Fire Damage to Concrete Furnace-Supporting Structure and Formulation of Repair Methodology
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 32, Issue 2
Abstract
This paper presents the assessment of a fire-damaged reinforced concrete (RC) supporting structure of an arc furnace. The arc furnace rests over a thick RC slab supported by nine RC columns. During the process of operation, the bottom steel plate of the arc furnace was damaged locally. Liquid hot metal at a temperature of approximately 1,400°C came out through a damaged thermocouple hole and spread out over the floor. Visual inspection, rebound hammer (RH) tests, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) tests, and concrete core sampling, etc., are carried out for the assessment of the present condition. Low UPV and low compressive strength are observed from the in situ measurements, which indicate loss of integrity of the fire-affected concrete. A hybrid methodology is adopted wherein in situ material parameters of the fire-damaged structure from the concrete core samples and rebar samples are used in the analysis to check the structural adequacy of the fire-damaged structure. It is observed that the residual strengths of the structural components are found to be adequate for the given loading. Furthermore, necessary repair measures are suggested to improve quality, integrity, and long-term durability of the furnace-supporting structure.
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Acknowledgments
Authors would like to acknowledge Dr. J. Prabakar, scientist at the CSIR-SERC, for useful discussion during the investigation. The authors also acknowledge technicians at CSIR-SERC and officials of M/s. Sarda Metals & Alloys Ltd. (SMAL), Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, India, for the cooperation and assistance during the field and laboratory investigation.
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Published In
Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 32 • Issue 2 • April 2018
Copyright
©2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 7, 2017
Accepted: Sep 12, 2017
Published online: Dec 28, 2017
Published in print: Apr 1, 2018
Discussion open until: May 28, 2018
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