Toughness of the Pentagon Structure
Authors: Paul F. Mlakar, Donald O. Dusenberry, James R. Harris, Gerald Haynes, Long T. Phan, and Mete A. SozenAuthor Affiliations
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 19, Issue 3
Abstract
On September 11, 2001, the reinforced concrete structure of the Pentagon Building was able to resist, without collapse, the impact of a large commercial airliner despite the total loss of 26 columns and severe damage to 15 columns at the ground level. The ensuing fire and related fire-fighting activities led to the collapse of a portion of the building approximately one-half hour after the impact. In this paper, the reasons for the demonstrated toughness of the reinforced concrete structure are examined and attributed to use of spiral columns, effective splicing of reinforcing bars, strong girders, and short span lengths.
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References
American Concrete Institute (ACI). (1936). “Building regulations for reinforced concrete, ACI 501-36-T.” J. Am. Concr. Inst., 32, 407–447.
ASCE (2003). The Pentagon Building performance report, Reston, Va.
Hoffmann, C., et al. (2004). “Modeling, simulation, and visualization: The Pentagon on September 11th.” Comput. Sci. Eng., 6(1), 52–60.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 19 • Issue 3 • August 2005
Pages: 206 - 211
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Oct 27, 2004
Accepted: Jan 21, 2005
Published online: Aug 1, 2005
Published in print: Aug 2005
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Authors
Affiliations
Paul F. Mlakar
Senior Research Scientist, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 3909 Halls Ferry Rd., Vicksburg, MS 39180. E-mail: [email protected]
Donald O. Dusenberry
Principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc., 41 Seyon St., Building 1, Suite 500, Waltham, MA 02453. E-mail: [email protected]
James R. Harris
Principal, J.R. Harris & Company, 1580 Lincoln St., Suite 770, Denver, CO 80203-1509. E-mail: [email protected]
Gerald Haynes
Fire Protection Engineer, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Arson & Explosives Division, 800 K St., NW, Room 710, Washington, District of Columbia 20001. E-mail: [email protected]
Long T. Phan
Research Structural Engineer, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building and Fire Research Laboratory, Building 226, Room B-158, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-0001. E-mail: [email protected]
Mete A. Sozen
Kettelhut Distinguished Professor of Structural Engineering, Purdue Univ., School of Civil Engineering, 129G Civil Engineering Building, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1284. E-mail: [email protected]
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