MEBS7015

Fire Science and

Smoke Control
Dr. Candy M.Y. Ng
becandy@hku.hk
Staircase Pressurization
System

2
 Exercise
• Assume in Hong Kong, the staircase for
high rise buildings incorporating refuge
floors will have a height of 20 storeys (21
floors with the refuge floor at top)
• Assume floor to floor height = 4 m, area =
1000 m2
• This staircase is required to be pressurized
in order to satisfy FSD's requirement.
There is a sliding window with 2 m on each
floor.
• The design pressure, with all doors closed
and all over pressure relief systems in
operation shall be 50 Pa minimum.
• There is no leakage from the external walls
and internal & stair walls.
• Assume the average leakage area ratio for
the lift well wall of 200 m2.
• Determine the minimum number of
injection points, air flow requirement based
on ‘Pressure Differential Criterion’ and ‘Air
Flow Criterion’, size of the air release vent 3
and overpressure relief vent.
Exercise

4
Exercise

5
Exercise

6
Exercise

7
Exercise

8
 Basics of
Staircase Pressurization

9
 Staircase Analysis
• Assume
• building without vertical leakage between floors
• Flow of air inside staircase has negligible frictional loss
• The absolute pressure in the staircase is considered
static
• 𝑝𝑠 = 𝑝𝑠𝑏 − 𝐾𝜌 𝜌𝑠 𝑦 (Equation 1)
• 𝑝𝑠 = absolute pressure in staircase at elevation 𝑦 (Pa)
• 𝑝𝑠𝑏 = absolute pressure in staircase at bottom (Pa)
• 𝜌𝑠 = air density within the staircase (kg/m 3)
• 𝑦 = elevation above staircase bottom (m)
• 𝐾𝜌 = 9.8 m/s2 (gravitational acceleration)
10
• Assume wind velocity is neglected
• The outside air pressure can also be presented
similarly
• 𝑝𝑜 = 𝑝𝑜𝑏 − 𝐾𝜌 𝜌𝑜 𝑦 (Equation 2)
• 𝑝𝑜 = absolute pressure outdoor at elevation 𝑦 (Pa)
• 𝑝𝑜𝑏 = absolute pressure outdoor at bottom (Pa)
• 𝜌𝑜 = air density outdoor (kg/m 3)
• 𝑦 = elevation above outdoor bottom (m)
• 𝐾𝜌 = 9.8 m/s2 (gravitational acceleration)

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• The pressure difference from the staircase to the outside can thus be
presented as
• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜 = 𝑝𝑠 − 𝑝𝑜
• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜 = ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏 + 𝐾𝜌 𝑦 𝜌𝑜 − 𝜌𝑠 (Equation 3)
• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜 = pressure difference at elevation 𝑦 (Pa)
• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏 = pressure difference at bottom of staircase (Pa)
• Using ideal gas law 𝑃𝑉 = 𝑛𝑅𝑇, Eq.(3) can be expressed as a function of
temperature
• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜 = ∆𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏 + 𝑏𝑦 (Equation 4)
• 𝑏 = 𝐾𝑠
1
𝑇𝑜
−
1
𝑇𝑠
(Equation 5)
• 𝑏 = temperature factor (Pa/m)
• 𝑇𝑜 = absolute temperature of outside air (K)
• 𝑇𝑠 = absolute temperature of staircase air (K)
• 𝐾𝑠 = 3460
• The effective flow area from the staircase through the
building to the outside is expressed on a per floor
basis

• 𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒
1
2 = (
𝐴
𝑠𝑏
1
2 +
𝐴
𝑏𝑜
1
)
2

• 𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒 = 𝐴𝑠𝑏 𝐴𝑏𝑜

(Equation 6)
𝐴𝑠𝑏 2 +𝐴𝑏𝑜 2

• 𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒 = effective flow area between staircase and outside

(m2)
• 𝐴𝑠𝑏 = flow area between staircase and building (m 2)
• 𝐴𝑏𝑜 = flow area between building and outside (m 2)
13
• Considering only the pressure difference between the
staircase and the building, this can be presented as

• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 = Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑏 + 1+ 𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑏𝑦/𝐴𝑏𝑜 2 (Equation 7)

• The pressure differences between Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜 and Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 are

related as

• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 = Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜
1+ 𝐴𝑠𝑏 /𝐴𝑏𝑜 2
(Equation 8)
or
• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜 = Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 1 + 𝐴𝑠𝑏 /𝐴𝑏𝑜 2
(Equation 9)

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 Pressurization Air
• The flow of pressurized air from the staircase to the
outside can be written as

• 𝑑𝑉ሶ = 𝐶𝐴ℎ𝑒
2Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜
𝜌
𝑑𝑦 (Equation 10)

• Where 𝐴ℎ𝑒 is the distributed effective flow are per unit

height
• 𝐴ℎ𝑒 = 𝑁𝐴𝐻𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒 (Equation 11)
• 𝐴ℎ𝑒 = distributed effective flow air per unit height (m)
• 𝐻 = staircase height (m)
• 𝑁 = number of floors

15
• Substituting Eq(4) & (11) into (10)

• 𝑑 𝑉ሶ =
𝑁𝐶𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒
𝐻
2(Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏 +𝑏𝑦)
𝜌
𝑑𝑦 (Equation 12)
• Integrate from 𝑦 = 0 to 𝑦 = 𝐻
• The total flow from the staircase to the building and to the
outside is:
Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑡 3/2 −Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏 3/2
• 2
𝑉ሶ𝑠𝑏𝑜 = 𝑁𝐶𝐴𝑠𝑏𝑜𝑒
3
2
𝜌 Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑡 −Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑏
(Equation 13)
• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜𝑡 = pressure difference between the staircase and the outside at
𝑦=𝐻

• Since Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 =
Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜
1+ 𝐴𝑠𝑏 /𝐴𝑏𝑜 2
in Eq.(8)

• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏 ∝ Δ𝑝𝑠𝑜

16
• Eq.(13) is rewritten as
𝑁𝐴𝑠𝑏 Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑡 3/2 −Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑏 3/2
• 𝑉ሶ𝑠𝑏 = 𝐾𝑞
𝜌 Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑡 −Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑏
(Equation 14)
• 𝑉ሶ𝑠𝑏 = volumetric flow rate of air from staircase to building (m3/s)
• 𝐴𝑠𝑏 = flow area in staircase and the building per floor when
doors closed (m2)
• 𝜌 = density of air in staircase (kg/m3)
• 𝑁 = number of floors
• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑡 = pressure difference between staircase and building at
top of staircase when all doors closed (Pa)
• Δ𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑏 = pressure difference between staircase and building at
bottom of staircase when all doors closed (Pa)
• 𝐾𝑞 = 0.613

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 Height Limit of Staircase Pressurization
System
• Issues of pressurized staircases
• Minimum pressure difference too low to prevent smoke
infiltration (in HK, 50Pa minimum required)
• Maximum pressure difference too high making door opening
forces difficult (in HK, maximum 100N allowed)
• Therefore, if a minimum of 50Pa can be achieved at
a certain floor, then due to linear static pressure built
up, there will be a certain floor when the pressure to
push open the door becoming higher than 100N
• Thus a maximum height limit should be determined

18
• 𝑏 = 𝐾𝑠
1
𝑇𝑜
−
1
𝑇𝑠
(Equation 5)

• ∆𝑝𝑠𝑏 = ∆𝑝𝑠𝑏𝑏 +
𝑏𝑦
1+ 𝐴𝑠𝑏 /𝐴𝑏𝑜 2
(Equation 7)
• Eq.(5) is substituted into Eq.(7) to determine the maximum height
allowed
𝐴𝑠𝑏 2
• 𝐻𝑚 = 𝐾𝑚
∆𝑝𝑚𝑎𝑥 −∆𝑝𝑚𝑖𝑛
1 1
1+
𝐴𝑏𝑜
(Equation 19)
−
𝑇𝑜 𝑇𝑏

• 𝐻𝑚 = height limit (m)

• ∆𝑝𝑚𝑎𝑥 = maximum allowable pressure difference (Pa)
• ∆𝑝𝑚𝑖𝑛 = minimum allowable pressure difference (Pa)
• 𝑇𝑜 = outside design temperature (K)
• 𝑇𝑏 = building temperature (K) [note 𝑇𝑏 has replaced 𝑇𝑠 for more conservative
design]
• 𝐴𝑠𝑏 = flow area between staircase and building (m2)
• 𝐴𝑏𝑜 = flow area between building and outside (m2)
• 𝐾𝑚 = 0.000289
• In cases when 𝐴𝑠𝑏 is much smaller than 𝐴𝑏𝑜 then Eq.
(19) can be simplified

• 𝐻𝑚 = 𝐾𝑚 Δ𝑝𝑚𝑎𝑥1 −Δ𝑝
1
𝑚𝑖𝑛
(20)
−
𝑇𝑜 𝑇𝑏

• A chart is available for

simple checking

20
 Exercise
• Assume in Hong Kong, the staircase for high rise
buildings incorporating refuge floors will have a
height of 20 storeys (21 floors with the refuge floors
at top and bottom)
• Assume floor to floor height = 4m, area = 1000m2
• At design temperature = 33°C outdoor, 25°C indoor
• 𝐴𝑠𝑏 = 0.03m2, 𝐴𝑏𝑜 = 6.25% of floor area
• Door size = 1 m × 2m (H) = 2m2, the door knob is
100 mm from the edge of the door
• Minimum pressure different = 50 Pa
• Maximum push open force = 100 N
• Check height limit, and calculate the air flow from the
staircase to the building 21
Exercise

22
Exercise

23
 System to handle opening of exit doors
• In a staircase pressurization system, the opening of the
exterior doorway in the staircase will result in the highest
pressure drop because the airflow through the exterior
doorway goes directly to the outside
• The system may maintain acceptable levels of
pressurization by the following methods
• Constant supply air flow with exterior exit door opens
automatically – i.e. size the system assuming the exit door is
always open (not common)
• Constant supply air with barometric damper (most common)
• System with variable supply air flow (bypass or variable
volume)
• System using pressurization in combination with either fire floor
venting or fire floor exhaust (as stated in BS 5588)

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 System with Barometric Dampers
• The system is designed to provide sufficient air when
the doors (as designed) are opened
• When the doors are closed, part of the supply air is
relieved through a vent to prevent excessive
pressure built up
• It is preferable to having the damper venting into the
building but more common approach is to vent it to
the outdoor

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 Systems with Variable Supply Air Rate
• Use of one or more static pressure sensors to sense
the pressure difference between staircase and
building
• When pressure drops, maximise flow
• When pressure build up, return to minimum flow
• A bypass system with a modulating bypass valve is
an alternative to variable speed fans

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Supplementary to the
Basics of Staircase
Pressurization

27
 Flow of fluid through an opening
• Consider an opening with area 𝐴
• The pressure across the opening ∆𝑝 can be presented as
a function of the kinetic energy
• 1
∆𝑝 = 𝑘 𝜌𝑣 2 where 𝑘= dimensionless coefficient for the
2
opening

• 𝑣=
2∆𝑝
𝑘𝜌

• 𝑉ሶ = 𝐴𝑣 Pressure ∆𝑝
Area 𝐴
• 𝑉ሶ
𝐴
=
2∆𝑝
𝑘𝜌
Velocity 𝑣
Flowrate 𝑉ሶ
• 𝑉ሶ = 𝐶𝐴
2∆𝑝
𝜌
where 𝐶 =
1
𝑘

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 Flow across parallel paths
• For space with three parallel leakage areas

• 𝑉1ሶ = 𝐶𝐴1
2∆𝑝
𝜌
, 𝑉2ሶ = 𝐶𝐴2
2∆𝑝
𝜌
, 𝑉3ሶ = 𝐶𝐴3
2∆𝑝
𝜌

• Let 𝑉𝑡ሶ = 𝐶𝐴𝑒

2∆𝑝
𝜌

• 𝑉𝑡ሶ = 𝑉1ሶ + 𝑉2ሶ + 𝑉3ሶ

• 𝐶𝐴𝑒
2∆𝑝
𝜌
= 𝐶𝐴1
2∆𝑝
𝜌
+ 𝐶𝐴2
2∆𝑝
𝜌
+ 𝐶𝐴3
2∆𝑝
𝜌

• Thus, 𝐴𝑒 = 𝐴1 + 𝐴2 + 𝐴3
• Or, 𝐴𝑒 = σ𝑛𝑖=1 𝐴𝑖
29
 Flow across series paths
• For space with three series flow paths

• 𝑉1ሶ = 𝐶𝐴1
2∆𝑝1
𝜌

2
• ∆𝑝1 =
𝜌 𝑉1ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴1
2 2
• Similarly, ∆𝑝2 =
𝜌 𝑉2ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴2
and ∆𝑝3 =
𝜌 𝑉3ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴3
• Let the overall pressure difference be ∆𝑝𝑡 and the effective area be 𝐴𝑒
• The volumetric flowrate is the same
2 2 2 2
• 𝜌 𝑉ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴𝑒
=
𝜌 𝑉ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴1
+
𝜌 𝑉ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴2
+
𝜌 𝑉ሶ
2 𝐶𝐴3

12 12 12 12 12 1 2
• 𝐴𝑒
=
𝐴1
+
𝐴2
+
𝐴3
or
𝐴𝑒
= 𝑛
σ1
𝐴𝑖

30
 Door Opening Forces
• The forces on a door in a smoke control system
• 𝑀𝑟 + 𝐴∆𝑝 2 − 𝐹 𝑊 − 𝑑 = 0
𝑊

• 𝐹= total door opening force

• 𝑀𝑟 = The force to overcome the door closer
• 𝑊= door width
• 𝐴= door area
• ∆𝑝= pressure difference across the door (Pa)
• 𝑑 = distance from door knob to the knob side of the door (m)

31