High performance concrete fire resistance

If water-saturated high-performance concrete is exposed to an intensive fire it may explode, or spalling may occttr. This is due to the high resistance of the dertse concrete to steam movement, which resrrlts in a build-up of steam pressime within the rrraterial. Thus special measures, which may include the incorporation of siritable fibers irrto the rrrix, may be indicated if concretes with water/cement ratios below about 0.33 are employed. 

The influence of elevated temperature is always taken into consideration in design and detailing of reinforced concrete structures for buildings where a necessary period of time for evacuation of the inhabitants before possible collapse must be defined (EN 1992 (2004). At the present state of knowledge it is possible to predict the fire resistance of reinforced concrete elements with an accuracy that is adequate for practical purposes, including elements made with high performance concrete and fibres. 

F. DehnandG. Konig, Fire resistance of different fibre reinforced high-performance concretes , in A.E. Naaman and H.W. Reinhardt (eds) High Performance Fiber Reinforced Cement Composites (HPFRCC 4), RILEM Proceedings PRO 30, RILEM Publications, Bagneux, 2003, pp. 189-204. 

Other studies [15] also used data from previous researches by adding other tests on walls to show that the load-bearing walls fire resistance is depending on thickness and the performance of perforated bricks is related to the degree of drilling. Previous studies with other materials such as concrete under high temperatures have been used to provide guidelines about the behavior of mortars subjected to the thermal action. 

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