Hi, does anyone know where i can find more about this topic ? fire resistant steels for structural applications. thanks
There is a chemical that is used presently that is sprayed onto steel beams called Monocoat. Its a form of insulation that gives steel protection for up to 2 hours I think. Hope that helps!
Gavin, the danger posed by steel columns and girders during a fire in a building, is not the danger of the steel melting but of the steel expanding and snapping the bolts that hold all of the steel together. Very high temperatures can be achieved in a building fire because the up-draft caused by the rising hot air, delivers a massive amount of oxygen to the burning carpet, paper and furniture. When a steel frame office tower burns, the heat expands the steel and snaps the bolts. This causes the building to fall-down and not necessarily, burn-down. I am too lazy to look-up the melting point of steel but it is not very high. That is one reason for the columns and girders in steel framed buildings, to be covered in asbestos (which is a fatally toxic material) or magnesium di-oxide.
In the fire protection world, we do not consider steel fire resistant. Of course it doesn't burn under ordinary conditions, but it lose strength as it is heated. As has been mentioned, there are coatings which insulate steel to enable it to withstand high ambient temperatures for a long time. Construction using this method is called fire resistive construction.
