Abstract
Many parameters are involved in affecting the response time of the smoke detector for a given fire in an enclosure, i. e. the heat release rate and the particulate production rate of the fire source, the ceiling height and the radial distance from the fire source, the confined ceiling area of the enclosure, as well as the response characteristics of the detector. A simple prediction method is desirable for performance based designing of the fire alarm system. The calculation method described here uses a simple correlation of smoke concentration in the ceiling-jet, which takes into account the smoke accumulation effect in the upper part of the enclosure, the particulate response characteristics of the detector, and the delay of smoke entry into the detector' s detection chamber. Comparison of calculation with experimental data showed a good agreement. This calculation method is applicable not only to the flaming fires, but also to the smoldering fires.
