Title: Fiber Reinforced Concrete of Enhanced Fire Resistance for Tunnel Segments

Author(s): L.A.P Lourenco, J.A.O Barros, and J.G.A Alves

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 276

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 1-34

Keywords: Fire, high strength concrete, high temperatures, polypropylene fibers, precast tunnel segments, residual mechanical properties, steel fibers.

DOI: 10.14359/51682362

Date: 3/1/2011

Abstract:
In the last decades, technical and scientific efforts have been done to increase the concrete strength, based on the assumption that more economic, lightweight, durable and good looking structures can be built. This strength enhancement, however, has been obtained by increasing the compactness of the concrete internal structure, resulting concretes with voids of smaller size, and lower connectivity than in concretes of current strength classes. Research and fire accidents have shown that the concrete failure of structures exposed to fire is as explosive as high is the concrete strength class, since the restrictions for the escape of water vapor from the interior of concrete increase with the concrete compressive strength. In the present work a fiber reinforced concrete of enhanced fire resistance is developed and its properties are characterized by experimental research. This concrete is intended to have enough strength for concrete precast tunnel segments, while the performance of the fibrous reinforcement system is evaluated in terms of verifying its possibilities for replacing, partially or totally, conventional reinforcement used in these structural elements.