The fire performance and fire‐resistance design of aluminium alloy I‐beams

Abstract

Summary In this paper, the temperature fields of unprotected and protected aluminium‐alloy I‐beams heated on three sides were calculated using the finite element method. The calculated temperature results were compared with the incremental temperature rise formulas specified in Eurocode 9. Next, finite element models were developed to simulate the flexural behaviour and the flexural–torsional buckling behaviour of aluminium‐alloy I‐beams under fire. The calculated results were validated by experimental data acquired at both ambient and high temperatures. Subsequently, simplified formulas for calculating critical temperatures for 5083‐H112 and 6060‐T66 aluminium‐alloy beams were proposed based on parametric analysis, and the results obtained using these formulas were compared against equivalent values calculated in accordance with Eurocode 9 standards. In terms of engineering applications, findings indicate that increases in the load level, the global stability coefficient, and the ratio of fireboard thickness to thermal conductivity reduce the critical temperatures of aluminium‐alloy beams. In most cases, designs using the method of checking load bearing capacity at high temperature published in the Eurocode 9 would tend to be conservative. Finally, when the global stability coefficient was greater than 0.8, the critical temperatures in some regions measured slightly higher than the calculated simplified value. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Numerical and Analytical Investigation of Aluminium Bracket Strengthening

“…Zheng and Zhang [32] proposed practical critical temperature formulas of 6060-T66 and 5083-H112 aluminium alloy I-beams and developed finite element models to simulate their fire-triggered flexural and flexural-torsional buckling behaviours. Käfer et al [14] performed axial compression tests on EN AW 6060-T66 aluminium circular tubes.…”

Experimental Analysis of the Behaviour of Aluminium Alloy EN 6082AW T6 at High Temperature

“…Some recent research has also been done [10] in China on the high-temperature behaviour of aluminium beams (of alloys 5083-H112 and 6060-T66). The main contributions of this study were in proposing practical formulas for calculating temperature increase in unprotected and protected aluminium beams, and in suggesting that the critical temperature approach from Eurocode 9 provides conservative predictions when analysing the load bearing capacity at high temperature.…”

Structural fire behaviour of aluminium alloy structures: Review and outlook

“…the temperature at which the member or structure fails to sustain the applied load) were proposed. Wang et al [100] investigated numerically the influence of a series of key parameters, including boundary conditions, load level and load distribution, on the critical temperatures of 6061-T6 aluminium alloy I-section beams, while more recently, Zheng and Zhang [101] developed FE models to investigate the lateral-torsional buckling behaviour of unprotected and protected 5083-H112 and 6060-T66 aluminium alloy I-section beams exposed to fire on three sides; practical design equations for estimating their critical temperatures, taking into account the influence of the load level, the beam span as well as the thickness and thermal conductivity of the protective fireboard, were proposed [101].…”