Fire Experiments of Zoned Smoke Control at the Plaza Hotel in Washington DC

摘要

A series of full-scale tests were conducted to evaluate the current approach to zoned smoke control systems with and without stairwell pressurization. Smoke movement and the performance of smoke control systems were studied with smoke generated from unsprinklered wood fires, sprinklered wood fires, and smoke bombs. As expected, the zoned smoke control system prevented smoke migration beyond the fire floor. The minimum pressure difference approach to achieve smoke control for zoned smoke control systems was evaluated. The minimum pressure difference approach is based on a tacit assumption of a constant mass flow rate into the zone where the fire is located. To evaluate the assumption, a model was developed for mass flow in the smoke zone. Agreement between experimental results and calculations based on the model was good.