EFFECTS OF FIRE ON THE STRENGTH OF REINFORCED CONCRETE STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS: A LITERARY REVIEW

Abstract

The fire in the structure causes the temperature of the concrete surface to increase, thus reducing its resistance to compression, bending and elastic modulus. Although concrete has a poorer conductor than steel, the constant high temperature on the surface causes gradual heating in its inner layer. As a building material, concrete is widely used due to its high resistance to fire, it is essential to withstand one of the most severe disasters that a structure can withstand in its life. The objective of this document is to carry out a systematic review of the effects that fire has on the mechanical and thermal properties of reinforced concrete structures. 50 articles published in a database indexed between the years 2011 and 2021 were reviewed, distributed as follows: 28 in Scopus, nine in Web of Science, eight in Scielo, three in ScienceDirect and two in EBSCO, referring to concrete resistant to fire, high temperatures, mechanical properties and thermal conductivity. In order to understand the impact that fire has on the resistance of reinforced concrete structural elements, the results of studies carried out in the field were presented. It is concluded that the main effects of fire on reinforced concrete were: 1) decrease in the adhesion between concrete and steel 2) concrete breakage and 3) reduction of concrete and steel resistance.

Keywords: Effect of fire on reinforced concrete – mechanical properties of reinforced concrete – thermal conductivity