Field modeling of the fire dynamics as an answer to the question about the fire alarm performance

Introduction. The performance of a fire alarm needs to be analyzed to answer the question about its compliance with fire safety requirements. This type of research is frequently performed in the course of a forensic fire investigation. Therefore, it is necessary to identify conditions of fire escalation and safe evacuation of people to assess the fire alarm performance.

Purposes and objectives. The purpose of this work is the numerical study of the impact, produced by mathematical models of combustion, characteristics of fire loads and locations of fire beds, on fire alarm performance. Methods. Fire dynamics was field modeled to achieve the goal of this research. The analysis of flame propagation was performed with regard for various fire bed locations to simulate the fire alarm operation.

Results and discussion. The fulfillment of safe evacuation conditions for cases of irregular arrangement of smoke detectors was analyzed to develop and test the algorithm for the calculation of the evacuation start time. It is shown that the estimated time of fire detection depends on combustion models employed (their average or complex level), the size of the computational grid, fire load specifications and the location of the fire bed.

Conclusions. It is shown that the results of the field modeling of fire propagation and detection time are influenced by combustion models used, fire load specifications and the location of the fire bed in relation to smoke detectors. If the fire alarm fails to perform its functions and, consequently, safe evacuation conditions are not fulfilled, it is necessary either to improve the combustion model or to compare the modeling results obtained for actual and standard smoke detector location patterns.

1. Voronov S.P., Kondratev S.A., Petrova N.V., Skodtaev S.V., Tumanovsky A.A. Judicial normative fire-technical expertise. St. Petersburg, SPbU GPS of EMERCOM of Russia, 2014; 92. (rus.).

2. Method for determining the calculated values of fire risk in buildings, structures and structures of various classes of functional fire hazard. 2nd ed. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2016; 79. (rus.).

3. Method for determining the calculated values of fire risk at production facilities. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2009; 77. (rus.).

4. Abashkin A.A., Karpov A.V., Ushakov D.V., Fomin M.V., Giletich A.N., Komkov P.M. et al. Handbook on application of “Method for determining the calculated values of fire risk in buildings, structures and structures of various classes of functional fire hazard”. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2014; 226. (rus.).

5. Gordienko D.M., Shebeko Yu.N., Shebeko A.Yu., Kirillov D.S., Truneva V.A., Giletich A.N. et al. Manual for determining the calculated values of fire risk for production facilities. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2012; 242. (rus.).

6. Methodology of forensic fire-technical expertise: basic principles. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2013; 23. (rus.).

7. Schifiliti R.P., Custer R.L.P., Meacham B.J. Design of detection systems. SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, Chapter 40. Fifth Edition. Society of Fire Protection Engineers, 2016; 1314-1377. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-2565-0

8. Kalmykov S.P., Esin V.M. Fire detection time. Pozharovzryvobezopasnost/Fire and Explosion Safety. 2017; 26(11):52-63. DOI: 10.18322/PVB.2017.26.11.52-63. (rus.).

9. Karpov A.V., Ryzhov A.M. CFD modelling of heat and mass transfer in combustion products ceiling jet over unsteady fire sources. Pozharovzryvobezopasnost/Fire and Explosion Safety. 2001; 10(3):17-24. (rus.).

10. Samoshin D.A., Kholshchevnikov V.V. Problems of regulation of time to start evacuation. Pozharovzryvobezopasnost/Fire and Explosion Safety. 2016; 25(5):37-51. DOI: 10.18322/PVB.2016.25.05.37-51. (rus.).

11. Puzach S.V., Nguyen Thanh Hai. Influence of the rates of gas flows through the smoke-removal and input-ventilation systems on the height of the smoke-free zone in a fire within a building. Journal of Engineering Physics and Thermophysics. 2009; 82(6):1033-1041. DOI: 10.1007/s10891-010-0290-x

12. Kuffner W., Hadjisophocleous G. Method of determining smoke detector spacing in high ceiling applications. Fire Technology. 2010; 50(3):1-22. DOI: 10.1007/s10694-010-0141-5/

13. Forney G., Bukowski R., Davis W. Field modeling: simulating the effect of sloped beamed ceilings on detector and sprinkler response, technical report year 2. Fire Protection Research Foundation, Quincy, MA, 1994; 41.

14. Lobaev I.A., Vechtomov D.A., Pleshakov V.V. Reconstruction of the initial stage of the fire within the parameters of the detection system of dangerous fire factors. Technology of technosphere safety. 2018; 3(79): 19-27. DOI: 10.25257/TTS.2018.3.79.19-27 (rus.).

15. Kirik E.S., Degtyarev A.A., Litvintsev K.Yu., Kharlamov E.B., Malyshev A.V. Mathematical modeling of fire evacuation. Matematicheskoe modelirovanie/Mathematical Models and Computer Simulations. 2014; 26(1):3-16. URL: https://www.elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=21276919 (rus.).

16. Khasanov I.R., Karpov A.V. Modeling fire spread along the non-combustible building facades of different geometry. Proceeding of the Ninth International Seminar on Fire and Explosion Hazards (ISFEH9). St. Petersburg Polytechnic University Press, 2019; 534-541. DOI: 10.18720/SPBPU/2/k19-1

17. Cox G. Turbulent closure and the modelling offire using computational fluid dynamics. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A. 1998; 356(1748):2835-2854. DOI: 10.1098/rsta.1998.0300

18. Olenick S.M, Carpenter D.J. An updated international survey of computer models for fire and smoke. Journal of Fire Protecting Engineering, 2003; 13(2):87-110. DOI: 10.1177/1042391503013002001

19. McGrattan K., Miles S. Modeling fires using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering. Chapter 32. Fifth Edition Society of Fire Protection Engineers, 2016; 1034-1065. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-2565-0

20. Ryzhov A.M., Khasanov I.R., Karpov A.V., Volkov A.V., Litskevich V.V., Degtyarev A.A. Application of the field method of mathematical modeling of fires in premises. Methodical recommendation. Moscow, VNIIPO, 2002; 35. (rus.).

21. McGrattan K., Hostikka S., McDermott R., Floyd J., Vanella M. Fire Dynamics Simulator (Version 4) Technical Reference Guide. Gaithersburg : National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2013; 149. DOI: 10.6028/nist.sp.1018

22. Snegirev A.Yu. Modeling of heat and mass transfer and burning in the fire : dissertation… doctor of technical sciences. Saint Petersburg, 2004; 271. (rus.).

23. Lobova S.F., Printc’eva M.U. Estimation of the influence of the initial data on the results of the modeling of the fire spread during the automatic fire alarm system effectyvity analysis. Vestnik Sankt-Peterburgskogo Universiteta GPS MCHS Rossii. 2019; 3:70-80. URL: https://vestnik.igps.ru/wp-content/uploads/V113/11.pdf (rus.).

24. McGrattan K., McDermott R., Weinschenk C., Overholt K., Hostikka S., Floyd J. Fire Dynamics Simulator User’s Guide: NIST Special Publication 1019. Sixth Edition. Gaithersburg, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2013; 262.

25. Snegirev A.Yu., Talalov V.A. Theoretical bases of fire and explosion safety. Burning unturned reagents: tutorial. Saint-Petersburg, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU), 2008; 212. (rus.).