Firewater Engineering
Firewater Systems are essential components for fire protection in large buildings and industrial installations. These systems typically consist of wet and dry piping networks, incorporating a combination of sprinklers, hydrants, and monitors to deliver water and foam to areas affected by fire. The design and implementation of firewater systems are governed by a range of international codes and standards, including DNVGL-OS-D301, NFPA, and ISO 13702. These standards provide comprehensive guidelines for the design, installation, and maintenance of fire protection systems, ensuring they meet necessary safety and operational requirements.
Dynaflow Research Group has extensive expertise in this field, and designs large-scale firewater and foam deluge systems certified by DNV, basing every design on the client’s Active Fire Philosophy while ensuring compliance with applicable codes and regulations. This approach not only guarantees the effectiveness of the system but also ensures that it meets legal and safety requirements across various environments, from offshore installations to large industrial complexes.
The firewater demand calculation serves as the foundation for designing any firewater system. This critical process determines the quantity of firewater required to provide adequate firefighting and exposure protection within a facility. It involves assessing the specific needs of the facility based on potential fire scenarios, the layout of the area, and the types of hazards present.
The calculations provide a baseline for the minimum required flow rate and pressure needed to effectively combat fires in specific areas, informing the subsequent firewater system layout design. These calculations are crucial for optimizing the design of the firewater system, ensuring it meets regulatory requirements and industry standards while also contributing to the economic and operational efficiency of the system. By accurately determining the required flow rates and pressure, these calculations help in selecting appropriately sized components, reducing unnecessary costs, and preventing over-engineering of the system.
The results of the firewater demand calculation provide an estimate for the minimum required flow rate in specified areas, forming the basis for the detailed system design. Sprinklers, hydrants, and monitors must be strategically positioned to ensure their spray patterns cover the entire surface area requiring protection. This often requires more sprinklers than is strictly necessary to achieve the minimum flow rate, especially when considering the layout and geometry of the areas to be covered.
The sprinkler layout design focuses on determining the optimal nozzle types, spray angles, and positioning to ensure the safest and most efficient design. This process involves following guidelines from standards such as NFPA 13 to ensure adequate coverage and overlap, taking into account factors such as ceiling height, obstructions, and the type of occupancy.
Our expertise extends to providing recommendations for improving existing firewater systems when necessary, ensuring that systems can adapt to future modifications or expansions while maintaining their effectiveness over time. This comprehensive approach to system design and optimization helps safeguard lives and property by ensuring that firewater systems can deliver sufficient water to extinguish fires swiftly and efficiently.
FIREWATER APPLICATIONS
Firewater Project Examples
In firewater systems, it is important that the combination of sprinklers, hydrants, and monitors can cover the entire specified area.Â
In this example, the water from the sprinklers must fully cover the red area. Obstacles and spacing can be an issue with spray coverage. In this case, the sprinkler layout will need to be redesigned to fully cover the red area.
When the sprinklers are moved closer together and the obstacle is removed, the sprinklers can fully cover the red area. Alternatively, it might be required to add sprinklers underneath the obstacle. In this case, the sprinkler coverage is sufficient.
A firewater deluge system consists of an empty pipe network connected to sprinklers and/or monitors. A control valve separates the empty pipe system from a dedicated water supply. When firewater/foam is required, the control valve opens and water fills the empty pipes, activating sprinklers and monitors.
Filling of the initially dry system can result in high dynamic loads on the piping, as the waterfront moves through the system and changes momentum through each bend. When the waterfront finally reaches a sprinkler or monitor at the end of the line, the sudden flow restriction can cause pressure surges resulting in high unbalanced loads throughout the piping. DRG has more than 40 years of experience in solving surge problems, that often occur in deluge systems.
A hydraulic calculation may be performed to ensure that the piping can accommodate the water required at peak demand, and that sufficient flow reaches all areas of the system. A detailed 3D model of the piping, nozzles, hydrants, and monitors is then created, for which a steady state flow analysis is performed.
The hydraulic calculation gives a clear picture of the pressure distribution and flow rate throughout the system. Based on the results, we can provide recommendations regarding line sizing, nozzle selection, and potentially required changes to the system lay-out.Â
Our inhouse developed professional software solution BOSfluids is used to analyze the interaction between the fluid, the pipe and the structure.
