Citation

Elghazouli AY, Izzuddin BA. Fire Safety J. 2001; 36(8): 769-793.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2001, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The behaviour of composite steel-concrete building floors exposed to fire conditions is examined in this paper. The work represents part of a large project dealing with the numerical modelling and assessment of structural behaviour based on the fire experiments undertaken on a full-scale multi-storey steel-framed building at Cardington, UK. After providing brief details on the analytical tools and modelling approaches adopted in this investigation, the structural models constructed to simulate the fire tests are described and salient findings are highlighted. Although the detailed models provide some insight into key behavioural aspects such as the paramount influence of restraint to thermal expansion, the complex structural interactions that occur under fire conditions may not be readily demonstrated. In order to illustrate a number of underlying response mechanisms, the analytical results obtained from an idealised structural system, in which a single compartment is subjected to fire, are summarised. Assessment of the structural response using such simplified models provides a clear interpretation of the behaviour and, with further refinements, may be employed for undertaking detailed studies aimed at developing improved design recommendations.