Finite-Element Analysis of Isolated and Integrated Structural Steel Members Exposed to Fire
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RESEARCH PAPER
Finite‑Element Analysis of Isolated and Integrated Structural Steel Members Exposed to Fire M. N. Amin1 · M. U. K. Niazi1 Received: 14 February 2017 / Accepted: 9 September 2020 © Shiraz University 2020
Abstract Ambiguities in current fire design codes have triggered conflicting responses from researchers and professionals about steel buildings in fire. This is because fire codes do not consider the integrated structure of the building, but are based on the tests and models of the individual structural members of a construction subjected to a standard fire (ISO 834 or ASTM E 119). This study designed a four-story steel frame structure containing five bays with a bay span of 12 m and a height of 3.5 m according to Eurocode 3, considering all joints as being simply supported. Four different fire scenarios were modeled with reference to members of the assembled structure utilizing the Vulcan software package considering standard and parametric fire curves on exposed and protected sections. The results were compared with those obtained by exposing to the same fire curves an isolated beam member equal to those belonging to the frame under investigation. The comparison shows that the assembled members in the modeled structure had a better fire performance than did the isolated members. Because connections are important components of structures, we believe that the effects of connections on the fire performance of structures should be studied in the future. Keywords Fire curves · Fire design · Steel buildings · Vulcan
1 Introduction The use of steel in construction has grown enormously since the end of the last century. Although long limited to the commercial and industrial sectors, steel is currently being used for residential buildings because of advances in technology. Several well-known advantages of steel construction include high construction rates, lower project costs, ease of repair, repetitive use, and most importantly, a reduced risk of fire spreading because of the incombustible nature of steel as a material. All materials, once exposed to elevated temperatures, progressively lose their strength as well as their ability to carry loads; steel, for example, loses half of its strength and stiffness at approximately 600 °C (Kirby 1986). Consequently, temperatures exceeding those limits may cause the associated members of the structure to collapse. The * M. N. Amin [email protected] 1
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, King Faisal University (KFU), P. O. Box 380, Al‑Hofuf, Al‑Ahsa 31982, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
effects of this failure may govern the overall behavior of the structure, depending on the position of the collapsed member (Wald 2007). The design of fire-resistant structures has gained much importance after the occurrence of numerous catastrophic fire events that resulted in the loss of human life (Richardson 2003). During the first half of the twentieth century, fire design codes, which are the primary sources used to specify fire protection,
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