Simplified seismic evaluation methods of sprinkler-piping systems in buildings
Journal
11th National Conference on Earthquake Engineering 2018, NCEE 2018: Integrating Science, Engineering, and Policy
Journal Volume
3
Pages
1664-1668
Date Issued
2018
Author(s)
Abstract
The objective of this paper is to propose a simplified method to evaluate the seismic adequacy of existing sprinkler-piping systems in buildings under the design basis earthquake (DBE). There are three damage states defined for the critical components of a sprinkler-piping system: (1) failure of the ceiling caused by the impact of the sprinkler head if the resulted force applied to the ceiling panel from the sprinkler head under DBE exceeds the ultimate strength; (2) leakage of the threaded joint of the branch if the resulted moment on the joint under DBE exceeds the capacity; and (3) drop-off of the piping system due to the damaged hangers if the resulted moment of the hanger under DBE exceeds the yield strength. All the capacities of the critical components are determined by experiments previously. In addition to the detailed analysis using the finite element models of building and sprinkler-piping system, a simplified preliminary evaluation method to estimate the seismic demands of the critical components of a sprinkler-piping system was proposed in this paper. Based on the proposed method, a preliminary evaluation program was developed using evaluation sheets of Microsoft Excel software. The conservative level and accuracy of evaluation results obtained from simplified methods are verified by the results of detailed analysis. ? NCEE 2018.All rights reserved.
Subjects
Engineering geology; Piping systems; Seismic design; Sprinkler systems (fire fighting); Critical component; Evaluation program; Evaluation results; Microsoft excel; Seismic demands; Seismic evaluation; Simplified method; Ultimate strength; Earthquakes
Type
conference paper