Behavior of Steel Structures under Elevated Temperature

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the damages of an industrial steel building affected by a fire event. The author's main objectives are to identify different types of damages produced by fire to the building structure and nearby built environment, highlighting the idea that nowadays the fire safety must be seen as a sustainable practice. The presented research is based on a case study regarding the damages of an industrial steel building subjected to fire. Structural design of buildings exposed to fire requires the achievement of two main objectives; the first one is to reduce the loss of life and the second one regards the load bearing resistance of the building for a specified period of time. The behavior of steel structures under elevated temperature can be assessed using both numerical simulations and experimental studies. There are a lot of studies regarding the behavior of multi-storey steel buildings under fire conditions and progressive collapse mechanisms. Unfortunately, little information regarding the industrial steel buildings subjected to fire can be found. Analyzing the behavior of single storey steel buildings at elevated temperatures, it can be conclude that not always the collapse of an element leads to the collapse of the entire structure. A correct expertise of the damage level of steel structures exposed to fire, in order to identify the elements which can be kept and which have to be replaced, in most of the cases lead to a lower consumption of materials and financial resources.