Research Paper on "Design of Special Hazard and Fire Alarm Systems"

Research Paper 5 pages (1525 words) Sources: 5

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Fire Alarm Systems

Design of Special Hazard and Fire Alarm Systems

The destructions of fire and it's the aftermaths necessitate a secure fire alarm system. Fortunately there are many fire alarm systems already available in the market that cannot only warn about fire cases but can also suppress the intensity of fire. Two such systems of fire alarm are ultra-high-speed explosion suppression and ultra-high-speed water spray systems. Both the systems have some design strengths and some disadvantages. These systems match different settings and arrangements. The comparison of these systems is given below:

DIFFERENCES

There are basic differences in design and technical aspects of high-speed explosion suppression system and the high-speed water sprays. These differences are discussed below.

DESIGN:

The explosion suppression avoids the explosion by displacing the necessary component of explosion i.e. oxygen. This can be done by padding carbon dioxide or nitrogen. The explosion can also be avoided by keeping low levels of flammable content and eliminating sources of ignition. There is a nozzle and container in design that minimizes flow restrictions, which helps in extinguishing explosion quicker.

The water spray system's design is such that there is an open extinguisher nozzle that distributes the extinguishing water on the area caught by fire. There is only little quantity required for extinguishant used as spray (Explosion Suppression Systems, 2013). The Spray extinguishing helps to expand the surface area thus entraining the heat of burning which helps cool down the combustible material. Besides cooling, there is smothering effect of water spray too. Water turns into steam and causes smothering. In water sprays, the water is triggered by hydraulic or electrical devices.

TECHNIQUES:

The explosion and damage can be limited by using protective techniques and equipment that detect and hinder internal explosion pressure and by controlling external violent impact. The system discharges lid with explosion relief panels and releases mixture of dust and gases.

In water sprays, two different techniques are used. For space protection, nozzles are evenly spaced to reach wide area and for object or equipment protection, the nozzles are concentrated to exert high pressure on extinguishing water (Safety through technology, 2013).

ADVANTAGES:

The explosion suppression system can serve up to 2,000°F. This system is very cost effective in small magnitudes. Some explosion suppression systems can sense and return in less than a millisecond time (Explosion Suppression Systems, 2013). Also it reduces the dissemination of flames in nearby regions. The system stops pressure building and subsequent explosions. Also it retains toxic material within the equipment.

Water-spray extinguishing systems are particularly helpful in space or equipment protection. When protecting space, the water sprays distributes extinguishing water over the area that caught fire (Water Spray Systems, 2012). The evenly placed nozzles help reach wide area. When protecting equipment, the nozzles are aimed at the object to focus fire.

SIMILARITIES

There are commonalities between the two systems. The systems of explosion suppression and water sprays serve the same purpose, i.e. avoiding damages of fire.

OBJECTIVE:

The explosion suppression works in almost all the kinds of buildings. The system is useful in the internal and/or external explosions (Explosion Suppression Systems, 2013). The water spray systems help in overcoming extremely rapid fire in materials and buildings.

APPLICABLE NEFA STANDARDS RELATED TO PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

The NEFA standards give details about the acceptable performance in the fire extinguishing and explosion suppression. It requires displaying highly cautious behavior while using the extinguishing processes. The NEFA standards are not only concerned with suppressing fire in long areas but it also requires a quick response. The best response towards the events of fire is one that takes only mili seconds. The installing team is required to ensure that high quality equipment's are installed in the building that has sensitive detectors and very responsive containers. Besides the response time, the equipment is required to cover maximum area so that fire is suppresses with great speed. The standards require ensuring that fire extinguishing equipment is active and available 24/7.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DEFLAGRATION AND A DETONATION

The process of deflagration is a thermal process which radially spreads outward in circle hence reaches all the directions. The fuel is projected by a source of ignition. With the increase in area, the more fuel comes into contact. The thermal process slowly starts in deflagration and gathers pace. On the basis of nature of fuel, the speed of process is determined. The pace can be between 1 to 10 meters per second when the gasoline vapors are combined with air and it can reach 100 meters per second if black powder is used (Explosions, Deflagrations & Detonations, n.d.). The speed also depends on the density of material such that if density is higher, the speed will be higher too.

Detonation is an oxidation reaction. It is about pushing, shoving, and shattering that produces fragmentation. The pressure developed by detonation is not limited y failure pressure of the building around like the deflagration is limited (Explosions, Deflagrations & Detonations, n.d.). Rather it shatters materials with parts thrown away at high speeds. It does not offer time to change and release pressure there can be a high localized damage. Detonations are much faster. They can occur at a speed faster than the speed of sound. Because of such a high speed the reaction is very fast too. Such explosions can be more damaging and very hardly dealt. There can be a process of detonation which involves fragmentation. There are blasting agents and very high explosives. Often there can be a pure detonation and also such cases have been observed where the deflagration processes convert into detonation.

APPLICATIONS FOR EXPLOSION SUPPRESSION SYSTEMS

There are many applications of explosion suppression systems in preventing bad outcomes of an explosion. The most important is to save as much possible equipment in as less time as possible. These systems are applicable since they detect and chemically subdue the explosion in initial stages. The explosion suppression reaches risky points and highs in as little time as 50 milliseconds. The systems have special detection capability which helps detection in less than 1 millisecond. The technology works on many systems and helps to extinguished the flame in equipment, thus avoiding damage from fire. There are Zero restriction nozzles that minimize the time taken to respond and increases velocity of discharge. The system is reliable since it has control circuit designs that offer constant service despite some wires is served. The system helps defeat dust explosion dangers and offers protection against industrial explosion. The applicability of the explosion suppression system is also sufficient in avoiding pressure development and retaining toxins within the materials.

DESCRIBE THE SEQUENCE OF A SUPPRESSED EXPLOSION

The suppressed explosion is processing, handling and storing flammable dusts in equipment. This can lead to explosive atmosphere which can be ignited by electricity or friction. The passive safety approach of suppression locates the site of fire and pours dust to suppress fire and explosion dust. The sequence of process is such that there is detection in the beginning. It takes milliseconds for the equipment to detect dust. After the detection, the suppression system gets active and the volumes of cylinders get filled with dust that is then ejected to the area to block the supply of oxygen and prevent process of combustion.

The efficiency of the explosion suppression system greatly depends on its sequence. A delay in detection causes delay in response time too. Hence the detectors of the system as vital as the containers and vessels containing fuel. If the detectors fail to detect the smoke, nothing can be achieved in time and all the costs paid for acquiring expensive material will go in vain. After detection, the equipment's should be very responsive in distributing fuel on the area under fire. The efficiency of system can be enhanced by containers with no blockage or rust.… READ MORE

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