A case study on deterioration assessment and rehabilitation of fire damaged reinforced concrete structure

Abstract

Fire is one of the most severe hazards that building structures may experience during their lifetime. A fire spread to the whole structure can cause unexpected damages to the structural elements. Mainly, the building type is crucially important for the type and the level of damage to the building because of the fire. Post fire investigation of damaged structure is required to determine the extent of damage to concrete elements and to work out system of effective repair/rehabilitation measures to maintain the structural integrity of fire effected structural components. The paper covers in brief the strength and durability study on fire damaged building in Delhi, India. The study reports the extent of fire damage. Optical Microscopy (OM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Deferential Thermal Analysis (DTA) studies were carried out on the sample concrete cores extracted from different identified portions of the fire exposed concrete are highlighted in this paper. Extent of damage occurred in the Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) i.e. RCC columns/beams/slabs are described based on the detailed evaluation by various Non-Destructive Evaluation Techniques covering Cover study & Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV) testing. Repair and remedial measures required for restoration and strengthening of the fire affected RCC columns/beams/slabs using indigenously available repair materials and techniques are also highlighted in this paper.