Fire Protection Engineering @ For and With the Fire Service 8/8/2012 Kathy A. Notarianni, Ph.D. Professor and Head, Department of Fire Protection Engineering
Three Points 1. WPI FPE is a vibrant and continually growing world leader working at the intersection of engineering, policy, and economics 2. Overview of WPI s multi-faceted work with and for the Fire Service 3. Increasing capability through our new laboratory under construction
FPE Department History 1898: Henry Phillips, wrote in the WPI Journal: It s safe to prophesy that not many years will lapse before scientific colleges will seriously consider fire protection engineering and include regular lectures of courses upon it in their curriculum. The year was 1898. 1978: WPI establishes Center for Firesafety Studies & 1st MS Curriculum is developed 1991: Ph.D. FPE Program established 1994: FPE Distance Learning Program started 1995: Current Fire Science laboratory completed 2004: FPE becomes a Department. Kathy Ann Notarianni joins FPE as the Department Head. 2012: Game-changing new facilities to open @ Gateway
FPE Today Who do you find here? Today, the FPE Department is thriving; we are a huge melting pot of disciplines and an internationally vibrant entity Mechanical, Civil, Electrical, Chemical, and Aerospace Engineers Environmental and Robotic Engineers Firefighters and Fire Marshalls Fire Investigators, Designers, Industrial Safety Experts Chemists, Physicists, Mathematicians Computer scientists and modelers Material scientists Experts in Risk, Policy, and Economics
Leading the World to Safety Few corners of the world are less crowded and developed than they were a decade ago. In many places, this evolution occurs on a frantic scale in population, complexity, and risk. Preventing and controlling the dangers of fire has never been more vital for individuals, organizations, and society itself. Educating this and future generations of engineers dedicated to minimizing fire s destructive potential has never been more crucial. WPI is and will continue to be the world leader in solving this important world problem.
Subjects Taught FPE 521 Fire Dynamics I FPE 553 FP Systems FPE 570 - Bldg. Fire Safety FPE 571 Performance Based Design FPE 520 Fire Modeling FPE 580N - Human Behavior FPE 573 Industrial Fire Protection FPE 580 Fire Protection for Nuclear Facilities FPE Applied Fire Dynamics FPE 575 Explosion Protection FPE 580 - Combustion FPE 554 Advanced Fire Suppression FPE 555 - Detection, Alarm & Smoke Control FPE 572 Failure Analysis CE 534 Structural Design for Fire Conditions FPE 587 Fire Science Laboratory Fire and Materials and more!
Degree Programs Offered MS - 30 Credits (thesis/no thesis) Synchronous Learning 40 countries - ADLN PhD 90 Credits - Industry and Practice Leaders BS/MS - Can earn two degrees in 5 years; Brings great strength of knowledge diversity Corporate and Professional Education Like designer drugs, tailored to specific needs Credit and non-credit Ex. Training of fire Investigators; insurance industry, etc.
Firefighter Safety and Policy 100% of my research is in support of the fire service
Residential Fireground Field Experiments Multiphase study of the deployment of resources as it affects firefighter and occupant safety More than 60 full-scale fire experiments were conducted to determine the impact of crew size, first-due engine arrival time, and subsequent apparatus arrival times on firefighter safety and effectiveness at a low-hazard residential structure fire. Major Findings: The four-person crews operating on a low-hazard structure fire completed all the tasks on the fireground (on average) seven minutes faster nearly 30 % than the two-person crews. The four-person crews completed the same number of fireground tasks (on average) 5.1 minutes faster nearly 25 % than the threeperson crews.
National Fire Service Data Summit Summit gathered major stakeholders: firefighters and chiefs data entry specialists data vendors local union leadership federal agencies insurance industry standards developing organizations Objective of the summit was to document data needed to support resource deployment decisions, identify current data collection deficiencies, and create a roadmap towards a national fire service data set.
Highrise Fireground Field Experiments Alexandria City Arlington County District of Colombia Fairfax City Fairfax County Howard County Loudoun County Purpose of this study was to determine the effect of crew size, alarm size, and means of vertical ascent on the ability of firefighters to effectively, and efficiently mitigate a fire in a high-rise event. Hundreds of firefighters participated! Manassas Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Montgomery County Prince William Prince George County Stafford County
Flashover Predictor 1 st true partnership EE and FPE
Compares Actual, Ideal, & Consensus Standard Times References NFPA Standards as Benchmarks Real Emergency Response Data Multiple Fire Departments Comparable Data Collection 100 Mobilization / Fire & EMS Real Data Not Meeting Standards Alarm Handling Time/ Turnout Time Longer Than Expected C u m u l a t i v e P e r c e n t a g e 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 EMS Mobilization Fire Mobilization EMS Benchmark Fire Benchmark 81% Criterion 0 0 30 60 90 120 150 180 210 240 270 300 Elapsed Seconds September 16, 2004
Firefighter Face Masks Radiant heat flux tests - three heat flux levels 10 kw/m2, 15 kw/m2, and 20 kw/m2.
Wildland Firefighting Research Goal is to develop scientific tools useful for firefighting and land management A command structure of forest fire fighters and the USDA northern research stations invited Prof. Simeoni: Specifically, the data which he is able to provide, coupled with access to the Pine Barrens as a location for expanded experimentation, will help tremendously with the group s efforts to build robust physics based models that can be used to better understand fire behavior.
Related Research Fire and Materials Prof. Dembsey Combustion and Explosion Protection Prof. Rangwala Regulatory Policy, Risk, and Engineering Framework Prof. Meacham
Rendering of Gateway II
NEW FPE Space Fire Engineering Lab 3,000 sq. ft. Fire Fundamentals Lab 2,500 sq. ft. Bench Scale Experiments Sample Preparation/Conditioning Combustion/Explosion lab 1,500 sq. ft. Student Spaces Graduate Cubicles/Student Meeting Room Nine Faculty Offices Digitally Equipped Classroom Open Collaborative Gathering Space
Thank You Kathy A. Notarianni kanfpe@wpi.edu 508-831-6786 http://www.wpi.edu/academics/depts/fire/