Placing Egress Components and Smoke Shafts in the Core Structure of Residential High-rise Buildings for Emergency Evacuation

There is a growing demand for the construction of high-rise buildings in modern metropolises which calls for accurate and all-encompassing studies to ensure the safety of the residents. The present study examined the role of smoke shafts in the performance of emergency evacuation in high-rise buildings. The aim of the study was to find the optimal location of smoke shafts as well as other refuge areas and components of emergency evacuation in the core structure of high-rise buildings. This study sought to answer the question whether there is a link between the location and number of smoke shafts and the number of people evacuated. The movement of the occupants was simulated using Steering and SFPE simulators. The Fire Dynamic Simulator (FDS) was used for fire and smoke dispersion. The number and location of smoke shafts were considered as the independent variable and the evacuation time as the dependent variable. The findings indicated that including two smoke shafts in connection with the refuge area in the core of high-rise building can accelerate evacuation by up to 40% in case of fire.