Principles of Fire Protection

Engineering

Module 5: Fire Protection Design

Evaluation
 Objectives
! Maintain a tenable environment in the means of egress
during the time required for evacuation.
! Control and reduce the migration of smoke between the
fire area and adjacent spaces.
! Provide conditions to assist emerg. personnel conducting
search & rescue operations and controlling the fire.
! Contribute to the protection of life and reduce property
loss.
! Aid in post-fire smoke removal.

5-2
 What is smoke?
“The airborne solid and liquid
particulates and gases evolved
when a material undergoes
pyrolysis or combustion,
together with the quantity of air
that is entrained or otherwise
mixed into the mass”

NFPA 92A & 92B

5-3
What forces affect smoke movement?

• Buoyancy
– Elevated temperature of combustion gases
– Outdoor/indoor temperature difference – “stack effect”
• Gas expansion
• Wind
• Building Systems
– HVAC
– Elevator Piston Effect
– Sprinklers

5-4
 Pressure in
Room Fires

Note:
1” H2O = 0.036 psi

5-5
Experiments at 30 Church St.

5-6
7th Floor
Test Room

5-7
Fuel Load at 30 Church St.

5-8
Initial Fire Development, 30 Church St.

5-9
Pressure History
Fire #1

5-10
 Temperature History
Fire #1: Ceiling in Fire Room

5-11
 Buoyancy in Sprinklered Fires
• Reduction of smoke layer temperature yields
reduction in pressure
• Mawhinney, J.R., and Tamura, G.T., “The Effect of
Automatic Sprinkler Protection on Smoke Control
Systems,” ASHRAE Trans., 1994.
– Room: 20 x 20 x 12 ft (height)
– Shielded wood cribs
– Temperature < 400 °F with density of 0.067-0.20 gpm/ft2

5-12
Temperature Profiles in
Sprinklered Office Fires

5-13
Air Movement Due to Stack
Effect

5-14
Smoke Movement

5-15
Smoke Movement

5-16
Stack Effect

5-17
 HVAC System –
Building-wide Effect
" If on, causes air movement within building
spaces.
" Provides path for movement, possible smoke
feedback.

5-18
Central Air Handling Unit

5-19
Wind

5-20
Wind Flow Pattern

5-21
Wind Pressure

5-22
Elevator Piston

5-23
 Smoke Management
Approaches
!Compartmentation
!Stairwell Pressurization
!Zoned Smoke Control (“pressure sandwich”)
!Smoke management for large volume spaces

5-24
Compartmentation

Airtight?

5-25
 Diagram of Top Injection
Stairwell Pressurization System

5-26
 Diagram of Bottom Injection
Stairwell Pressurization System

5-27
Compartmented Stairwell

IDS Center,
Minneapolis, MN

5-28
Multiple Injection System

5-29
Multiple Injection

• Atlanta Hilton

5-30
Multiple Injection System

5-31
 Vestibules

• Provide “buffer” area between

stairwell and building space
• Pressurize
– Vestibule and stairwell
– Vestibule only Vestibule
– Stairwell only

Interior building
space

5-32
 Stairwell Pressurization:
Design Criteria
!Minimum pressure:
" Prevent smoke movement
into stairwell.
" Depends on pressures
developed by fire.

!Maximum Pressure
" Established to permit doors ∆p
to be opened.
" Maximum allowable force =
30 lb. (NFPA 101)

5-33
Door Opening Forces

5-34
30 Church St.

5-35
Pressure Distribution in Stairwell
All Doors Closed

5-36
Pressure Distribution in Stairwell
Doors Open

5-37
 Open Doors &
Vestibules
• 5 series of tests on
stairwell
pressurization
– Koplon, etal., 1972
– Henry Grady Hotel,
Atlanta, GA
– 12 story building (stair
shaft extended to roof)
– Bottom injection
system

5-38
5-39
5-40
5-41
 ∆p
in. H2O

5-42
 Zoned Smoke Control
(“pressure sandwich”)

high pressure
low pressure

high pressure

5-43
Normal Air Recirculation by
HVAC

filters, heating coils,

cooling coils,
humidification

5-44
HVAC Operation with Smoke

5-45
Zoned Smoke Control

5-46
San Diego VA Hospital
Typical Floor Plan

5-47
Plaza Hotel Floor Plan

5-48
Plaza Hotel, Elevation View

• 2nd floor is smoke

zone, exhausted @ 6
air changes/hr
• 1st and 3rd floors are
pressurized @ 6 air
changes/hr

5-49
CO Concentration on Fire Floor
for Fires w/o Smoke Control

5-50
 CO Concentration on Fire Floor,
Unsprinklered Fires with Smoke Control

5-51
CO Concentration on 7th Floor,
Fires without Smoke Control

5-52
Smoke Properties in Sprinkered Fires

• Lougheed and Carpenter, “Probability of Occurrence and

Expected Size of Shielded Fires in Sprinklered Building,”
ASHRAE, 1997
• 7 tests, open plan office
– 10 ft x 10 ft work station in 1,000 ft2 room (ceiling height: 8.5 ft)
– Fuel load: paper boxes under tables/desks
• Sprinkler design
– 15 ft spacing
– Standard response, 165°F
– Design density (light hazard): 0.067-0.10 gpm/ft2

5-53
 CO Concentration
Ceiling, Center of Room

5-54
Smoke Management in Large Spaces

!Design Basis
" Provide minimum clear height
above highest walking level
" Limit conditions of smoke
layer
" Prevent smoke spread from
large space

5-55
Atrium

5-56
Covered Mall

Moorestown, NJ

5-57
Smoke Management for Large
Volume Spaces

5-58
Other Large Spaces

5-59
 Smoke Management for Large
Volume Spaces

! Design Methods
" Limit smoke layer depth:
smoke exhaust rate =
smoke production rate.

5-60
 Smoke Management for Large
Volume Spaces
" Limit smoke spread
into adjacent spaces:
# physical barriers
# keep smoke layer
above opening
# opposed airflow

5-61
 Smoke Characteristics in Tall
Spaces
!Maintaining large clear
height requires
substantial smoke
exhaust capacity
" Assumes all smoke is
‘bad’ or intolerable

5-62
Smoke Production vs. Clear
Height Smoke Production (103 sm3/s)

5-63
 Selection of Design Fire
! Consider “worst case”: most
demanding impact
! Fuel
" Composition of commodity
" Arrangement
! How is fire size limited?
" Fuel
• Separation between items
• Quantity of fuel
" Method of detection, suppression
• Manual
• Automatic

5-64
Fuel Arrays

5-65
Make-up Air Supply

5-66
Roof Assemblies with Glazing

5-67
 Stratification

500
const. gradient
step function
400 plume, 1000 Btu/s
plume, 2000 Btu/s
300

200

Temperature (°F)
100

0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Height (ft)

5-68
 Acceptance Testing:
Stairwell Pressure

! Measure pressure
differential between
building space and
stairwell: magnehelic
gage or manometer.

5-69
 Acceptance Testing:
Stairwell Pressure
! Measure air supply capacity
" (velocity) x (area): anemometer
" fan rpm and fan curve

! Measure force to open door: spring force

gage.

5-70
 Acceptance Testing:
Smoke Exhaust in Large Volume Space

!Measure air exhaust capacity

" (velocity) x (area): anemometer
" fan rpm and fan curve

!Measure force to open doors along means of

egress open to large volume space.

5-71
 Acceptance Testing:
Tests with “cold smoke”
!Cold smoke does not entrain air or act like
actual smoke from a fire.

!Smoke management systems can be

adjusted to pass cold smoke tests, yet may
not perform adequately given actual fire
conditions.

5-72
 Acceptance Testing:
Tests with “cold smoke”
!Why are “visual smoke” tests preferred?

" indication of air/smoke movement patterns: use

tissue paper or air velocity measurement as
substitute.

" indication of “time to clear” - smoke management

system not designed for smoke purging.

5-73
 Tests with Heated Smoke

! Provides buoyant smoke:

" Smoke should have enough buoyancy to
reach the ceiling
! Caution: use smallest fire size (heat
release rate) which best replicates
the behavior expected in the design
scenarios
" Too large of a fire may damage the
contents, finishes and structural elements
of the building

5-74