Integral Methodology for Fire Sprinkler System Design Following the Performance-Based Design Method

This paper proposes a methodology for a thorough specification of sprinkler systems following the performance based method, by providing a theoretical approach into meeting the scenario’s phenomenological fire behavior with the system’s design features seeking to obtain personnel protection and fire suppression as design objectives. Specific design criteria are developed for the most important characteristics of a sprinkler system such as activation time, discharge coefficient k and spray density based on simulations and experimental correlations found in literature. Several experimental fire cases are studied to validate models, correlations and applying methods.