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Assessment of the Structural Fire Performance of Buildings
Published
Author(s)
Richard W. Bukowski
Abstract
The fire-induced collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC) buildings 1, 2, and 7 on 11 September 2001 demonstrated the need for engineering methods to predict the structural fire performance of buildings when subjected to arbitrary design fires and to extreme events. Some capabilities exist but lack specific data such as material properties at elevated temperatures. Existing test methods like ISO 834 and ASTM E119 assess performance under a single, standard exposure that was developed long ago when fuel characteristics were quite different from today. These tests do not provide insight into the interaction of assemblies that were tested independently nor to the sensitivity of the assembly to variations in construction to the design specification that was tested.A project is being organized as a cooperative, global effort through CIB W14:Fire and ISO TC92 Fire Safety with the support of the FORUM for International Cooperation in Fire Research and the NIST National Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster. This wide cooperation is emblematic not only of the global impact of the WTC event but also the worldwide interest in performance based building regulation.
Citation
Fire and Materials Conference
Pub Type
Journals
Keywords
fire endurance, fire resistance, furnace tests, performance codes, World Trade Center