Residual response of reinforced concrete columns exposed to design fires

This paper presents results from residual capacity tests on fire damaged reinforced concrete (RC) columns. Two RC columns, were first subject to structural loading and fire exposure, as experienced in a typical building, and then loaded to failure upon cool down to ambient conditions. The response of the column including temperatures, deformations, and spalling in the columns was monitored during heating, and cooling phases of fire exposure. Upon complete cool down, the fire damaged columns were incrementally loaded until failure to evaluate their residual capacity. Results from these fire tests indicate that RC columns retain significant residual capacity after exposure to typical fires experienced in buildings.