International Journal of Computer Engineering in Research Trends

Multidisciplinary, Open Access, Peer-Reviewed and fully refereed

Research Paper Volume-7, Issue-6 ,2020 Regular Edition E-ISSN: 2349-7084

Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged

Concrete Structure
Arun1*, Hardik Dhull2
1*
Department Of Civil Engineering
2
Matu Ram Institute Of Engineering and Management, Rohtak(Hr), India
Affiliated by Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak.
e-mail: [email protected]
*Corresponding Author: [email protected],

Available online at: http://www.ijcert.org

Received: 20/06/2020, Revised: 25/06/2020, Accepted: 30/06/2020, Published: 07/07/2020

Abstract: This research work is completed to embrace the project work on rehabilitation and retrofitting of fireside
damaged concrete buildings. This study explains the rehab process of fireside damaged concrete buildings in
three basic categories; condition evaluation, higher cognitive process, rehabilitation & retrofitting. Evaluation
method of damaged building has been based upon understanding of fabric properties at elevated temperatures,
condition survey and condition assessment. Condition survey includes visual inspection, hammering and
chiselling techniques whereas condition assessment includes both non-destructive and destructive tests that are
selected upon the premise of efficiency, economy, and performance. Feasibility study is required to form right
decisions for the rehab of fireside damaged building. Such a feasibility study should include all important aspects
which will have a control within the future, therefore must be considered in higher cognitive process. The method
and testing procedures can be used to evaluate the level of damage and feasibility of repair needed. The
evaluation can be used to whether to repair or to demolish the structure .

Keywords: Fire, Damage, Evaluation, Decision, Analysis, Retrofitting, Rehabilitation.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------
1. Introduction which performs well under attack conditions because of its
low thermal conductivity and incombustibility. Furthermore,
Fire is one in all the foremost severe hazards that
a concrete (RC) structure with proper reinforcement details
building structures may experience during their lifetime. If a
can effectively redistribute loads from damaged region to
structure is broken by fire, it's necessary to research the
undamaged components whether or not the part of the
explanation for the hearth and evaluate the reusability of the structure is severely damaged by fire[6]. Therefore, it's not
damaged structure. In terms of economic efficiency, it's common for fire-damaged RC structures to completely
going to be a far better approach to retrofit the damaged collapse during or after an incident of fireside. For this
components of the structure, rather than demolishing it reason, fire-damaged RC structures are often generally
partially or completely. This decision must be made rehabilitated by applying proper retrofitting methods.
supported the results of investigations like the visual
inspection of the damaged structure, tests on the remaining
Based on the previous studies and case histories of fire
material, and finite element simulations of the structure or its
hazard in buildings we will gather some information
structural components. Concrete may be a structural material, elaborate the identification of foreside damaged structure

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Arun “Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged Concrete Structure”, International Journal of Computer Engineering
In Research Trends, 7(6): pp:34-39 ,June -2020.

elements, safe access to the hazard location, will explain the (a.2) Chemical Decomposition
methods and tools used in the investigation the level of  The raise in temperature during fire will lead to
hazard or loss of strength of structure members.[7] water evaporation and dehydration in cement paste.
We will also evaluate the condition of structure member This will cause decomposition of calcium hydroxide
whether it is need strengthening and repair or to replace the and calcium aluminates in concrete.
member. Jacketing of weekend members need to be done  Decomposition occurs after evaporation of free
with the application of additional strengthening material like water and capillary water and will be initiated by
reinforcement etc. the loss of physically bound water.
 The color of concrete will turn into pink as a result
of this mechanism[5]
2. Fire Damage on Concrete
Table-1, Fire Damage - Damage Mechanisms

(a) Concrete Damage (b) Temperature

Mechanisms Effect on

Surface Cracking/ Crazing Color of Concrete

Compressive Strength of Figure-2. Chemical Decomposing of Concrete.
Chemical Decomposition
Concrete (f'c)
Microcracking and Spalling Modulus of Elasticity (E) (a.3) Micro cracking and Spalling
 Spalling: the small cracks and separation of surface
Steel Reinforcement layers of concrete due to rapid change in
temperature (such as fire) and leads to exposition of
(a.1) Surface Cracking / Crazing steel reinforcement and its rapid deformation due to
 Crazing: network of fine surface cracks in concrete heat.[5]
which usually occurs in early ages of concrete due  Spalling caused by high temperature can be:
to shrinkage of the surface layer. (a) full destruction at slow rates
 Repairing of cracks is essential when the chloride (b) Sudden exploding of smaller or larger
ion exists in the concrete itself or its surrounding pieces of concrete with thickness less
environment. than few centimeters at early ages of
 Crazing and surface cracks are caused by: heating.

Figure-1. Surface Cracks

(a) low humidity

(b) fire
(c) thermal incompatibility
(d) hot sun Figure-3. Spalling of the concrete cover during a moderate
(e) drying out fire.
 Size of cracks:
(b) Fire Damage - Temperature Effect
(a) Depth< 3 mm (1/8") (b.1) Color of Concrete
(b) Diameter of grids of< 50mm (2")

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Arun “Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged Concrete Structure”, International Journal of Computer Engineering
In Research Trends, 7(6): pp:34-39 ,June -2020.

 Due to the chemical and physical changes and  Field Tests:

dehydration of the cement paste, the color of the  Ordinary hammer
concrete will vary during a fire, depending on the  Chisel or screwdriver
fire temperature[1]. Detailed Investigation:
 Color Change can be a used as an indicator of the  Destructive Tests
exposure temperature and thus, the corresponding  Coring
fire damage of concrete can be estimated [3].  Petrographic
(b.2) Compressive Strength of Concrete  Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA)
 The compressive strength of concrete will not  Micro Hardness
change up to 300°C, however, this is threshold - Non-Destructive Test (NDT)
temperature for speed of strength loss in mortars, - Pulse-velocity (Soundscape)
which it will become more rapid after that.  Impact-Echo
 Although the f'c will not drastically change till  Magnetic and Microwave (Radar)
300°C, the strength of the concrete will significantly  Penetration Resistance (Windsor Probe)
reduce by 30-40% due to internal cracks caused by  Rebound (Scmidt) Hammer
thermal expansion. [5] Load Testing:
 The strength of concrete will not be recovered  Before repair
after cooling.  After Repair
(b.3) Modulus of Elasticity of Concrete (1) Cleaning
 Up to 300°C, the loss in modulus of elasticity is in  Smoke deposits and soot usually hides the spalling
the same order of loss of concrete strength, about and cracks due to fire and cleaning of the structure
40%. will result in more clear observations and more
 The loss of E around 550°C, is about 50%. accurate identification of the deflected and distorted
(b.4) Steel Reinforcement members.
 The yield strength of steel reinforcement can be  Cleaning can be done using various methods such as
reduced up to 50% of its initial value when the fire water blasting, dry ice blasting, chemical washing
temperature rises to 600°C. and etc.
 The steel strength can be completely recovered  These methods might cause secondary damages to
when the rebar cools down from 450°C - 600°C, the structure and the dry ice blasting or chemical
depending on the steel rebar manufacturing type.(3) washing is the safest method The loss of E around
 The modulus of elasticity of steel is also reduced 550°C, is about 50%.[4]
with raise in temperature, as expected. (2) Inspecting Physical Appearance of Structure (Visual
Inspection)
3. Evaluation Methods -  The cracks, spalling, deformations, misalignments,
distortions and exposure of steel reinforcements is
Preliminary Investigation documented
IS the Structure Safe to Enter?  The deflection and geometry of some suspicious
 Data on Structure members are measured and documented.
 Data from fire department (3) Fire Intensity
 Information interviews  Fire intensity can be estimated by observing the
 Observations and other in-site information building contents and the post-fire condition of the
Preliminary Investigation: other materials.
- Cleaning the structure  Knowing the melting point of some material and
 Physical appearance inspecting the building content, one can estimate the
 Estimation of fire intensity local and maximum fire temperature.
 Observations and in-site information  The debris condition in different fire temperatures is
 Melting temperature of different material an additional source for estimating the fire
 Other material’s condition temperature.

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Arun “Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged Concrete Structure”, International Journal of Computer Engineering
In Research Trends, 7(6): pp:34-39 ,June -2020.

(4) Field Tests  Historical importance

 When the previous phases of preliminary  Government building(matter of national security
investigation will not reveal enough information to
evaluate the fire's severity and to decide about (b). Rehabilitation-Essential Parameters for Repair
future activities and further examination, simple on- Materials
site testing methods are used as adjunct to visual  Workability
assessment of the damaged structure.  Low shrinkage properties
 Striking hammer to the concrete material and taking  Aesthetics
the sounding is one of the common methods. In this  Requisite setting/hardening properties
method the material will be good and hard when it  Good bond strength
tends to be solid and "ring" and the weekend  Coefficient of thermal expansion should be
concrete tends to be "dull thud" and hollow [2]. compatible
 Use of chisel is another method which is used to  Compatible mechanical properties and strength to
inspect the softened regions on the surface of the that of the sub-strata
concrete  No curing requirement
(b)Evaluation Methods - Detailed Investigation  Alkaline character
(1) Destructive Test Methods  Low permeability
 These methods will require more time and effort
rather than NOT test methods and caution is (c). List of Rehabilitation Methods
necessary during the sampling process.
 They will provide more detailed information about  Surface Cleaning and smoke removal
the strength and mechanical properties of the  Breaking Out : replacing the damage concrete+
material as well as the depth of the fire and cracks undisturbed reinforcement
location.  Ferro cement : Using mesh + Plasticizers +polymers
 Destructive test methods are generally performed for sealing pores
either in field or lab and there are various methods  Plate Bonding: MS plates+ epoxy glue for bonding
available for this purpose [2]. + Bolting.
(2) Coring  Shotcrete : Pneumatically applied concrete or
 It is mainly used to determine the poison ratio, mortar placed directly on to a Surface
modulus of elasticity and compressive strength of  Epoxy bonded concrete ( fresh concrete +resin bond
the concrete. The samples will be tested in the lab. coat on hardened surface ( depth 40mm or more)
(3) Petrographic Test Coring may be reinforcement/ shear keys etc.,
 This test is a deterministic testing method in
 Silica Fume concrete: Portland cement with silica
determining the fire damage depth in concrete and is
fumes in case High strength requirement mostly
usually performed on core samples. Petrographic
used with super plasticizers.
test will also offer valuable information about the
 RCC jacketing :Composite action with old and new
location and orientation of the cracks and
: ensure old concrete is good.[1,2,4]
microcracking, loss of rebar-cement bond and
cement-aggregate bond, dehydration, carbonation
(d). Guidelines Prior to design:
depth, water/cement ratio, etc.[4]
 The design should meet the demand of local
building regulations and it needs approval from the
4. Rehabilitation local authority.
 Also design of the repair sections should comply
(a). Rehabilitation-Decision Making Process with the current design codes. As in some cases the
Governing Factors: priory design of the structure may have been design
 Economical to the codes which are revised in the meantime. So
 Current Code requirements the code used in the past was out of date.
 Life span of proposed structure

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Arun “Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged Concrete Structure”, International Journal of Computer Engineering
In Research Trends, 7(6): pp:34-39 ,June -2020.

 In some cases it can be inferred from the

investigation that the structure was deficient in the
original design. Original design should be obtained
as it will help to plan strategy to assess the "as built"
properties of the structure.[1,3,4]

Typical Examples of Column Repair by Guniting:

Figure-7. Combination Slab and Beam Overlay With Beam

Enlargement.

Figure-5. Slab Strengthening: Concrete Overlay

5. Conclusion & Literature
Review
a. This paper presents a case study on establishing a
rehabilitation plan for a fire-damaged reinforced
concrete structure. A team of structural and material
researchers/engineers in concrete inspected the
structure in the earliest possible time after the fire, and
carried out both on-site and laboratory tests on the
damaged concrete and rebar. The following is the
conclusion of the study and the recommended
Figure-6. Beam strengthening: concrete overlay And section rehabilitation methods:
enlargement b. Through visual inspection of the structure, the mostly
damaged structural elements were identified as the
slabs d because they are located at the highest elevation
of the room where they are exposed to the highest
temperature during the fire.
c. The judgment from the visual inspection is supported
by the material test using the indicator method, where
the concrete beneath the surface proved to retain its
alkaline property for the girders, beams, walls, and
even for the slabs.
d. Strength tests on concrete cores and rebar coupons
obtained from the slabs, girders and beams showed that
the reinforcing bars in the slab had considerably

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Arun “Repair and Rehabilitation of Fireside Damaged Concrete Structure”, International Journal of Computer Engineering
In Research Trends, 7(6): pp:34-39 ,June -2020.

degraded in their structural capacity and therefore could

not be used any longer.
e. It is recommended that the slabs be replaced with new
ones, and the girders and beams be retrofitted. The
columns and walls only needs surface treatment
without a structural retrofit.
f. The decision about whether to rehabilitate and retrofit
the structure or to reconstruct after demolishing the
structure is influenced by many factors like technical,
financial, safety, physical, Etc.
g. Repair strategies should be planned based on the results
of evaluation phase and also various available
rehabilitation methods.
h. Current building design code specifications should be
considered

References
[1] "Handbook On repair and Rehabilitation of RCC
Buildings", Published by Director General (Works),
General Public Works Department, Government of
India, 2002.
[2] H.U. Zaman, "Retrofitting and Rehabilitation of
High Rise Fire Damaged Concrete Building",
Master Thesis, Study Course Construction and Real
Estate Management ,September 2014
[3] CPWD, India: Handbook of repair and
rehabilitation of R.C.C buildings. 2002,
[4] Concrete Society: Assessment, Design and Repair
of Fire-damaged Concrete Structures. Technical
Report No. 68. 2008
[5] http://www.engineeringcivil.com/visual-inspection-
of-concrete-structure.html
[6] Introduction to the fire safety engineering of
structures.2007
[7] Reinforced concrete jacketing of existing structures.
1992.

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