Structural behavior of a pre-stressed cable steel truss exposed to fire

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present the results of a study on the behaviour of a pre-stressed cable steel truss exposed to fire under fire conditions, basing on the results of a large programme of experimental tests.

Design/methodology/approach

The research investigated the deformation and stress change on a pre-stressed steel cable, including the deflection and displacements at different joints and fire behaviour of the pre-stressed steel cable. In other words, the structural behaviours at different loaded pre-stress, the vertical loading, steel cable height, truss dimension and the final temperature were compared in case of fire.

Findings

The results showed that the strain of longitudinal chord was far larger than those of the transverse chords, the strains of lower chords were significantly larger than those of the upper chords, strain of the chord near the longitudinal centreline were also larger than those of the outside transverse chords. During heating, the displacement and strain gradually changed from linear to nonlinear with loading, and the yielded chord had also in an order those chords which were at mid-span and near to the longitudinal centreline, yielded at first.

Originality/value

Temperatures in the furnace and at several points of the pre-stressed cable steel truss, as well as deformations, deflections and the stress changes of upper chord and the bottom steel cable and the change of displacement at different joint were measured to achieve those goals and, consequently, to assess the deformation behaviours and temperature of the pre-stressed steel cable.

Citation

Xia, Y. (2017), "Structural behavior of a pre-stressed cable steel truss exposed to fire", Journal of Structural Fire Engineering, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 117-130. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSFE-03-2017-0025