The occurrence of a fire may often result in loss of serviceability and/or the collapse of a structure. Economic damage, and more importantly loss of life, are major risks. Engineers are obliged to certify structural safety, to provide sufficient time to evacuate and await the arrival of emergency services. Codes and standards help engineers with rules for assessing fire safety. However, these rules do not necessarily guarantee optimal design, or are applicable to all types of structures. In these cases, numerical analysis becomes indispensable.
During fire, thermal strains develop within the structure, these add to strains from mechanical loading, shrinkage and creep. Materials also undergo thermal degradation of their mechanical properties, this may result in damage to the structure: cracking in concrete and plastification in steel. DIANA offers all of the necessary analysis functionality to assess structural behavior under fire, also taking into account pre-existing structural damage due, for example, to an earthquake.
In addition to the structural fire analysis data and specifications below, see also the general technical information. Our range of brochures are also available for download. Or, if you have a specific question about DIANA that you would like to ask, please use the webform.
