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Title: Fire Severity: Basis of Fire Safety Design

Author(s): T.Z. Harmathy

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 80

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 115-150

Keywords: heat capaci thermal tra fire protection; fire resistance; fires; flames; fuels; ty; nsmi safety ttance factor; structural design; thermal properties;

DOI: 10.14359/6587

Date: 7/1/1983

Abstract:
Knowledge in fire science is sufficiently advanced to provide fire safety in buildings on the basis of engineering design rather than authoritative decisions. Although two important factors in the design considerations, fire load and ventilation, are random variables, conservative design values for them can be found by stochastic and extreme value studies. With these values the design for fire safety is fully deterministic. The design for fire safety has two components: countering the destructive spread potential of fire by the use of fire-resistant compartment boundaries, and countering its convective spread potential by the use of self-closing doors, fire drainage, and flame deflectors. The fire resistance requirements are determined by the normalized heat load on the compartment boundaries which is derived in the course of the design procedure. When dealing with the performance in fire of some key elements of the building, extra precautions are necessary.