Engineering Innovation Centre - Assignment Example

FV2003 Report Assignment Brief Name: Course: Professor: Institution: Date: PART 1: Engineering Innovation Centre (EIC) Engineering Innovation Centre (EIC) is designed to be a state-of-the-art building and will be constructed in Preston Campus. Based on the expected use of the building, it must achieve a high rating and be highly environmental sensitive. Activities to be conducted in the building include intense engineering and manufacturing. Like other industrial buildings, EIC should achieve excellent rating based on the BREEAM rating system (Kibert, 2012). In the BREEAM rating benchmarks, a building with excellent rating should achieve a score equal to or exceeding 70 percent score but not exceeding 85 percent. Construction Materials and Methods It is very difficult to source for green materials that can adequately make the building to meet the BREEAM ‘excellent rating’. In addition, green materials may negatively impact the programme of EIC building construction because materials will require long lead-in times. The materials will also lead to increased costs. For example, to achieve BREEAM’s requirement for ‘excellent’ type of insulation, the contractors may be required to use Celotex. Celotex is more expensive compared to the traditional insulation available (Kibert, 2012). Steel Steel is one of the most common metals used in building construction. However, manufacturing steel is an energy-intensive process that starts by mining ore, smelting it, transporting it, melting it down with additional alloys, and milling it to make it a product that is useable in construction of buildings. However, this building will utilize steel scrap which will have been recycled thus saving between 60 percent and 74 percent of the energy that could have been used to produce steel from raw materials (Yudelson, 2012). Steel is the world’s most recycled material. There are two advantages that will magnify the green properties of EIC building. First, recycled steel will presumably satisfy the materials reuse and recycled content credit under BREEAM. The second advantage is that the recycled steel will be made to order for assembly, thereby cutting the amount of waste on the construction site. Fly Ash Concrete and Recycled Aggregate Fly ash is waste released from industries that burn coal. Fly ash will replace up to 35 percent of the cement used in concrete mixes. The fly ash used in cement diverts will help in diverting this material from landfills and other disposable sites. Fly ash not used in concrete ends up in landfills or containment ponds thus causing widespread environmental damage. Recycled aggregate and lightweight aggregate will also be used to replace the sand that will be used in gravel. These materials will be obtained from recycled crushed concrete, brick, and crushed glass. Expanded volcanic materials will also be used to replace a portion of the stone aggregate (Yudelson, 2008). This material weighs less than stone, thus, reducing the deadweight of roof, floor, and wall construction. These volcanic materials will help in adding extra thermal insulation value to concrete thus assisting in lowering operating costs for the building. Glass Glass is also another commonly used material in construction. Windows will be used to make the EIC building less energy-efficient by letting in both heat and cold. The windows will be made with quadruples panes to add to the window’s insulating properties. Multi-pane glass that will be used will be separated by krypton and argon insulating gases. Window glass will also be coated with an extremely thin layer of metallic oxide to decrease the transmission of heat through the glass. This type of technology will enable the glass to reflect up to 90 percent of the sun’s heat while admitting light. This means that it will improve insulation while at the same time reducing solar transmittance. Green roofs will be installed in this building. EIC building’s green roof will be completely covered with soil and vegetation that will be planted over a membrane with waterproof ability. The green roof that will be installed is extensive green roof supporting smaller plants such as wildflowers and grasses. A green roof will add the EIC building points by contributing to categories such as water-efficient landscaping and storm water management. Fire protection strategies Fire safety system plays a very important role in overall building construction and design. This consists one of the systems in a building that should never be compromised. Based on the environmental constraints of the EIC building, the Water Mist Systems of fire suppression will be installed. Water mist systems involve components that are environmentally friendly. This system creates a fine mist which has a large surface area for efficient absorption of heat through vaporization. In this system, suppression of fire occurs through three main mechanisms (Patterson, 1993). First, when the droplets of water come into contact with the fire, they are converted into steam. In this initial phase, energy absorption from the surfaces of the material that are on fire occurs. Second, water is transformed into steam making it expand greatly. In this second phase, heat is removed and temperature of the fire and surrounding air is lowered. Finally, through the reaction of water and steam, the radiant heat is blocked and oxygen is prevented from reaching the fire. When fire is starved of oxygen, it smothers. In conclusion, it is important to observe that most of these materials and methods will have a great impact on the construction program. However, it is possible to limit or even reduce these effects (Patterson, 1993). Though sustainable construction is a relatively new term in building construction, it helps in reducing the impact on environment. Concrete mixing such as the one that has been discussed in this paper using sustainable materials plays a very important role in the generation of energy efficient buildings. Glass and windows are also being used in sustainable buildings and they are making a very significant contribution in the generation of clean energy and energy efficient buildings. Landfills have also become an issue of great concern because of their negative impact on the environment. Materials obtained from landfills can be recycled and used in construction of buildings. This method of materials acquisition will help reduce the negative impact on the environment. Coal-burning is another area that is significantly impacting on the environment through waste deposits from these coal-burning plants. As has been observed earlier in this paper, flash ashes obtained from these plants can be used in place of cement during concrete mixing. By using these methods of materials acquisition, EIC will attain the BREEAM’s excellent rating. PART 2: FIRE CASE STUDIES Case 1: Southwest Inn Fire Southwest Inn fire is one of the large-scale building fires in Texas. This fire occurred in an Indian restaurant and spread to an adjoining hotel on May 31, 2013. This fire claimed four firefighters’ lives and injured 13 other. For four years prior to the occurrence of this fire, concerns had been raised over the inn’s overall fire system including, faulty smoke detectors in many rooms, faulty fire suppression systems, obstructed fire exits, and expired fire permits (Martin, 2015). These failures were further worsened by the final inspection of the inn which indicated a “no action required” status. After the fire started, the hotel attendants began knocking on the doors of the guests’ rooms notifying them that they needed to evacuate. This shows clearly that the inn did not have a working fire alarm system. The roof of the building collapsed killing four firefighters and injuring 13 others. Given the time that it took the roof to collapse, it shows that the roof was not installed in regard to fire safety. Case 2: Flats on Deptford Broadway, SE8. There were 388 deaths caused by fire in the United Kingdom in 2010-2011. This is a relatively low number compared to the number of deaths caused by fire in the United States. This may be attributed to stringent laws and regulations that have been established by the U.K. fire department. Nevertheless, there are still some failures in some building establishments. A fire broke out in a restaurant establishment beneath the residential flats on Deptford Broadway. The London Fire Brigade found out that the fire detection system and smoke alarms had their batteries removed. Although the cause of this fire is still under investigation, it is clear that the smoke alarms and the fire detection systems are very important in any building (London Fire Brigade, 2016). Lessons Learnt Several important lessons can be learned from the two case studies. Failure to maintain good interior finishing can cause fatality during a fire incident. In Case 1, the time that the roof took before collapsing was very little. The investigators found out that the hotel had a damaged ceiling and this could be the cause of collapse during the fire (Martin, 2015). Damaged interiors such as ceilings can lead to fire spread within a building thus impairing the ability of firefighters to control the fire. This can well be witnessed in case 1 where the damaged ceiling fell and prevented the firefighters from controlling the fire and even ended up killing them. Therefore, it is important to ensure that interiors of the building are always maintained in good condition. The two cases present important insights into fire detection system and smoke alarms in a building establishment. In Case 2, there was total failure in the fire protection system and the concerned parties also failed to take enough measures. The fire could have been avoided or the impact could have been minimized had the concerns been addressed accordingly. The biggest failure in both cases was the failure of the fire detection and protection systems and the smoke alarms. Both premises were not installed with fire protection systems including water sprinklers. Had the restaurant in Case 2 been installed with these sprinklers, they could have put off the fire before it spread to the other flats above it. Therefore, it can be concluded that the fire detection system, the fire protection system, and the alarm system play a very important role in the protection of life and property; therefore, they should not be ignored or overlooked. Part 3: Modelling Problems Question 1. Halon is a term used to refer to halogenated hydrocarbons e.g. ethane or methane chain in which hydrogen atoms have been partly replaced by halogens, specifically fluorine, bromine, chlorine, and iodine. On the other hand, Freon is a Dupont brand name for chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs) refrigerants. CFCs are organic compounds consisting of carbon, fluorine and chlorine, produced as derivatives of ethane, methane and propane. Individual CFC molecules are normally labeled using an archaic numbering system consisting of the integers I, j and k. These integers correspond to: i – no. of carbon atoms minus 1 j – no. of hydrogen atoms plus 1 k – no. of fluorine atoms If only two integers are provided, then the first integer = 0 The number of atoms of chlorine is given by: Cl = 2(C+1) – H – F, where C, H and F represent the values for Carbon, Hydrogen & Fluorine atoms. The nomenclature for halons use the integers i,j,k,l which represent: i – no. of carbon atoms j – no. of fluorine atoms k – no. of chlorine atoms l – no. of bromine atoms. CFCs contribute to ozone layer depletion. The compound is also a greenhouse gas and research has shown that it has a greater potential to enhance the greenhouse effect compared to CO2 (Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, 2000). The “super” greenhouse effect is enhanced by the fact that CFC absorb and emit radiation in the infrared absorption band regions of the atmosphere. For these reasons, halons were phased out through the Montreal Protocol. Exceptional use of halons is on commercial airplanes. In my personal view, it was right to phase out this compound because of the environmental impacts it has, namely, depletion of the ozone layer and the “super” greenhouse effect. Question 2. Using Stefan-Boltzmann Law: Where: q - (0.85) - T – For a cherry red flame, burning temperature is approximately 900oC. Therefore, q / A = σ T4 = (0.855.6703 10-8 W/m2K4) (1173.15 K)4 = 9.13 kW/m2 Question 3. The different issues between Fahrenheit and Celsius: Fahrenheit is named after the German-Dutch Physicist, Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (Thomson 2009, 87). The Celsius, previously known as centigrade, relates to the Celsius temperature scale and named after Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius. the absolute zero for Celsius is -273.15 while that of Fahrenheit is -459.67 the average human body temperature of Celsius is 37, the average human body temperature of Fahrenheit is 98.6 the boiling temperature of water at standard pressure for Celsius is 99.9839 while that of Fahrenheit is 211.97102 the highest record surface temperature for Celsius on the Earth is 58, and the lowest is -89 while the maximum record of Fahrenheit is 136.4 and the lowest is -128.2 The common issues between Rankine/Fahrenheit and Kelvin/Celsius: -both the Fahrenheit and Celsius measures temperature -they both have same divisions, meaning that increase of 1C = 1 F =1 K Question 4. Given that, methane = 0.25, carbon monoxide = 0.45, hydrogen = 0.30 The lower flammable limit (LEL) = (P1 + P2 + ... Pn) / (P1/lel1 +P2/lel2 + ... Pn / leln), Where Pn = the volume fraction of the individual components of the gas. LEL = / % by vol. Concentration of each component Methane = 0.25 x 0.0591715 = 0.0148 by vol. Carbon monoxide = 0.45 x 0.0591715 = 0.0266 by vol. Hydrogen = 0.30 x 0.0591715 = 0.0395 by vol. Question 5. Given pan fire diameter of 1.1m and the intensity of 500 kW/m2 Q* = Q/ (infinite density cp infinite T √gDD2) At standard temperature and pressure, the properties of air are: ρ∞ = 1.204 kg/m3, T∞ = 293 K, and g = 9.81 m/s2 and cp = 1.005 kJ/kg-K The flame height is therefore given as, Q* = Q/ (infinite density cp infinite T √gDD2), = 500 kW/m2 / (1.204 x 1.005 x 293 √9.81 x 1.1 x1.12), The characteristic fire size is 0.355. Q* = 500 / (354.53586 x √9.81 x 1.1 x1.12) = 500/ (354.53586 x 3.7898) = 1.70317m Therefore, the flame height is 1.7m Question 6. From Arrhenius Equation: Where: – rate constant – activation energy (kJ/mole) – ideal gas constant (8.314 J / mol. K) Calculating rate constant: i. ii. iii. Conclusion It is evident that the rate of reaction increases with an increase in temperature. Mostly the rate of reaction always doubles with an increase of every 10 degrees’ Celsius rise in temperature. Question 7. Solution: c =  So,  = c/ The wavelength of smooth radio 100.4 FM = (2.998 x 108 / 100.4) = 2.986 x106 nm For the visible radiation, the wavelength = λ= vf = 3×108 x 7.26×1014 = 4.13×10−7m. The wavelength of smooth radio is the highest and that of visible radiation is the smallest. The larger the wavelength, the smaller the frequency. Question 8. Initial speed = 1.2m/s, constant deceleration = 0.01m/s2 a/sin A =b /sin B =c/sin C =a/sin 30 = 5/sin 60 d/sin 90, this implies that, 5/sins 60 = d/ sin90. dsin60 = 5sin 90, d = 5sin90/sin 60 = 10, therefore AB = 5.77m Time = distance / speed = 5.77 / 1.2 = 4.81 seconds Deceleration = Given that, Substituting in the first equation, Solving the quadratic equation above, t = 9.01 sec. Total time needed to achieve the exit = 4.81 + 9.01 = 13.82 seconds. Question 9. Solution The shortest distance is route AC. Using the sin rule: So, BC = 15(sin 30)/sin60 = 8.66 m The resultant velocity (R) = = R = = 1.35m/sec Time required to reach the fire exit = AB is the shortest route to the fire exit. To obtain the resultant velocity, the person’s velocity must be added to the velocity of the wind, taking into consideration the angle at which wind meets with the person in motion. Question 10. Solution: If the direction of wind changes to the opposite, then R is determined by: = = -0.25 + 1.5625 = 1.3125 R = = 1.15m/s Time required to reach the fire exit = This would take 1.12 sec. longer to reach the fire exit. References Read More