Preliminary Study on Applicability of Pre-Action Sprinkler Systems in Data Halls of Data Centers

Data halls within data centers are high-risk and high-value facilities. However, ensuring fire safety has proven challenging owing to the performance limitations of gas-suppression systems. In this study, the fire-suppression performance and design validity of a single-interlock pre-action sprinkler system were quantitatively assessed via a fire dynamics simulator (FDS) and SprinkCALC simulations. The FDS analysis revealed that, whereas the gas-suppression system showed limited effectiveness in controlling the HRR and reducing temperature owing to its one-time discharge, the sprinkler system demonstrated a meaningful effect on temperature reduction through its continuous cooling action. However, the control effect on the HRR was minimal, thus indicating that the sprinkler system is limited in verifying its effectiveness for overall fire control. Furthermore, the SprinkCALC analysis confirmed that the pre-action sprinkler system satisfied both the NFPA-required discharge time of within 50 s and the design density criteria. The results of this study suggest the potential applicability of sprinkler systems as a future fire-protection strategy for data centers.