Date
6-2024
Degree Name
MS in Fire Protection Engineering
College
College of Engineering
Advisor
Frederick Mowrer and Christopher Pascual
Abstract
This report evaluates the fire and life safety systems of the Western School of Science and Technology utilizing the prescriptive, and performance-based approach.
The Western School of Science and Technology is located in Phoenix, Arizona. The two- story building is 41,896 square feet and was designed and constructed with Type VB per a prescriptive based approach. The primary use of the building is for educational purposes for students grades 7 through 12 and classified as Educational (E) Occupancy.
The prescriptive based design evaluated the provisions of the building code and compliance with the egress, fire suppression, fire alarm, structural, and flammability requirements. The building was designed and constructed in 2015 per the 2012 International Building Code (IBC), and 2012 International Fire Code (IFC) with Phoenix amendments. The egress analysis was reviewed and determined that the occupant load, exit capacity, common path of egress travel, number of exits, arrangement of exits, and exit access travel distances met the code requirements. The building is protected with the automatic sprinkler system designed and installed per the 2013 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 13 Standard (Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler System.) The fire flow, water supply, and sprinkler system design were reviewed. The fire flow met the code requirements. The water supply for the onsite fire hydrants and sprinkler system followed the NFPA 24 (Standard for the Installation of Private Mains and their Appurtenances). The sprinkler system was hydraulically designed and complied with the NFPA 13. The building is also equipped with a fire alarm system designed and installed per the 2013 NFPA 72 Standard (Standard for National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code). and a voice alarm communication system. The location, spacing, and placement of initiating devices, notification appliances, mass notification systems, power requirements for fire alarm systems, and sequence of operation were evaluated, and it was found that the location and spacing of smoke detectors in some areas were insufficient and shall be redesigned. The provisions of the building code for the materials, systems, and assemblies used for structural fire resistance and fire-resistance-rated construction including allowable height and the number of stories, allowable floor area, fire resistance rating, smoke control, and interior finishes were reviewed, and complied with the code.
The other approach for the design and construction of the building's structural elements, systems, and assemblies is a performance-based design method. In this design, alternative means and methods, typically through rational engineering analysis, tests, and simulations, will be used to show code compliance. The key element for this method is to define the objective and provide the calculations, simulations, models, and test results to evaluate the Available Safe Egress Time (ASET) and Required Safe Egress Time (RSET). ASET shall exceed RSET with a reasonable safety factor.
Two potential fire scenarios will be assessed to follow the performance-based design guideline and assess the fire safety objective for the building, gymnasium storage room fire, and office fire. The gymnasium storage room fire will be evaluated for ASET and RSET analysis in this report because of the high fuel load and proximity to the gymnasium which has the highest anticipated occupant load in the building.
Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) is a computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model used to simulate the heat release rate, fire growth, detection time, and ASET. The 5 MW fuel load used for gymnasium storage room fire simulation. The visibility of a minimum of 10 m and a temperature of a maximum of 60°C will be used for tenability criteria thresholds. The ASET has been determined as 717 seconds, and the RSET has been calculated as 434 seconds.
The main goal of the Life Safety Code is occupant protection. A 20 percent safety factor in ASET/RSET analysis indicates that the performance-based design goal has been achieved, and occupants could evacuate the building without exposure to untenable conditions. The margin of safety of 283 seconds and the safety factor of 1.65 have been determined for ASET/RSET analysis which are very conservative safety measures for performance-based design egress analysis.
This report has been prepared to address both prescriptive and performance-based design methods for fire resistance, fire protection, and egress analysis for the building. The fire protection engineering evaluation is limited to passive systems, such as fire resistance rating and primary structural elements. The performance-based evaluation assesses the ASET/RSET analysis.
The gymnasium has a high ceiling in comparison with the remainder of the 1st floor. The smoke and hot gases shall fill all the void spaces before descending to 1.8 m above the floor. This building feature increases the ASET. Installation of heat and smoke vents or mechanical exhaust fans in the gymnasium would significantly enhance the ASET and margin of safety in ASET/RSET analysis.
https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/fpe_rpt/185
Final Presentation