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Smoke Control System Design

This document discusses smoke control system design for atriums and large spaces. It notes that the International Building Code and NFPA 92B provide requirements and equations for sizing exhaust systems to control smoke. However, the algebraic equations in NFPA 92B are not always appropriate and can lead to overdesigned systems, especially for tall atriums or very large volumes. The document recommends using computer fire modeling and performance-based design to more accurately size exhaust systems when the prescriptive equations do not apply or would result in an unnecessarily large design.

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Hermi David
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472 views4 pages

Smoke Control System Design

This document discusses smoke control system design for atriums and large spaces. It notes that the International Building Code and NFPA 92B provide requirements and equations for sizing exhaust systems to control smoke. However, the algebraic equations in NFPA 92B are not always appropriate and can lead to overdesigned systems, especially for tall atriums or very large volumes. The document recommends using computer fire modeling and performance-based design to more accurately size exhaust systems when the prescriptive equations do not apply or would result in an unnecessarily large design.

Uploaded by

Hermi David
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Smoke Control System Design

Smoke control systems keep building occupants safe from smoke generated
during unwanted fires. Requirements for smoke control systems are given in
Section 909 of the 2007 and 2010 International Building Code (IBC), the
primary model building code used in the United States. For atrium smoke
control, IBC 909 refers to NFPA 92B, “Standard for Smoke Management
Systems in Malls, Atria, and Large Spaces” for the design of smoke control
systems.
Smoke control system design in high-rise buildings is accomplished using the
pressurization method (IBC 909.6). Mechanical ventilation systems are used
to create small pressure differences (minimum of 0.05 inches of water
column) across smoke barriers, a special type of fire-resistant construction
defined in IBC 709 and IBC 909.5. Maximum pressure differences are limited
by door opening forces, which must remain less than 30 lb. During a fire,
small pressure differences created by smoke control systems keep smoke
confined to one smoke control zone. Smoke control systems based on the
pressurization method are designed to prevent smoke from spreading to
adjacent smoke control zones, but they are not intended to maintain a tenable
environment in the smoke control zone where the fire originates. Instead, that
is the purpose of smoke control systems based on the exhaust method —
widely used for atrium smoke control.

Atrium smoke control


Atrium smoke control, and smoke control in similar large volume spaces, is
achieved using the exhaust method (IBC 909.8). Exhaust inlets located near
the ceiling remove smoke at a rate that is greater than or equal to the rate at
which it is generated, or at a rate that maintains a tenable environment during
evacuation. Due to the prescriptive requirements of IBC 909.8.1, smoke
control systems in an atrium are often designed to maintain the smoke layer 6
ft above the highest occupiable walking surface by exhausting smoke at a rate
that is greater than or equal to the smoke production rate. For reasons
discussed below, this can lead to unnecessary overdesign of atrium smoke
control systems.
The smoke production rate (and the required exhaust rate) for a fire in an
atrium increases as the heat release rate of the design fire increases.
Therefore, establishment of the design fire is the most critical step in the
design of atrium smoke control systems. IBC 909.9 requires the design fire to
be determined by a “registered design professional” (meaning a licensed
Professional Engineer) based on a “rational analysis”. Once the design fire
has been established by a licensed Fire Protection Engineer, the required
exhaust rate (cubic feet per minute, or cfm) must be calculated.
For smoke control system in “small” or “simple” atriums, the required exhaust
rate can be calculated by applying the algebraic plume entrainment equations
presented in NFPA 92B. However, these equations have a limited range of
applicability and there are several common situations where NFPA 92B’s
algebraic equations are not appropriate for the design of atrium smoke control
systems, either because they lead to unnecessarily high exhaust rates, or
their inherent assumptions break down. Examples include:

1. Tall spaces (> 5 stories). The algebraic equations in NFPA 92B assume
that all air entrained into a fire plume instantly becomes smoke, and the
total amount of smoke produced increases super-linearly with height
above the fire. Application of NFPA 92B’s algebraic equations to
determine exhaust rates in tall atria will lead to unnecessarily large
exhaust requirements. This will result in an over-designed atrium smoke
control system, which adds significant construction costs but does not
improve occupant safety over an appropriately-sized system.

2. Very large-volume atriums. The algebraic equations in NFPA 92B do


not account for any effect of smoke dilution, which can be significant in
large-volume spaces. The NFPA 92B algebraic equations would require
the same exhaust rate in an indoor sports arena and a a 10 ft by 10 ft
building shaped like a church steeple, provided the design fire and
height of the highest occupiable level are the same! However, it is
common sense that the sports arena should require less exhaust
because the smoke is spread out over the large volume of air contained
in the arena. However, this is not recognized by the NFPA 92B
algebraic equations, and application of these equations to very large-
volume spaces will lead to unnecessary overdesign of atrium smoke
control systems.

3. Atriums and similar large-volume spaces that do not have a single


central floor opening with a large plan area. The algebraic axisymmetric
and balcony spill plume equations in NFPA 92B are not applicable to
design of atrium smoke control systems unless the plume is not affected
by upper balconies or walls. Thus, their range of applicability is limited
to spaces having a well-defined central opening, and inappropriate use
of these equations can lead to erroneous design.

4. Spaces where the smoke layer depth cannot be maintained at a


minimum of 20% of the floor-to-ceiling height. When designing an atrium
smoke control system where the highest occupiable walking surface is
close to the ceiling, it is sometimes not possible to simultaneously meet
NFPA 92B requirements for minimum smoke layer depth (20% of the
floor-to-ceiling height) and simultaneously maintain the smoke layer 6 ft
above the highest occupiable walking surface as required by the
International Building Code. Specifically, NFPA 92B requires that the
minimum design depth of the smoke layer shall be twenty percent of the
floor to ceiling height or “based on an engineering analysis”. When
these prescriptive requirements cannot be met simultaneously, NFPA
92B’s algebraic equations cannot be used to size atrium smoke control
systems, and an engineering analysis (often entailing computer fire
modeling) is required.

For cases where the NFPA 92B algebraic equations for smoke exhaust rate
do not apply, or would lead to unnecessarily large exhaust rates, computer fire
modeling is usually applied to determine the required exhaust rate. This is
accomplished by performance-based design, or an ASET/REST analysis
(Available Safe Egress Time vs. Required Safe Egress Time) which is usually
addressed through IBC 104.11 “Alternative materials, design and methods of
construction and equipment” or California Building Code Section 108.7
“Alternate materials, designs, tests and methods of construction”.
Applying techniques such as computer fire modeling, ASET/RSET analyses,
and performance-based design to atrium smoke control systems can often
lead to significant construction cost savings and make innovative designs
possible. Since makeup air (or supply air) is usually provided at 85% to 95%
of the exhaust rate, reduction of the exhaust rate can lead to major reductions
in makeup air requirements. From an aesthetic and cost standpoint, this is
often more significant than reducing the exhaust rate because exhaust fans
and inlets can usually be incorporated in the ceiling construction, but low-level
makeup air inlets are often problematic in atria.
Reax Engineering, Inc. has considerable expertise in sizing and design of
smoke control systems, including application of NFPA 92B’s algebraic
equations, computer fire modeling, ASET/RSET analyses, and performance-
based design. For inquiries related to smoke control system design or atrium
smoke control, please contact David Rich.

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