Obscuration Threshold Database Construction of Smoke Detectors for Various Combustibles

Abstract

The obscuration thresholds for various smoke detectors and combustibles, required as an input parameter in fire simulation, were measured to predict the accurate activation time of detectors. One ionization detector and nine photoelectric detectors were selected. A fire detector evaluator, which can uniformly control the velocity and smoke concentration, was utilized. Filter paper, liquid fuels, and polymer pellets were employed as smoke-generation combustibles. The nominal obscuration thresholds of the considered detectors were 15 %/m, but the ionization detectors activated at approximately 40 %/m and 16 %/m, respectively, on applying filter paper and kerosene. In contrast, the reverse obscuration thresholds were found quantitatively according to the combustibles in the photoelectric detector. This phenomenon was caused by differences in the color of the smoke particles according to the combustibles, which is explained by single-scattering albedo (ratio of light scattering to light extinction). The obscuration thresholds for liquid fuels (kerosene, heptane and toluene) as well as fire types of polymer plastic pellets were also measured for several photoelectric detectors. A database of obscuration thresholds was thereby established according to the detector and combustible types, and it is expected to provide useful information for predicting more accurate detector activation time and required safe egress time (REST).

Keywords

• smoke detector
• obscuration per meter (OPM)
• obscuration threshold
• smoke color
• performance-based fire safety design (PBD)