Segmented Fire Suppressant Piping for Leak and Freeze Avoidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fire suppression systems that fill the entire conduit with a fire suppressant agent before activation can lead to agent freezing and leaks going undetected, causing inefficiencies and damage, as they require excess agent to account for leaks and result in increased maintenance time and environmental damage.
Innovation Solution
A fire suppression system with a controller that determines which sections of the conduit need agent based on pressure thresholds, allowing selective supply and bypassing of sections to minimize agent usage and maintenance, using multiple sources and valves to ensure effective fire suppression while reducing agent storage and maintenance needs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the entire conduit is filled with fire suppressant agent before activation, then the system is ready for immediate fire suppression, but the agent may freeze inside the pipe during low ambient temperature periods and leaks cannot be detected until system activation
Solution Approach 1:
The conduit is divided into multiple sections with individual valves controlling each section. The controller selectively opens only the sections containing nozzles required for fire suppression, rather than filling the entire conduit. This segmentation prevents agent from being stored in sections that may freeze or have leaks, while maintaining readiness for immediate suppression of detected fires.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of completely filling the entire conduit with fire suppressant agent, the system performs partial filling by selectively supplying agent only to the specific sections that contain nozzles needed for the detected fire. This reduces the total amount of agent exposed to freezing conditions and potential leaks while ensuring sufficient agent is available for effective fire suppression.
2Reliability
If excess fire suppressant agent is stored in back-up supplies to account for leaks, then the system can compensate for agent loss, but the amount of agent required increases and maintenance time increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the conduit into controlled sections and only filling necessary sections, the system reduces the total volume of agent required in the system. This eliminates the need for large back-up supplies to compensate for potential leaks, as the agent is only present in sections that are actively needed for fire suppression.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller monitors system status and dynamically controls valve operation to supply agent only to sections containing nozzles required for detected fires. This feedback-based control ensures agent is present only where needed, reducing total agent requirements and eliminating the need for excessive back-up supplies.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the entire conduit is filled with agent, then all nozzles can potentially suppress fire, but sections with leaks cause agent waste and environmental damage
Solution Approach 1:
The conduit system is divided into multiple sections with individual valve control for each section. The controller selectively opens only the sections containing nozzles that are required for suppressing the detected fire, rather than having the entire conduit filled. This prevents agent from reaching leak points in other sections, eliminating waste and environmental damage while maintaining the ability to suppress fires in the affected areas.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the conduit have different operational states - some sections are filled with agent while others remain empty based on the specific fire location and required nozzle coverage. This local differentiation ensures agent is present only in the specific areas needed for suppression, preventing leakage-related harm in sections that don't require active suppression.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach reduces the amount of fire suppressant agent required, minimizes maintenance time and costs, and prevents agent freezing by only supplying necessary sections, while ensuring effective fire suppression through intelligent routing and bypassing of sections with leaks or insufficient pressure.
Implementation Method 1
for one or more sections of the plurality of sections of the conduit that the agent is supplied into, the controller is configured to control the plurality of valves by: determining whether a pressure of the agent inside a current section of the conduit is above or below a threshold
Data Source
AI summary
A fire suppression system includes a controller; a plurality of nozzles to output a fire supressing agent to supress a fire; one or more sources of fire supressing agent; and a conduit for supplying the agent from the one or more sources to the plurality of nozzles; the conduit has a plurality of sections and a plurality of valves for controlling which of the plurality of sections the agent is supplied into from the one or more sources; and the controller is configured to, in response to a fire being detected: determine at least one nozzle of the plurality of nozzles that is required for supressing the fire; cause the agent to be supplied into the conduit from the one or more sources; and control the plurality of valves to supply the agent from the one or more sources to the at least one nozzle via the conduit.