CFD is a powerful numerical modelling technique used to simulate the flow of a gas or liquid over, around or through a physical geometry.
The technique is highly versatile and can be used to study a wide variety of complicated phenomena, such as the spread of fire and smoke through a building, the wind loadings on a structure or the flow of air within a tunnel. CFD can also be used to study processes, such as vortex particulate separation, mixing systems and chemical reactions, including combustion.
Typically, CFD is used in conjunction with other methods for the following tasks:
1.
verification of the performance of a proposed smoke control system.
2.
optimisation of a ventilation or smoke control system
3.
investigations following accidents
4.
development of understanding of particular flow processes which occur in fires within the built environment
Halcrow has the experience and tools necessary to carry out detailed CFD simulations of fire and smoke control within the built environment. The principal CFD code used is the CFX general purpose code, which has been used widely for this type of problem.
At Halcrow, CFX is often used in conjunction with one-dimensional codes or zone models to obtain a full description of the scenario. Halcrow’s staff have extensive experience in CFD modelling of fires and smoke movement and work closely with Fire Safety Engineers to provide practical solutions which fulfil the requirements.
