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MinimumSmokeLayerDepthinAtriumSmokeControl

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HOME > FIRE / SMOKE > MINIMUM SMOKE-LAYER DEPTH IN ATRIUM SMOKE CONTROL

MinimumSmokeLayerDepthinAtriumSmokeControl
Withoutasufficientminimumsmokelayerdepth,buildingoccupantscanbe
exposedtodangeroussmokeduringafire
ByJOHNH.KLOTE,DSC,PE,Consultant,Leesburg,Va.
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Mar1,2009
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COMMENTS 1

Manysmokecontroldesignersdonotknowthereisaminimumsmokelayerdepthfor
atriumsmokecontrolsystems.Section4.4.1.1ofNFPA92B,StandardforSmoke
ManagementSystemsinMalls,Atria,andLargeSpaces,requiresthattheminimum
designdepthofasmokelayerbe20percentofthefloortoceilingheight,unlessan
engineeringanalysisisperformed.This20percentrequirementsignificantlylimitswhat
architectsandownerscandowithanatrium.Inthisarticle,thetermatriumisusedin
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agenericsensetomeananylargevolumespace,includingstadiums,arenas,and
airplanehangars.
Itshouldsurprisenoonethatthe20percentrequirementisnotpopularwitharchitects
andowners.Afewyearsago,Imetaseniorengineerwhoerroneouslythoughtanatrium
smokecontrolsystemcouldbedesignedforanysmokelayerdepthhewanted,evenas
littleas1in.Washeeverwrong!Thesmokelayerthatformsunderaceilinghasa
minimumdepthforreasonsdiscussedlaterinthisarticle.Designsthatdonotallowthe
20percentmentionedpreviouslymayresultinexposingbuildingoccupantstosmokeina
firesituation.

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TheminimumsmokelayerdepthrequirementsofNFPA92Bapplytoalmostallplacesin
theUnitedStatesbecausethestandardhasbeenadoptedbytheInternationalBuilding
Code(IBC).AbookpublishedbytheInternationalCodeCouncil(ICC)1presents
discussionsofIBCsmokecontrolrequirementsandextensiveengineeringinformationto
meetthoserequirements.Regardlessofthecodes,ifthesmokelayerisnotofsufficient
depth,occupantscanbeexposedtosmokeduringfiresituations.

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Efficiency
Regulationsfor
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TheDecember2008issueofHPACEngineeringincludedanarticle(StateoftheArt
AtriumSmokeControl)thatprovidedanoverviewofsmokecontroltechnology,
includingbasicconcepts,smokestratification,makeupair,plugholing,andminimum
smokelayerdepth.2Minimumsmokelayerdepth,includingthereasonforthe20
percentrequirement,engineeringanalyses,anddesignapproaches,isexplainedin
greaterdetailinthisarticle.
WHY20PERCENT?

Asmokeplumerisesaboveafire.Whentheplumereachestheceiling,smokeflowsaway
fromthepointofimpactinaradialdirection,formingaceilingjet.Whentheceilingjet
reachesawall,thesmokeflowgoesaroundandundertheceilingjet(Figure1).The
ceilingjethasadepthofabout10percentofthefloortoceilingheight,asdoesthesmoke
flowundertheceilingjet.Thismeansthesmokelayerdepthisabout20percentofthe
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floortoceilingheight.Thesmokemaydescendlowerthanthisminimumsmokelayer
depth.Designsneedtohavesufficientroomforthesmokelayertoform.

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FIGURE1:Formationoftheminimumsmokelayer.

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Duringthe1970s,fundamentalresearchaboutceilingjetswasconductedbyRonAlpert

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AutomationSystem
withService

ofFactoryMutual.3,4Basedonhisresearch,Alpertdevelopedcorrelationsforthe
thickness,temperature,andvelocityofceilingjets.Thesevariablesarefunctionsofthe
heightoftheceilingaboveafireandtheradialdistancefromtheaxisofthesmoke
plume.Inmostsituations,the10and20percentvaluesmentionedpreviouslyare
conservativelylarge.Foradetailedtreatmentofceilingjets,includingAlpert'sresearch,
seeChapter2ofSection2oftheSFPEHandbook.5Whileanengineeringanalysiscould
relyonthesecorrelations,thereareadvantagestousingcomputationalfluiddynamics
(CFD).
ENGINEERINGANALYSIS

Anengineeringanalysisofminimumsmokelayerdepthcanbeperformedwithdatafrom
fullscalefiretests,scalemodeling,orCFDanalysis.Fullscaleandscalemodeltestsare
relativelyexpensive,whichexplainswhytheyarenotusedoftenforthiskindofanalysis.
Becausezonefiremodels,suchasConsolidatedModelofFireGrowthandSmoke
Transport(CFAST),6arewellknownandeasytouse,someengineersmaybetemptedto
trytouseonetoanalyzeminimumsmokelayerdepth,butzonemodelsareinappropriate

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forthisapplication.

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FIGURE2:Atriumsmokeflow.

inClark'sRemarks

Inaroomoranatriumwithafire,smokerisesandformsasmokelayeraspreviously
described,andthereisagradualtransitionbetweenthesmokelayerandtheairbelow
(Figure2[a]).Zonefiremodelsconsiderthesmokelayertohaveuniformproperties
throughout.Inzonefiremodeling,thebottomofthesmokelayerisconsideredtobea
horizontalplane,sothatat0.01in.abovethisplane,theconcentrationofcontaminantsis
thesameaseverywhereelseinthesmokelayer(Figure2[b]).Whilezonefiremodelsare
usefulformanyapplications,theyroutinelypredictsmokelayersofunrealisticallysmall
depthintheearlystagesoffiredevelopment.Forthisreason,zonefiremodelsmustnot
beusedtoanalyzeminimumsmokelayerdepth.
Page2of2
TheideaofCFDmodelingistodividethespaceofinterestintoalargenumberofcells
anduseacomputerprogramtosolvethegoverningequationsforeachcell.IfthatCFD
modelingisdoneproperly,itcansimulateatriumsmokeflowinrealisticdetail,including
smokelayerformation.Idealforanalysisofaminimumsmokelayer,CFDmodelingalso
cansimulateatransitionzone,whichisimportantfortenabilitydesigns,whichare
discussedlater.CFDmodelingrequiresalevelofspecializedknowledgeforproperuse,
andaCFDsimulationcantakemanyhours,evendays,asdiscussedinpastarticlesin
HPACEngineering.2,7
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TheNationalInstituteofStandardsandTechnology(NIST)hasdevelopedaCFDmodel
specificallyforfireapplications:FireDynamicsSimulator(FDS).8Traditionally,CFD
modelsareexpensive,buttheFDSmodel,includingdocumentation,canbedownloaded
freeofchargefromwww.fire.nist.gov/fds.
DESIGNAPPROACHES

TheIBCrequiresthatthebottomofasmokelayerbeatleast6ftabovethehighest
walkingsurfacethatformsaportionoftherequiredmeansofegressinanatrium.This
meansthatabovethehighestrequiredmeansofegressinanatrium,6ftplusspaceforat
leasttheminimumsmokelayershouldbeavailable.Ifthismuchspaceisnotavailable,
otherapproachescanbeused:separationofthetopfloor(s),thedesignofadummytop
floor,minimizationoffoldback,and/ordesigningfortenability.Engineersarecautioned
thatalternateapproachesneedtobebasedonappropriateengineeringanalyses.
Separationoftopfloor(s)

Thetopfloor(s)ofanatriumcanbeseparatedfromtherestofthebuildingtomeetthe
minimumsmokelayerdepthrequirement.Thisseparationcanbedonewithglasssothe
occupantscanseeintotheatrium,buttherequiredmeansofegressonthetoplevel(s)are
notinsidethelargeopenspaceoftheatrium.Whilethisapproachmaybeunpopular
witharchitects,itmaybetheonlypracticalwaytoprovidetheessentialspaceforthe
formationofasmokelayer.

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Designofadummytopfloor

Someatriaaredesignedwithadummytopfloorthatoccupantscannotaccess.Theonly
peoplewhohaveaccesstothedummytopflooraremaintenancepeople.Becausethese
fewpeopleareveryfamiliarwiththebuilding,theycanleavethedummyfloorquicklyin
theeventofafire.Therefore,thecodecanbeinterpretedtomeanthatthewalkwayson
thesefloorsarenotpartoftherequiredmeansofegress.Assuch,thesmokelayercan
includethedummyfloor.Ifthisapproachisdesired,localcodeofficialsshouldbe
contactedearlyintheprojecttoseeiftheyconcurwiththiscodeinterpretation.
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Minimizationoffoldback

FIGURE3:Foralong,narrowatrium,foldbackcanbeminimized
byexhaustingfrombothends.

Asstatedpreviously,whenaceilingjetreachesawall,itfoldsunderitself,formingthe
minimumsmokelayer.Forlong,narrowatria,thisfoldbackcanbeminimizedby
exhaustingsmokefromsmokereservoirslocatedattheends(Figure3).Theregenerally
arenoacceptedalgebraicequationsforanalysisofthisapproach,anditissuggestedthat
CFDmodelingbeused.Minimumsmokelayerdepthinthiscaseisabout10percentof
thefloortoceilingheight,butaproperlydoneCFDanalysiscanprovidemoreaccurate
information.Also,thesmokecontrolsystemcanbecomeatenabilitydesign.
Designingfortenability

Alloftheapproachesmentionedarebasedontheideathatoccupantsneedtobekept
awayfromsmoke,butanotherapproachistodesignsystemsthatprovideatenable
environmentforoccupantsduringevacuation,eventhoughtheremaybesomecontact
withdilutedsmoke.NFPA92Brecognizessuchtenabilitydesigns.Section909.1ofthe
IBCstatesthatsmokecontrolsystemsareintendedtoprovideatenableenvironmentfor
occupantevacuationorrelocation.Tenabilitydesignsareanalternativeapproachto
prescriptivecoderequirements,andlocalcodeofficialsshouldbenotifiedearlyina
projectthatanalternativeapproachmaybeused.
Atenabilitydesignneedstobebasedonsmoketransportandtenabilityanalyses.CFD
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modelinghasthepotentialtorealisticallysimulatesmoketransportandisrecommended
forsmoketransportanalysis.Thesmokelayerhasrelativelyhighconcentrationsof
contaminantsneartheceilingandlowerconcentrationsinthetransitionzone.Many
tenabilitydesignstakeadvantageofthelowerconcentrationsnearthebottomofthe
smokelayer.AproperlyconductedCFDanalysiscansimulatetheformationofasmoke
layer,includingthetransitionzonebetweenthesmokelayerandtheairbelow.
InadditiontoCFDsimulationsofsmoketransport,atenabilitydesignneedstoincludea
tenabilityanalysisthatevaluatestheeffectofexposuretoheat,toxicgases,andreduced
visibility.Tenabilityanalysisistoolargeatopictodealwithinthisarticle,butistreatedin
PrinciplesofSmokeManagement.9
Arealisticanalysisofdesignfiresisessential,andinformationaboutdesignfireanalysisis
providedinvarioussources.1,5,9,10Adesignfireprovidesresultsintheheatreleaserateof
firesandthematerial(s)burned.Ifanatriumisdesignedtohavealmostnomaterialsthat
canburn,adesignfirestillneedstoaccountfortransientfuels,whichareitemsthatmay
beintheatriumforashortperiodoftime.Examplesoftransientfuelsincludetrash
waitingtoberemoved,paintingsolvents,constructionmaterialsduringarenovation,and
newitemsawaitingmovement.
SUMMARY

Manyatriumsmokecontroldesignersdonotknowthereisaminimumsmokelayer
depthforatriumsmokecontrolsystems.InmostplacesintheUnitedStates,thecodes
requirethatsmokelayerdepthbeatleast20percentofthefloortoceilingheight,unless
thereisanengineeringanalysis.Whilethisrequirementisnotpopularwitharchitectsand
owners,itisbasedonacceptedresearchresults.Ifasmokelayerisnotofsufficientdepth,
occupantscanbeexposedtosmokeduringfiresituations.
Engineeringanalysisofthisminimumlayercanbedonebycomparisonwithdatafrom
fullscalefiretestsorbyscalemodeling,butthecommonmethodisbyCFDmodeling.A
properlyconductedCFDanalysiscansimulatetheformationofasmokelayerinrealistic
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detail.Suchananalysisrequiresalevelofexpertise.Fordesignsforwhich20percent
spaceisnotavailableatthetopofanatrium,anumberofapproachescanbeused.
REFERENCES
1. Klote,J.H.,&Evans,D.H.(2007).Aguidetosmokecontrolinthe2006IBC.

CountryClubHills,IL:InternationalCodeCouncil.
2. Klote,J.H.(2008,December).Stateoftheartofatriumsmokecontrol.HPAC

Engineering,pp.3640.
3. Alpert,R.L.(1972).Calculationofresponsetimeofceilingmountedfiredetectors.

FireTechnology,8,181195.
4. Alpert,R.L.(1975).Turbulentceilingjetinducedbylargescalefires.Combustion

ScienceandTechnology,11,197213.
5. SFPE.(2002).TheSFPEhandbookoffireprotectionengineering(3rded.).

Bethesda,MD:SocietyofFireProtectionEngineers.
6. Peacock,R.D.,etal.(2005).CFASTConsolidatedModelofFireGrowthand

SmokeTransport(version6)user'sguide.Gaithersburg,MD:NationalInstituteof
StandardsandTechnology.
7. Klote,J.H.(2006June).CFD:Anewwaytodesignatriumsmokecontrol.HPAC

Engineering,pp.1927.
8. McGrattan,K.,etal.(2008).FireDynamicsSimulator(version5)User'sguide.

Gaithersburg,MD:NationalInstituteofStandardsandTechnology.
9. Klote,J.H.,&Milke,J.A.(2002).Principlesofsmokemanagement.Atlanta:

AmericanSocietyofHeating,RefrigeratingandAirConditioningEngineers.
10. Klote,J.H.(2002,September).Designfires:Whatyouneedtoknow.HPAC
http://hpac.com/firesmoke/minimumsmokelayeratrium0309

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MinimumSmokeLayerDepthinAtriumSmokeControl

Engineering,pp.4351.
AsmokecontrolconsultantandmemberofHPACEngineering'sEditorialAdvisory
Board,JohnH.Klote,DSc,PE,developedandconductsaseriesofsmokecontrol
seminarsfortheSocietyofFireProtectionEngineers.For19years,heconductedfire
researchfortheNationalInstituteofStandardsandTechnology.Heisacoauthorof
thebooksAGuidetoSmokeControlinthe2006IBCandPrinciplesofSmoke
Management.

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onFeb14,2015

Protech

InanopenstadiumwithsprinklersintheconcourseoverheadasrequiredbyNFPAupto50ft
ceilingheight,the20%smokereservoircreatesatemperaturesinkinsummertempsabove
100degF.Theheightoftheceilingrequireslowtemperaturesprinklersthatarenotallowper
NFPA13withceilingsthatcanreach100degF.Thetwoindependentmeansofsmoke
mitigationisprovidedbysprinklerdecayandbyventilationdilution.Whatisthesolutionwe
canthavebothperNFPA.
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