SPRINKLERS & FIRE VENTING – CONTROVERSY RESOLVED
SUSAN OLEG 1, PANAITESCU VALERIU 2 1. ENG, PHD STD AT UNIVERSITY “POLITEHNICA” OF BUCHAREST, ROMANIA AND AT TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF CHIŞINĂU, MOLDOVA; 2. PROF., POWER ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY “POLITEHNICA” OF BUCHAREST, ROMANIA
Resume: The studies of smoke and heat venting used in conjunction with sprinklers show clearly that venting does not have a negative effect on sprinkler performance. Successful performance of sprinklers does not rely upon reduced oxygen concentrations. Venting has been shown to have no effect on the activation times of early sprinklers and does not affect the total number of sprinklers activated. If the fire is directly beneath a vent, activations of the first sprinklers may be delayed slightly, but there is no evidence that this will have a significant impact on sprinkler performance.
