Moment-Curvature Relationship of Concrete Columns Exposed to Fire from Two, Three, and Four Sides

Designing structures so they have adequate structural integrity in the event of a fire is extremely important. Therefore, it is important to facilitate achieving the optimal designs, which achieve fire safety while allowing for innovative solutions. Such designs are expected to follow the performance-based design criteria, which replaced the prescriptive-based design criteria in several design standards. Engineers are in dire need for tools that allow utilization of this design approach. This research addresses this need. Simplified tools that evaluate the effect of the number of column surfaces exposed to fire on its structural behavior have been examined. A column exposed to fire on its tension and compression sides was found to have lower capacity than a column exposed to fire on one of these surfaces. Also, a column exposed to fire only on the tension side will have a lower capacity than a column exposed to fire only on the compression side