Introduction
The Modelling of Reinforced Concrete Flat Slabs in Fire is being undertaken as a Masters of Engineering thesis at the University of Edinburgh. Previous research into the topic was conducted by Atli Thornsteinsson for an 2012 MSc thesis also at the University of Edinburgh (Thornsteinsson, A. "Punching shear of flat slabs in fire conditions" 2012). His work showed how the failure mode of a flat slab can change from flexural failure to punching failure due to increased temperatures. However, there are still avenues in which further work is required to improve the modelling techniques and potentially the accuracy and validity of the results if done correctly. This thesis aims to continue the development of the model as discussed in the in the Aims and Objectives.
Problem Statement
The behaviour of reinforced concrete flat slabs is relatively well understood at ambient temperature and can be suitably designed. However under fire conditions the behaviour is not as well understood despite it being a potential failure mode in fire conditions. This can prove catastrophic such as in 2006, where the roof of a car park collapsed due to punching shear after a fire killing seven fire-fighters. There are a number of reasons for a poor understanding in this area, including the increased complexity and cost associated with conducting experiments mean that there is very little relevant experimental data to use, secondly the behaviour of concrete structures in fire conditions is an extremely complex phenomena and is not fully understood. The modelling of the behaviour also presents the same difficulties as the heated member requires a more complex script which often sees simplifications made to ease simulations. In order for the phenomena to be properly designed for, a better analysis of the problem needs to be constructed both using computational models and analytical techniques.