NY-14-C092 -- Fire Safety Concern for Supertall Buildings PDF

Many supertall buildings that are over 984 ft (300 m) tall have been constructed in the Far East. Their fire protection systems only follow the current codes that are designed for tall buildings. People are worried whether fire safety provisions in supertall buildings are adequate. However, very few comprehensive studies on the dynamics of room fires in supertall buildings have been conducted. Fires in supertall buildings are subject to wind action and have a high heat release rate; their characteristics will be discussed in this paper. General aspects of supertall building fires will be reviewed first. Next, the heat release rate of burning combustibles in a supertall residential flat will be presented. The stack effect in supertall buildings will be estimated. The climatic conditions of three different cities will be used as references. The paper will also discuss the necessity of providing appropriate staircase pressurization systems.