Sensitivity analysis of prestressed-concrete sections under fire

Flavio Stochino;BIANCO, MAURIZIO;Fausto Mistretta

2018-01-01

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Abstract

The behaviour of Prestressed Concrete (PC) beams in fire is the subject of this paper, as in these extreme conditions materials nonlinearities are enhanced and section geometry plays an increasing role in guaranteeing structural strength. Numerical analyses are performed to investigate the role of the key parameters affecting structural response. The proposed numerical model is based on the well-known two-step approach. Heat-transfer from the environment to the structure is first investigated by solving Fou- rier’s equation by means of finite differences. Then, a fibre model is used to describe the structural response and to assess the role played by such parameters as reinforcement ratio, section shape, prestressing level/amount and stirrup spacing. The results may be useful in the preliminary design of Reinforced Concrete RC and PC structural design in fire.