Fire performance of masonry under various testing methods

Masonry, as a construction material, is known to perform well under elevated temperatures, which makes it an attractive choice for structural applications. This superior performance is a reflection of its inert thermal characteristics, good stability, and slow degradation of mechanical properties. Still, and similar to other construction materials, masonry undergoes a series of temperature-dependent physio-chemical and phase changes once exposed to high temperatures. Such changes are determined through temperature-dependent material models often obtained by means of physical tests on representative masonry specimens. A deep dive into the open literature shows that not only we lack standardized pro-cedures for testing masonry under fire conditions, but existing researcher-derived methods vary signif-icantly. As a result, available temperature-dependent material models also vary given their sensitivity to testing parameters (i.e., set-ups, heating history etc.). It is primarily due to the aforenoted observations that we continue to lack a holistic understanding of the fire behavior of masonry which also extends to limiting advancements in performance-based design of masonry structures. In order to bridge this knowledge gap, this paper reviews commonly adopted fire testing methods on masonry and the wide scatter of corresponding temperature-dependent material models to provide researchers and practition-ers with much-needed knowledge that is currently missing in this domain. Findings from this review can then be used to develop modern and up-to-date temperature-dependent material models to facilitate the design of new masonry constructions or analysis of existing ones (including historical buildings). (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Masonry performs well under elevated temperatures, but standardized testing procedures for fire conditions are lacking, leading to a variety of temperature-dependent material models. As a result, there is a lack of comprehensive understanding of masonry fire behavior, hindering advancements in performance-based design of masonry structures.