The behaviour of asymmetric slim floor steel beams in fire

Abstract

Computer software has been developed to predict the structural response of asymmetric slim floor steel beams, used with composite concrete floor slabs consisting of deep profiled steel decking. Comparisons between predicted behaviour and that recorded in standard fire tests, showed that the software is very accurate. By including the rotational stiffness of the beam-to-column connections, the fire resistance of the beam is significantly enhanced. This is mainly due to the connections retaining most of their strength during a fire, since they are fully encased in concrete as a consequence of this type of construction. The analyses presented in this paper indicate that it may be possible to increase the fire resistance of the steel beams from 60 to 90 minutes, by including the connection behaviour. The software has also been used to aid the design of a future large-scale fire test on the asymmetric slim floor system. Predictions of the structural response have been presented. These will enable the fire load and ventilation conditions in the test to be designed. In addition the software has been used to identify the minimum amount of fire protection that is required for the supporting columns.