Sensitivity analysis of influencing factors on glass façade breakage in fire

Glass façade is the weakest part of a building. When subject to a fire, its breakage and fallout may create a new vent, allowing the fresh air entrainment and fire spread, which may significantly accelerate the compartment fire development. Previous studies established that a large number of factors can influence the fire performance of glass façades. However, very little is known about the relationship and importance of these factors. In the present work, three different importance analysis methods, including the correlation coefficient, rank correlation coefficient and normalized coefficient of variation, were employed to systematically investigate the primary 16 influencing factors based on experimental and numerical results. The linear relationship, monotony and variation between glass breakage time and these factors are quantitatively analyzed. Through comparison of three methods, glass type, fire location and installation form are found to be the three most important factors, while glass thickness, glass dimension and shading width may be ignored during the fire safety design of glass façades. Through the survey from experienced researchers, the thermal shock need more attention as well. The results are intended to provide a reference for fire performance-based design of buildings with glass façades.