Experimental behaviour of stainless steel cellular beam in fire

Abstract

This paper presents a description and the analysis of a fire test on a cellular beam made from grade 1.4301 stainless steel. Cellular beams are increasingly popular in the construction as they provide a structurally and materially efficient design solution as well as allowing the passage of services. In addition, stainless steel is also increasing in popularity for structural applications owing to its inherent durability and ductility, as well as other attractive properties such as structural efficiency and low maintenance requirements. However, the behaviour of stainless steel cellular beams in fire has received little attention from the research community until recently. In the current paper, a description is presented of an experimental investigation into the fire behaviour of grade 1.4301 stainless steel cellular beams. The experimental arrangements are described together with the details of the specimen. The test occurred at the fire testing laboratory at Tampere University, Finland. For the member test, the beam spanned 4,3 m, with an overall depth of 290 mm and 200 mm diameter openings along the span. It was found that the unprotected beam lasted for 29 minutes during the test, after being exposed to a standard fire, and the experiment was eventually stopped due to excessive rate of deflection. The test specimen has been analysed using available design methods and the results are presented herein.