- Author
-
Davis, W. D.
- Title
- Sensor-Driven Fire Model Version 1.2.
- Coporate
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
- Report
-
NIST SP 1110; NIST Special Publication 1110,
July 2010,
50 p.
- Keywords
-
fire models
|
sensors
|
fire hazards
|
heat detectors
|
smoke detectors
|
heat release rate
|
ceiling jets
|
temperature
|
smoke
|
smoke plumes
|
equations
- Identifiers
- estimating the extent of fire hazards; Sensor-Driven Fire Model (SDFM); input files for SDFM; sample cases; single room with a heat detector; single room with a smoke detector; smoke alarm files for heptane files; calculation with layer; calculation without layer; Zone Fire Model (ZFM)
- Abstract
- Modern building fire sensors are capable of supplying substantially more information to the fire service than just the detection of a possible fire. With the increase in the number of sensors installed in buildings for non-fire purposes, it is possible to capture this diverse information as input to fire alarm systems to enhance the value of the information in both fire and non-fire conditions. In order to use this information, a decision support system needs to be developed that interprets a range of sensor signals and provides information about the building environment to the fire panel or building information server in real time. Typical fire models useful for predicting the impact of fire in a building utilize a prescribed heat release rate (HRR) for the fire and can predict sensor response and smoke spread. For the inverse problem, a sensor-driven fire model uses sensor signals to estimate the HRR of the fire, identify areas where hazardous conditions are developing, and predict the spread of smoke and the development of the fire. This type of model may be used as part of a decision support system for emergency responders that provide realtime predictions of fire development in a building. A sensor-driven fire model (SDFM) is being developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as part of the NIST Virtual Cybernetic Building Testbed to investigate the feasibility of such a model in buildings with heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Version 1.2 of the SDFM uses ceiling jet algorithms for temperature and smoke or gas concentrations to convert the analog or digital data from heat, smoke, and carbon monoxide alarms to a HRR. The Zone Fire Model (ZFM) is then used to predict layer temperatures, layer heights, and gas concentrations using the HRR for the room of fire origin as well as surrounding rooms. With this information, the growth and spread of the fire and the location of hazardous conditions can be estimated and transmitted to the incident commander.