Performance of sprinkler in atria

Wan Ki Chow

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

23 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The performance of a sprinkler installed in an atrium roof was evaluated in this paper by considering three points: possibility of activating the sprinkler head, thermal response, and water requirement. Crude analysis using the empirical expressions of the fire plume and the zone model CFAST 2.0 were used to study the possibility of activating the sprinkler head. Smoke spreading out from a fire shop to the atrium was discussed. The software DETACT was used to calculate the activation time for the sprinkler heads of different response time indices installed at different ceiling heights under unsteady t-squared fires. Correlation expressions of the activation time with ceiling height, response time indices of the sprinkler head, fire growth coefficients, and ambient temperature were derived. The water requirement at the atrium floor was discussed by calculating the trajectories of water droplets. Higher flow rate and pressure are required for discharging the same water density at the floor level. Results indicated that installing an ordinary sprinkler system in a high headroom atrium would not be effective in controlling a fire.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)466-488
Number of pages23
JournalJournal of Fire Sciences
Volume14
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 1996

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Mechanical Engineering

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Performance of sprinkler in atria'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this