• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.121-129
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• 2019

In Korea, life safety assessment through simulation are mandatory in performance-based design. Generally, there are three types of methods for simulation-based life safety assessments: the non-coupling method that compares available safe egress time (ASET) and required safe egress time (RSET) at a specific point through conducting fire and assessment simulations independently; the semi-coupling method that compares fire and evacuation simulation results by overlaying the result screens; and the coupling method that compares the results of fire effect simulation to an evacuation simulation. Of these methods, all designers in South Korea have used the only non-coupling method. In the non-coupling method, it is important to determine the location of a specific point to compare ASET and RSET. However, without any defined regulation, setting the location is determined based on the designer's experience and knowledge. The number of specific locations and the locations themselves differ with each designer, which can produce contrasting results in a life safety assessment. Therefore, this study conducted a life safety assessment based on the three methods (non-coupling, semi-coupling and coupling) and compared each of the results. Furthermore this study suggests a improvement way in particular for the computer simulation.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.67-72
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• 2012

Fire simulation was carried out for an enclosure with three doorways of $20{\times}10{\times}3m^3$ and a cleanroom of $44{\times}48{\times}10m^3$, to suggest appropriate grid size in fire simulations by using of FDS for large scale buildings. The variations of temperature and visibility with time were compared for the x and y direction grid sizes of 0.1~1.0 m (aspect ratios 0.5~5.0), fixing the z direction grid size 0.2 m. The results showed that the grid sizes 0.5 m (aspect ratio 2.5) or smaller are appropriate among the grid sizes tested, whereas 1.0 m is not acceptable. It was confirmed that estimate of the available safe egress time requires a great care due to fluctuations in temperature, visibility, etc., and further investigations on the grid size when selecting a large grid size inevitable, and on the aspect ratios for a larger grid are in need.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.49-57
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• 2020

Apartment buildings are becoming taller and more densely populated with the advancements in science and the development of cities, Consequently, various amenities and safety facilities are being developed to improve the quality of life for residents. However, according to statistics, the number of casualties in apartments accounts for a high proportion of accidents, and the leading cause of the casualties is smoke emitted from fires while sleeping at night. Although it is best to install separate indoor facilities in apartments to minimize smoke damages to occupants, it is useful to minimize the smoke damages by utilizing the installed facilities while reducing the financial burden of occupants. Based on the review, the heat exchanger ventilation system and the kitchen collective exhaust system were selected, and the feasibility of these systems was verified through fire simulation. From the verification results, the available safe egress time improved by 27, 30, and 35 s on the 25th, 35th, 50th floors, respectively.