation aspects, they do not capture the fundamental causes that specifically relate to fire patterns as accurately as heat, deposition, and consumption do.