Factors Influencing the Behavior of Steel Columns Exposed To Fire

Abstract

Eight tests on eccentrically loaded columns at elevated temperatures were performed at the C.T.I.C.M. Fire Station at Maizière-Les-Metz (France). The results obtained using a finite element code (LENAS) are compared with the results of the fire tests. The eight columns were analyzed with LENAS, which adopts the stress-strain relationship for steel recommended by Eurocode 3, Part 1.2. Calculations were made using data from the tested columns (temperature, yield strength, geometry, applied load, and the initial imperfection) to create a simulation as realistic as possible to compare the calculated critical temperatures with the ones obtained from the fire tests. Some others' calculations were performed using some simplifications. These calculations were made to find out which approximations are acceptable and which are not. A comparison of these different simplifications highlights that the yield strength of the steel section used in the numerical analysis has much more influence on the response of the columns than other characteristics, such as geometrical imperfections, cross-section area, and residual stresses.

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