Experimental comparison of Q-fog and residential sprinklers in a residential fire scenario

In this report, the effectiveness of a detector-activated water mist system, Q-fog, has been compared to traditional residential sprinklers. In total, eight tests were performed with a realistic fuel (bed with pillow and duvet) based on the test procedure described in LPS 1655. The bed was placed at different locations in the room and was ignited at the pillow and below the bed, also according to LPS 1655. Temperatures were measured using six thermocouples at different locations and heights. Also, near field heat flux was measured using plate thermometers.

The results show that the detector-activated water mist system seems to be superior when the fuel package is located in front of the suppression system, and the fire starts on top of the bed. If the fire starts below the bed or if the bed is located in a less favorable location, the performance is similar to traditional sprinklers. Finally, if the fuel package is both located in an unfavorable location and ignition occurs below the bed, the traditional sprinkler is superior. However, few fatal fires start below the bed and therefore, the overall effectiveness can be expected to be higher for the detector-activated water mist compared to the bulb-activated sprinklers.