An Experimental and Analytical Study of the Distribution of Heat in Concrete Columns

Fire is one of the most devastating disasters that have caused human damage, prompting researchers to conduct numerous studies on the behavior of fire-prone elements and take action to minimize damage. With the development of computer simulation theories, it is possible to study the behavior of structures under the influence of different loads (static, dynamic, thermal ... etc), and this leads to saving time, effort and money cost instead of performing laboratory experiments. Thermal loads are considered one of the most dangerous loads to which concrete structures are exposed. Hence it is very important to know the thermal distribution in the cross section of the element exposed to high temperature. Whereas, by knowing the thermal distribution, the designed load and the expected failure load of the structural element can be calculated and thus take the necessary measures to reduce the fire risk as much as possible. In this research, an experimental and analytical study was conducted on models of reinforced concrete columns, where thermocouple were used in different places to monitor the temperature at the specified points, The experimental thermal distribution was compared with the analytical results of the ANSYS Workbench program. The analytical results showed a great accuracy compared to the experimental results. Consequently, an analytical model was simulated to simulate the experimental, through which it is possible to know the thermal distribution of the model. Keywords : thermal distribution, thermal analysis, thermocouple, ANSYS Workbench. DOI: 10.7176/CER/13-1-01 Publication date: January 31 st 2021