Effect of Fire Model Parameter Variability on Determination of Fire Resistance of Concrete Structural Members

Abstract

The paper is focused on the fire model parameter variability and its effect on the determination of fire resistance of concrete structural members.For the modelling of fire, the parametric temperature-time curve given in EN 1991-1-2 is used.First part of the paper is aimed on the fire model parameter variability in general.First, fire model parameter ranges are described and their combinations are created using two common sampling methods -- Monte Carlo and Latin Hypercubes.Then, the combinations are analysed, unreasonable combinations are identified, and viable combinations are illustrated.Moreover, the characteristics of the temperature-time curves obtained using the parameter combinations are discussed. Namely, we focus on the temperature evolution, duration of fire, andthe maximum temperature reached.In the second part of the paper, an illustrative example is presented.The example is focused on the analysis of the fire resistance of a concrete slab panel. The panel is placed in a fire compartment with given fire model parameter ranges. In the example, the variability of the fire model parameters is captured using the Latin Hypercubes sampling method.The thermal analysis of the slab panel as well as the subsequent mechanical analysis are both conducted by using numerical methods described in our previous work. The calculations are performed in MATLAB environment.Finally, the obtained results are presented and discussed.It is shown that the Latin Hypercube sampling can be used as an effective tool for the investigation of the effect of fire model parameter variability on the fire resistance.