Fire resistance requirements for FRP structural members

Worldwide interest in the use of fibre-reinforced polymers (FRP) in civil engineering applications has increased significantly in recent years. Before FRP can be used in structural members in buildings, the ability of these materials to meet stringent fire-resistance requirements, prescribed in building codes, must be established. At present, there is very little information available on the performance of FRP structural members in fire. In this paper, the fire resistance criterion, as well as commonly used fire protection techniques for structural members such as beams, columns and slabs, is presented. The factors that are to be accounted for in evaluating the performance of FRP at elevated temperatures are discussed. In addition, the various steps associated in evaluating the fire resistance, both experimental and numerical, are outlined. The application of a numerical procedure for evaluating the fire performance of a typical FRP-reinforced concrete slab is illustrated through a case study. It is shown that the fire resistance of a FRP-reinforced concrete slab is a function of the critical temperature of the reinforcement and that a FRP-reinforced concrete slab has a lower fire resistance than a steel-reinforced concrete slab.