No abstract

In this work, an actual office fire with a partially impaired automatic sprinkler system was investigated. As per regulations, there were four sprinklers in this model office. In the research conducted here, the first three sprinklers were actuated without water supply, while the last sprinkler was supplied with water at the required operating pressure for a period of 30 min. The fire source, a burning plastic trash can filled with 0.5 kg of paper, burned the adjacent chair, desk, desktop computer, and then reached the interior wooden furniture. The results show that the single remaining sprinkler effectively controlled the fire spread for 30 min. The partially impaired sprinkler system does not completely extinguish the fire, but extends the available time for evacuation. Continuing the discharge from sprinklers is preferable since the heat release from the fire increased after water flow was terminated.