National Fire Research Laboratory: Infrastructure and Commissioning Project

At present, there is no research facility in the world that allows scientists and engineers to conduct research on the response of real-scale structural systems to realistic fire and mechanical loading under controlled laboratory conditions.  The National Fire Research Laboratory (NFRL), currently under construction and slated to be completed in the fall of 2012, will serve these research needs.  The unique facility will enable experiments on the performance of structural elements, subassemblies, and systems exposed to fires up to 20 MW and will enable the development of the technical basis for performance-based design methodologies for structures exposed to fire.  This project will outfit and develop the infrastructure for the NFRL, including   laboratory/testing operational procedures, standard test protocols to ensure safe and effective operation of the laboratory, and completion of commissioning by 2014.

Objective:  To develop the infrastructure for the NFRL and to outfit the NFRL, including laboratory/testing operational procedures, standard test protocols to ensure safe and effective operation of the laboratory, and completion of commissioning by 2014.

What is the new technical idea?  Currently there is no research facility in the world that would allow scientists and engineers to conduct research on the response of real-scale structural systems to a realistic fire and mechanical loading under controlled laboratory conditions.  Structures, ranging in size from small components to large systems up to 2 stories in height and 2 bays × 3 bays in plan, and simulated fully-developed building fires up to 20 MW using natural gas, liquid hydrocarbons, wood cribs, or actual building contents will be safely accommodated in the new facility.  Mechanical loading can be applied using configurable hydraulic actuators, acting either vertically or horizontally, or fixed loads.  The facility, currently under construction and slated for completion by fall 2012, is equipped with a strong floor and a strong wall that will act to stabilize a test specimen to prevent uncontrolled failure, to provide lateral restraint, or to laterally load a structure to simulate earthquake damage.  The strong wall and floor coupled with the hydraulic actuators and real-scale fires will provide multivariate test conditions for structural systems exposed to fires that are currently unachievable or impossible.  The new research capabilities will enable NFRL to explore innovative measurement techniques to (1) better characterize fire-structure interaction, (2) develop an experimental database on the performance of large-scale structural connections, components, sub-assemblies, and systems under realistic fire and other typical vertical/lateral loads, (3) validate physics-based computational models to predict fire resistance performance of structures, (4) enable performance-based standards for fire resistance design of structures, and (5) foster innovations in design and construction.

What is the research plan?  This project seeks to (1) develop NFRL laboratory/testing operational procedures, including structural loading, specimen support and restraint, fire load application, instrumentation, data acquisition, and safety measures, (2) complete outfitting and commissioning the NFRL by testing and calibrating the structural loading system, thermal and structural instrumentation, data acquisition system, and application and control of fire loading and safety systems, and (3) develop standard test protocols, including fire characterization (fire intensity and duration), thermal and structural response measurements, characterization of measurement uncertainty, and calibration of test apparatus and instrumentation.  This project will deliver a fully operational laboratory ready for testing real-scale structures under realistic loading and fire conditions.

Requirements for outfitting of the NFRL control room will be determined and finalized.  Equipment (e.g., scissor lift, scaffolding, rigging, and hardware) and tools needed for outfitting will be specified and procured.  Specialized apparatus (fuel delivery system, exhaust hood skirt, lifting jig, cooling system for the strong wall, and actuator mounts) will be designed and fabricated or procured.  Maintenance and calibration contracts will be put in place to ensure uninterrupted operation of the laboratory equipment and systems, and quality of measurements. NFRL laboratory/testing operational procedures, including structural loading, specimen support and restraint, fire load application, instrumentation and data acquisition, and safety measures will be developed.  The structural loading system, thermal and structural instrumentation, data acquisition system, and application and control of fire loading and safety systems will be tested and calibrated.  Standard test protocols, including fire characterization (fire intensity and duration), thermal and structural response measurements, characterization of measurement uncertainty, and calibration of test apparatus and instrumentation will be developed.

Subsequent to the completion of construction, commissioning the NFRL will be conducted in two phases.  Phase I will include verifying the operation of oxygen depletion calorimetry for the new laboratory, verifying the calibration burner up to 20 MW, and verifying the operation of the hydraulic loading system.  Phase II will include testing of simple structural configurations to verify the ability to safely test structures under combined fire and structural loading.  Phase II will calibrate and integrate the structural loading system, thermal and structural instrumentation, data acquisition system, and application and control of fire loading and safety systems.  Lessons learned during commissioning will provide the basis for finalizing test protocols and operational procedures for the NFRL.

Recent Results:

• Reaction frame components designed, fabricated and delivered
• Design of control room contract awarded
• Fabrication of calibration burner completed
• Instrumentation of calibration burner in progress
• Determining requirements to outfit the NFRL (actuator base mounts, calorimetry instrumentation, hood skirts, natural gas delivery system, strong wall fire protection), and support the issuance of procurement contracts. (ongoing)
• Prototype control room set up in 226/A162 including data acquisition and video monitoring equipment/system. Integrated data acquisition, control, monitoring, and calibration system in Beta test phase.  Development of data acquisition and control system and testing of all systems is ongoing.
• Development of initial set of standard test protocols, including fire characterization, thermal and structural response measurements, calibration of test apparatus and instrumentation, and data acquisition is in progress.

Standards and Codes:  Using the new capabilities of the NFRL, NIST will develop experimental data on the performance of large-scale structural connections, components, subassemblies, and systems under realistic fire and loading.  Such data will allow the validation of physics-based models to predict fire resistance performance of structures, and thereby provide the technical basis for establishing performance-based standards for fire resistance design of structures, and foster innovations in design and construction.  NIST will work closely with code-writing bodies such as the ICC, and SDOs such as SFPE, NFPA, ASTM, AISC, ACI, and possibly ISO for implementation of performance-based design/rehabilitation methodologies.