Lee, Chang-Seop;Chang, Sok-Hwa;Kim, Hong;Jung, Ki-Chang
73
To use glazing systems protected by automatic sprinklers as fire barriers in building compartmentation, fire endurance tests of these systems have been performed by several research workers. Most of the tests concerned the types of glasses and sprinklers, sprinkler water flow rate, and sprinkler activation time. Horizontal side wall sprinklers and window glazing systems with a vertical center mullion were mainly applied in the tests. In the study, full-scale fire endurance tests were carried out to verify the ability of large glazing systems divided by a horizontal mullion and protected by pendent vertical sprinklers. The result shows that the protrusive length of the horizontal mullion, which is perpendicular to the glass surface, is the main parameter that determines the fire resistance rating of the systems. The mullion obstructs the water flow in the glass.