Presentation and Topics

Scope of the workshop

Controlling the sensitivity of concrete to its spalling behavior during fire exposure is one of today's major issues in the design and construction of concrete structures. Fires – such as the Channel tunnel fire – have demonstrated that spalling of concrete can have serious structural and economical consequences and is a phenomenon that should be taken into account when designing for fire.

Developments in concrete mix design have lead to new types of concrete - such as high strength, ultra-high strength and self-compacting concrete – which, besides an increased structural performance, have also shown a different sensiti vity to spalling due to fire exposure. However, until now the sensitivity to spalling of concrete as a structural material is not fully understood.

More research is needed to understand the mechanisms governing spalling of concrete in order to be able to quantify the risk and consequence of spalling in a given situation.

This third workshop will focus on spalling of concrete due to fire exposure with emphasize on performance from the material to the structure. Real life experiences and observations, practical applications, developments in experimental testing, numerical modeling and design recommendations will be addressed. The workshop aims to obtain the current state of the art, to exchange results and to stimulate discussion between researchers and representatives from the industry.

The main topics that are selected for the workshop are based on recent achievements and advancements in theoretical and experimental research together with progress made in the field of fire design of concrete structures. Therefore, contributions will address the understanding of underlying processes, key properties and global behaviour of spalling under various conditions. Of special interest are those topics related to recent advances in numerical modeling in combination with experimental testing at the materials and structures level.

Finally, the workshop will be a forum for academia, industry, companies, consultants and governmental organizations to discuss research questions and practical applications related to spalling of concrete. Representatives will be invited to report on special topics (real life experience, practical application, national versus international codes and regulations, etc.) in order to share and discuss their experiences.

Topics

• Experimental investigation of spalling mechanisms
• Innovative experimental techniques
• Quantification of gas and liquid pore pressures
• Spalling assessment for large scale structures
• Ageing effects on spalling
• Refractory concrete and spalling behavior
• Fire performance of low environmental impact concrete
• Toward standardizations of experimental testing for evaluation of spalling risk
• Heat and mass transfer mechanisms
• Advanced modeling for spalling risk assessment
• Engineering modeling of spalling and practical applications
• Measures to reduce or prevent spalling: Structural design & Innovative materials
• Repair and rehabilitation techniques of spalling damaged concrete structures
• Technical and economical feedback and recommendations from fire safety practice: Design offices, Fire brigades, Authorities.
• (Inter)national safety regulations with regard to fire spalling issues.
• Report from activities of technical committees: Rilem, fib...