A Simplified Model for Smoke Filling Time Calculation with Sprinkler Effects

Abstract

Recently, many computational methods for determining the position of a smoke layer height in a confined space have been reported for fire safety design purposes. Most of the existing smoke layer height prediction models were developed without considering the sprinkler effect. However, most buildings are required to install sprinkler systems under the local fire regulations in many countries. Hence, most of the smoke filling time calculation models were not able to reflect the smoke layer height in a real fire. A modified smoke filling time calculation method with sprinkler effect is presented in this paper. In addition to the theoretical analysis, a full-scale experimental program is conducted to evaluate the feasibility of the application of the model. The experimental results show that the smoke filling time of a sprinklered fire test may have a 10-20% faster smoke filling time than an unsprinklered fire test in a confined space. Besides, a new algorithm for applied light beam detectors is developed to measure the smoke layer height precisely, in this study.