Final Year Project

FINAL EVALUATION, Batch: 2009-10

Department of Civil Engineering, NEDUET

TITLE:FIRE HAZARD ASSESSMENT OF A

PUBLIC ASSEMBLY BUILDING

Project Group Members

Internal Advisor

Sumair Aslam (CE-88)

Huda Qamber (CE-091)
M.Faizan Yousuf (CE-094)
Sadia Abdul Moqeet (CE-098)
Mahro Aiman (CE-106)
Anum Zamir (CE-108)
Talha Basheer (CE-115)
Sarah Yousuf (CE-134)

Dr. Muhammad Masood Rafi

Professor and Chairman
Department of Earthquake
Engineering

INTRODUCTION

In Pakistan reliable data of fire incidents and life

losses is not available excluding the media being
the major source of information.
In Pakistan fire is not yet considered as a hazard
despite of all losses and damages.
What is Fire Hazard Analysis?
An effort to identify and evaluate hazards

associated with the concerned building.

The goal of performing a fire hazard analysis is to
determine the expected outcomes of a fire scenario.

SCOPE

The study is based on current occupancy and

the material of the building.
Future changes in the building have not been
considered.
A single fire scenario has been selected for
determining design fire.

OBJECTIVE

To quantify the fire hazard in a public

assembly building.

BUILDING DESCRIPTION
Building: Engr. Abul Kalam Library, NEDUET.
Total area: 11000 sq.ft.
G+2 reinforced concrete frame structure.
Storey height: 11-6.

GROUND FLOOR PLAN

FIRST FLOOR PLAN

SECOND FLOOR PLAN

STEPS FOR FIRE HAZARD ANALYSIS

A typical fire hazard analysis consist of the
following steps

Selecting target outcome.

Determine the scenarios of concern that

could result in that outcome.

Selecting an appropriate method(s) for

prediction of growth rate of fire effects.

STEPS FOR FIRE HAZARD ANALYSIS

(Contd.)

Calculating the time needed for occupants to

move to a safe place.
Analyzing the impact of exposure of occupants
or property to the effects of the fire.
Examining the uncertainty in the hazard analysis.
Documentation of the fire hazard analysis
process, including the basis for selection of
models and input data.

STEP 1- TARGET OUTCOME

Primary target outcome: to save the lives in case of

fire.
Secondary target outcome: to save property and
books.

STEP 2- THE FIRE SCENARIO

AND DESIGN FIRES
According to NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, there are eight
design fire scenarios.
Typical fire in any area of library due to electrical short
circuiting.
No possibility of ultrafast fire due to the unavailability of
enough fuel at the main exit door.
Fire may start in study hall 2 on 2nd floor as an unoccupied
room possessing the tendency to endanger the occupants of
study hall 1 on the same floor.
Electrical fire may originated in the false ceiling of digital
library located on 1st floor.

STEP 2- THE FIRE SCENARIO

AND DESIGN FIRES
There is no fire protection system pre-installed in the subject
building to detect the slowly developing fire.
The most severe fire resulting from the large amount of fuel
(wooden shelves, tables, chairs) present in study hall on 1 st
floor.
Fire generating in the adjacent located buildings (only Book
Bank and Circulation Library), since other buildings are
located at a distance greater than 20 ft.
No active or passive fire protection system available in
library.

STEP 3- SELECTION OF APPROPRIATE

METHOD FOR PREDICTION OF GROWTH
RATE OF FIRE EFFECTS
This step comprised of further two steps:
1. Design Fire Curve.
2. Prediction of Fire Effects.

STEP 3- Contd.
DESIGN FIRE CURVE
PREDICTION OF FLASHOVER
Flashover occurs when all the fuel present in the
compartment gets involved in combustion.
Based on the compartment parameters, It is calculated to
determine whether the fire enters the steady burning phase
or not.
For the prediction of flashover fire the peak HRR is
compared with minimum heat release rate required for
flashover fire and is given by:

STEP 3- SELECTION OF APPROPRIATE METHOD

FOR PREDICTION OF GROWTH RATE OF FIRE
EFFECTS
1. Development of design fire curve
Steady burning
growth
decay

E1

E2

E3

STEP 3- Contd.
2. PREDICTION OF GROWTH RATE OF FIRE EFFECTS
Types of hazard includes:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.

Radiant heat flux

Depth of upper layer
Smoke production
Plume centerline temperatures and velocities
Species production

STEP 3- Contd.
i. RADIANT HEAT FLUX
.Thermal radiation is an important mode of heat transfer in
which transference takes place through electromagnetic
energy.
.Radiant heat flux plays an important role for the radiation of
heat from burning items to adjacent fuels.

STEP 3- Contd.
ii. DEPTH OF UPPER LAYER
.The early stages of fire involves filling of compartment with
smoke.
.Estimation of smoke layer height helps in evaluation in
environmental condition form a fire in the compartment.

.Hot gas layer temperatures are required for the estimation of

depth of upper layer.

STEP 3- Contd.
HOT GAS LAYER
TEMPRATURE

DEPTH OF UPPER LAYER

STEP 3- Contd.
iii. PLUME CENTERLINE TEMPERATURE AND VELOCITY
.A fire plume or ceiling jet phase is the initial stage of a
compartment fire. It is a rising column of hot combustion
products which also contains smoke particles. As the fire
grows plume impinges on the ceiling of the compartment.
.The centerline temperatures of plume can be used to predict
temperatures of structural elements.

STEP 3- Contd.
iv. SMOKE PRODUCTION
.Mass production rate of smoke filled gases is approximately
equivalent to amount of air entertained into the rising fire
plume.

CENTRELINE TEMPERATURE

CENTRELINE VELOCITY

STEP 3- Contd.
v.

SPECIES
PRODUCTION
.Toxic and corrosive
combustion products are
produced including CO2,
CO, H2O, soot particles and
many others.

STEP 4-EVACUATION ANALYSIS

GENERAL
In this step the time needed by building occupants to evacuate to a
safe area is calculated.

HUMAN FLOW CALCUATIONS

Two methods are adopted for calculating the evacuation time.
1. First order approximation.
2. More detailed analysis.
. The calculation employs a number of concepts and equations:

a) Effective width

b) Density

STEP 4 - Contd.
c) Specific flow

f)

Floor-to-floor travel
distance

d) Calculated flow
g) Travel time

e) Speed of movement

h) Transition of flow

STEP 4 - Contd.
RESULTS OF FIRST
ORDER APPROXIMATION

RESULTS OF MORE
DETAILED ANALYSIS

Stairway 1

Stairway 2

Floor

Stairway 1

Stairway 2

Travel time (min/floor)

0.22

0.15

All persons evacuate

2nd floor

3.07 min (184.2 s)

Persons passing through

320

80

End of flow reaches

1st floor

3.32 min (199.2 s)

3.6

1.7

All persons evacuate

1st floor

3.57 min (214.2 s)

1.4 min (84 s)

3.82

1.9

All persons evacuate

building

3.82 min (229.2 s)

1.9 min (114 s)

exit
Time to pass through
exit (min) (Persons
passing/Fc)
Total evacuation time
(min)

CONCLUSION
Study Hall on 1st floor of the building was considered as the
worst case scenario.
In case of fire, flashover occurs after 13 minutes of burning
of fuel.
fire eventually turned into ventilation-controlled after 14.5
minutes of burning.
The maximum compartment temperature is 906 C.
Evacuation time is found to be 3.82 minutes for Stairway 1
and 1.9 minutes for Stairway 2.
Since the evacuation time is less than time of flashover, the
occupants will safely evacuate the building.
The Stairway 2 which serves as fire exit for 1st floor should
be free of hindrances.

Thank You