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Ventilation In Fire Safety
Ventilation In Fire Safety
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Ventilation In Fire Safety
Introduction
Fire safety is a crucial component of design in that it is held in highest regards alongside
the structural components of a building. While there are various methods of containing fires
through design processes, this paper will focus on the utilization of ventilation as a fire safety
method. While building fire is an accidental occurrence and cannot be stopped if it was caused
by non-human actions, it is possible to contain in order to ensure there are minimum casualties of
damage loss. This is where all forms of firefighting come in and this includes the branch of
structural firefighting tactics that include the utilization of ventilation among other methods.
(Purkiss, 2006)
Literature Review
Ventilation is essential as it provides a means of expelling the heat and smoke generated
within the building as a result of the fire. This smoke and heat is detrimental to the firefighting
process as it repels the firefighters from accessing the fire lest they risk serious burns as a result
of the heat or even death as a result of burns or asphyxiation from the smoke. The use of
ventilation will mean that the building will become cooler with less smoke thus ensuring the
firefighters can attack the fire and rescue any trapped individuals safely.
A very deadly effect of poor ventilation in building structures is the occurrence of a
smoke explosion. A smoke explosion occurs as the result of smoke which is partly combusted
accumulating in a room before it finally igniting to blow up the whole building. In the presence
of adequate ventilation, then the smoke would combust completely at the point of production
before accumulation occurs. This will ensure that even if the smoke accumulates, it will not
ignite any further thus rendering the building safe for a while for the firefighters to act. Another
way adequate ventilation can save the building is by ensuring the smoke has an avenue of getting
out at a rate faster than or equal to the rate of its production. This will ensure that accumulation
of smoke is avoided at all costs.
Another risk that buildings face in the absence of proper ventilation is the occurrence of a
flashover. A flashover is basically the direct ignition of flammable gases in an enclosed space.
When certain organic materials are exposed to high levels of heat, they decompose and in the
process they release flammable gases. With time, these gases accumulate in the building and
once their ignition point is attainted, then they catch fare and blow up the building in a flash.
This phenomenon can also occur even in the absence of flammable gases being produced due to
the decomposition. As individual items such as furniture achieve their ignition points, they will
light up into flames and increase the room temperature even higher and cause the other items in
the room to erupt up into flames one by one.
Ventilation In Fire Safety
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During the firefighting process, ventilation are commonly divided into two types. This
division occurs along the lines of how heat and smoke shall be ejected from the building by the
ventilation. In vertical ventilation, the ejection is carried out through holes cut through the roof
and it is carried out while the fire is still in its early stages. The other category of ventilation is
the horizontal type and it comprises of windows and doors. Both forms of ventilation must work
in sync if they are to be effective. They serve similar goals and that is to increase the survival
chances of the trapped occupants of the building and give the firefighters a higher probability of
reaching them and rescuing them alive. Moreover, it provides an opportunity for water lines to
be directed into the burning structure.
At times, the existing ventilation may not be sufficient enough to cater for the fire and,
therefore, this scenario normally calls for the supplementing of the existing ventilation systems.
This involves the use of mechanical fans in the building in order to create positive pressure
ventilation. At times, the size of the fenestrations may be inadequate and this may require
firefighters to increase their size and the methods they commonly apply include using specialized
tools to cut holes through the building fabric or roof. An advantage of this method especially in
high rise buildings is that its enables smoke to be kept out of exit routes and elevator shafts in
order to ensure the occupants trapped in the building can survive for the longest possible
moment. Also, the use of positive pressure ventilation method can be used to contain small fires
such as in offices by keeping the fires away from other rooms. (Garcia et al, 2006)
The se of ventilation in containing and firefighting has been applied in various mega
structures that are prone to fires from multiple sources and also have a vast number of people
using the structures at any given time. One such example of a structure is airport terminals which
all over the world handle vast numbers of human traffic both arriving and departing from the
airport. The terminal is prone to fires from many sources of fire and this includes terrorist
attacks, electrical fires, arson, and accidents among many other possible sources of fire. Airport
terminals all over the world are operational throughout the day and night and this places them at
a greater risk due to their continued usage. It is with his in regard that airport terminals re some
of the best-protected buildings in terms of fire protection with as many means of fire safety
engineering techniques applied. Ventilation is a form of fire safety in design method which is
applied, in this case. The following three airports discussed in this paper are an example of how
ventilation is applied in airports as a fire safety technique.
To begin with, Heathrow Airport understands the essence of ventilation in fire safety
engineering. This is why it was designed with a ventilation system that conforms to fire safety
regulations. The ventilation system is especially used to maintain the quality of air within the air
tunnel. This is done in order to minimize the risks to life that will occur as a result of a fire
within or close to the tunnels. The ventilation system is used as a means of redirecting the hot
gases emitted and smoke away from the tunnels where there are people. The airport also contains
a longitudinal ventilation system in one tunnel while in the second tunnel it contains a semi-
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Ventilation In Fire Safety
transverse system all of which are met to improve the chances of combating a fire in the event
that one arises. (Beard, 2005)
The Sky plaza in Hong Kong, which is linked to the Hong Kong International Airport as
a passenger center where they can get services such as entertainments and access shopping malls
while still within the airport, has been fitted with smoke release systems in its vertical
ventilation. It, in fact, boasts of having the largest smoke ventilation systems in the world. Since
the architect did not want the original design of the structure being compromised, the fire safety
engineers in charge of fitting the system ingeniously made it to blend in with skylight roofing of
the mega structure. The system is designed to open up all the ventilation in the higher parts of the
building especially in the skylight should any fire be detected and this allows smoke to escape
from the building in order to enable lives to be saved plus property to be salvaged as indicated
above. (Institution of civil engineers [Great Britain], 1998)
The new Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BBI) has also ventilation systems
designed to counter attacks by fire in the airport. However, while the airport was meant to open
in 2014, there has been a delay as a result of the ventilation system not gearing up within the
permissible time range since the system is located really low in the airport roofing system. The
reason for the technical error is due to the design requirements from the architect which were that
the airport should have a flat roof in order to enhance its aesthetics. Currently, the airport is still
closed as the fire safety engineers look to find a solution for this ventilation problem in order to
ensure lives are secure in the event of a fire accident. This shows how ventilation in terms of fire
safety is taken in very high regards among engineers due to its potential to save countless lives in
the event of a fire.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is evident that the integration of ventilation in design as a fire safety
engineering component is one that is taken seriously as seen with the scenarios of the airports
where the Berlin airport has remained closed due to the response time of ventilation system
being too slow. This shows the capacity of the ventilation to save or take away lives in the event
of a fire on a structure. Especially in the case of an airport, no life is worth taking as a result of
negligence in terms of design. It should be remembered that every single life counts.
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Ventilation In Fire Safety
References:
➢ GARCIA, K., KAUFFMANN, R., & SCHELBLE, R. (2006). Positive pressure attack for
ventilation & firefighting. Tulsa, Okla, Penwell.
➢ INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS (GREAT BRITAIN). (1998). Hong Kong
International Airport. London, Published for the Institution of Civil Engineers by Thomas
Telford Ltd.
➢ BEARD, A. (2005). The handbook of tunnel fire safety. London, Telford.
➢ PURKISS, J. A. (2006). Fire Safety Engineering Design of Structures. Burlington, Elsevier.
Word Count = 1519
TASK
This assessment includes preparation of a detailed research project report based on the
project undertaken by the student. The total word count may be limited to 1500 words
From Part 1
This research project report shall include the following sections:
aims
Introduction: A brief introduction to the topic selected with clearly stated objectives
and significance of the project/study
Why this topic?
Literature review. Identification of the literature (selected from the range identified in
the Project/Investigation Proposal and Plan) that relates specifically to the focus/aim
of the project. This may also include a detailed review and structured analysis of the
relevant literature
Methodology Detailed time-referenced plan including
and methods
used to complete the project
Results, discussion and conclusion, it includes the summary of results, analysis of
the results obtained from the study, followed by a detailed discussion and conclusion
Recommendations future scope for further study
References
Guidelines for preparation of the project report
The report to be submitted for this assessment should be simple and easy to understand,
without any excessive use of complex statements. The text should be prepared on one side
of A4 sheet in single spacing and should be suitably divided into chapters as given below:
1. Introduction
2. Review of literature
3. Methodology
4. Results and Discussion
5. Conclusion
6. Recommendations/future scope of the study.
7. References
8. Annexure(s)/Appendix (if any) such as (questionnaires, interview schedule,
photographs etc)
The following specifications may be used for the preparation of the text:
All Chapter titles: In capital letters, Arial, font size 16 bold, right aligned.
Section heading: Title case, Arial, font size 14, bold, left aligned
Sub-sections: Title case Arial, font size 14, left aligned.
Text: the text must be divided into suitable paragraphs in single spacing in Arial font size 12,
justified
All sections are to be suitably numbered and should be continuous
The detailed guidelines for the preparation of different chapters are given as follows:
1. INTRODUCTION
A detailed description of the area/domain/process being addressed in the study needs to be
emphasized here. This section may be limited to a maximum of 200 words.
2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A brief summary of the literature review that is relevant to the topic chosen and reviewed in
the Report (CW1) should be presented here. This section may be limited to 300-400 words
You may also include additional information obtained during the course of the project.
3. METHODOLOGY
This section should explain the methods/materials/machinery/resources/experiments that
you have used in undertaking the study with proper justifications. This section may be limited
to 200-300 words.
4. RESULTS, DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION
All the data collected in the study/research need to be presented here. It could be either in
the form of tables, charts, figures etc. It could be suitably divided into different sections and
data/information collection related to each shall be presented appropriately. From the results
presented in the report, attempt shall be made to extract new findings/learning.
In the discussion, you should cite the relevance of the results in relation to the research
questions to be addressed and compare your work with the already existing information
Your reasoning in this connection should be logica and unbiased. You may also explain the
limitations of your research (like lack of time, problems related to information/data collection
etc) in this section.
For the conclusion, a brief account on the final learning acquired by you in this research
project needs to be presented. It could be related to new observations, identifying a new
methodology/practices/solution/technique or any other innovative step thought by you. It
could also be the inadequacy of resources that have resulted in the incomplete information
This section may be limited to 700-900 words.
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