Structural Fire Performance of Concrete and Shotcrete Tunnel Liners
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 131, Issue 12
Abstract
Tunnel liners can suffer significant structural damage when exposed to long duration fires. The resulting damage to the tunnel liner can produce casualties, major service disruptions, and financial loss. Structural fire performance studies have generally focused on buildings exposed to standard fires. Tunnel fires typically have high temperatures and heat release rates compared to building fires. In this paper, an analytical method is provided for assessing the structural fire performance of concrete or the shotcrete tunnel liners, by comparing the structural demand and the capacity of the liners in the time domain. The suggested analysis is a combination of a heat transfer analysis and a nonlinear structural analysis that involves such factors as type of fire, concrete mix design, temperature-induced material degradation, and ground–tunnel liner interaction. A case study is provided. Techniques to minimize fire damage are recommended, and practical methods are suggested for repairing the fire-damaged concrete.
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Acknowledgments
The writers wish to thank Michael Abrahams, Christian Ingerslev, William Kennedy, and Erdem Dogan of Parsons Brinckerhoff, New York, for their contribution to this study. This paper reflects the views of the writers, who are responsible for the accuracy of the information presented.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 131 • Issue 12 • December 2005
Pages: 1920 - 1925
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Mar 1, 2004
Accepted: Mar 9, 2005
Published online: Dec 1, 2005
Published in print: Dec 2005
Notes
Note. Associate Editor: Venkatesh Kumar R. Kodur
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