Behaviour of End-Plate Connections in 3D Frames Under Fire Conditions: Experimental Study

Due to high vulnerability of steel structures to elevated temperatures and the need for taking adequate and effective measures to reduce human and financial losses in fires, a thorough understanding of such behaviour is of utmost importance. In this research, a half-scale 3D model, comprising moment-resisting frames, equipped with flush end-plate connections, in one direction, and braced frames in the other, was subjected to a scaled ISO 834 standard fire. The maximum attained temperature was 1055 °C. The results showed that the structure tolerates high temperatures for an appreciable amount of time before collapsing. Moreover, for thick flush end-plates, which were used in this study, the collapse was initiated by bolt failure, giving rise to the idea of using more/stronger bolts and weaker end-plates to delay the overall collapse of the structure.