Article

Evaluating Damaged Concrete Depth in Reinforced

Concrete Structures under Different Fire Exposure
Times by Means of NDT and DT Techniques
Totsawat Daungwilailuk1,a, Thi Nguyen Cao2,b,*, Withit Pansuk2,c,
and Phoonsak Pheinsusom2,d
1Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan
2 InnovativeConstruction Materials Research Unit, Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of
Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
E-mail: ad156057@hiroshima-u.ac.jp, bcaonguyenthi@tgu.edu.vn (Corresponding author),
cWithit.P@chula.ac.th, dPhoonsak.P@chula.ac.th

Abstract. After a severe fire, concrete structures are generally capable of being repaired
rather than demolished. To determine whether the fire-damaged structure can be repaired,
an assessment of structural integrity must be conducted. In this research, a laboratory
assessment of fire-damaged reinforced concrete (RC) slabs was carried out by using
Destructive Testing (DT) and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) techniques. The study
aimed to evaluate the depth of damaged concrete in RC slabs exposed to fire for different
periods of time (30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes) based on the correlation between the
experimental results of DT and NDT methods. The experiment was conducted with two
concrete grades of 24 and 35 MPa. Limestone aggregates were used in this study. The
experimental results indicated that 30 minutes of heating time did not show severe effects
on reinforced concrete slabs in comparison with the other cases. A damaged concrete layer
of 30 – 45 mm was observed for slabs exposed to fire in 60 and 90 minutes. Besides, 24
MPa slabs also showed a lower damage level compared with 35 MPa slabs.

Keywords: Fire-damaged concrete, destructive test, non-destructive test, Schmidt

rebound hammer, ultrasonic pulse velocity, pull-off test.

ENGINEERING JOURNAL Volume 21 Issue 7

Received 25 April 2017
Accepted 19 June 2017
Published 30 November 2017
Online at http://www.engj.org/
DOI:10.4186/ej.2017.21.7.233
DOI:10.4186/ej.2017.21.7.233

1. Introduction

1.1. Background

A deterioration in the properties of reinforced concrete (RC) structures occur when it subjected to fire. Of
particular importance are loss in compressive strength; loss of elastic modulus; cracking and spalling of the
concrete; reduction of yield strength, ductility and tensile strength of the steel; and loss of the bond between
the concrete and steel [1]. Although the concrete structure may be damaged during a fire, it can retain a
certain amount of residual load bearing capacity [2]. Therefore, repairing and strengthening the fire-damaged
structures can be an option as opposed to the costlier alternative of rebuilding the structure. To determine
whether a fire-damaged structure can be repaired or to evaluate the state of a member after exposure to fire
would require an investigation of its structural integrity.
Over the past few decades, a number of assessment techniques have been used to determine the
condition of concrete and the internal changes to the physical properties of the material after exposure to
high temperatures. The techniques include various methods such as a Schmidt Rebound Hammer, Ultrasonic
Pulse Velocity (UPV), Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA), Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA),
calorimetry, micro-crack density analysis, petrographic analysis, image analysis, and others [2]. These tests
employed in the assessment of fire-damaged structures can be divided into two types: in situ techniques and
laboratory tests. The situ techniques can be applied on the concrete surface by using Non-Destructive Testing
(NDT) methods such as UPV or a Schmidt Rebound Hammer. The advantages of in situ techniques are the
possibility to estimate a large area of a damaged building and the short time required to perform the tests.
Although they are convenient and practical, the information from NDT is limited in the depth of fire-
damaged layers inside the concrete. To successfully observe the damage depth, a laboratory test such as a
core drilled out of the concrete member is preferable. Valuable information can be determined on a core
such as the depth of the fire damage using petrographic analysis [3], color change analysis or determination
of the remaining loading capacity by compression testing.

1.2. The Response of Concrete to Fire

During a fire, the temperature in the concrete mass will rise, causing thermal expansion of the constituents,
evaporation of moisture, and buildup of pore pressure [4]. Two principal effects of fire on structural concrete
can be observed: (1) loss in strength of the matrix by degradation of the hydrate structure and (2) spalling
and “shelling” of the outermost concrete [5].
The physical effects and color change in concrete depend on the change in temperature. During heating
above 300°C, the color of concrete can change to pink (300-600°C) then to white/gray (600-900°C) and to
buff (900-1000°C) [6, 7]. When the temperature is between 100°C and 200°C, evaporation of free moisture
in concrete occurs, which can result in spalling due to high internal steam pressures. As the temperature
reaches 250°C, dehydration occurs. At 300°C, strength reduction occurs in the range of 15-40% and 55-70%
at 550°C because of calcium hydroxide dehydration [6, 8]. At temperatures of 550°C, aggregates begin to
deteriorate. Quartz in siliceous aggregates polymorphically changes with a volumetric expansion and
consequent damage. In limestone aggregate concrete, CaCO3 turns into CaO at 800-900°C, and further
expands with temperature [9].
Spalling is often mentioned as an important consequence in post fire evaluation of structural concrete
exposed to fire. Spalling is the breaking-off of layers of the concrete surface in response to applied heat [5].
It may cause the loss of sections of concrete elements or create fire damage depth on exposed surfaces while
reducing the protective ability of the reinforcement. Concrete spalling is attributed to the loss in tensile
strength of concrete at high temperatures [10] and could be grouped into the following categories: aggregate
spalling, corner spalling, surface spalling and explosive spalling [11]. All forms of concrete spalling may cause
fire resistance failure through loss of load-bearing capacity or loss of integrity [12].

1.3. The Response of Concrete to Fire

Assessment of concrete usually starts with visual observation of color change, crazing, cracking and spalling
[13]. In this study, visual observation in an assessment of fire-damaged slabs includes the investigation of
concrete spalling areas as well as the change of color on the surface. The assessment with NDT techniques

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are carried out using Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity and the Schmidt Rebound Hammer method to quickly
estimate the state of fire damage to the structure and the degradation depth of the concrete. Moreover, the
evaluation from pull-off testing and cores samples from the fire-damaged members supply data to verify the
results of the NDT techniques.

1.4. The Objectives

This research aims to evaluate the depth of damaged concrete layers under different burning time by means
of NDT and DT applied to RC slabs. These experimental results can be useful in supplying data for other
studies that aim to repair and strengthen fire-damaged reinforced concrete slabs.

2. Experimental Program

The tests were conducted in the Fire Safety Research Center and the Concrete Laboratory at Chulalongkorn
University, Bangkok, Thailand. The experimental program consisted of two parts: fire tests on RC slabs and
the assessment of specimens after fire.

2.1. Material Properties and Specimen Configuration

Reinforced concrete slabs were designed under standard ACI 318-08 [14] and cast in the Concrete Laboratory
for a total number of 10 specimens. The design of the slabs is shown in Fig. 1. Ready mixed concrete was
used with two concrete grades of 24 and 35 MPa. The concrete was made with limestone aggregate as this is
the usual aggregate used in Thailand. The slabs had dimensions of 1,000x900x150 mm and were reinforced
longitudinally with 10 mm diameter steel bars. Only one side in each slab was exposed to fire. Among the
specimens, two were used as control specimens while the others were subjected to fire. The details of all
specimens are shown in Table 1.

Fig. 1. The design of the RC slabs.

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Table 1. Details of specimens.

Specimen No. Concrete grade (MPa) Fire time (minutes) Concrete cover (mm)
S240002 24 0 20
S240302 24 30 20
S240602 24 60 20
S240902 24 90 20
S241202 24 120 20
S350002 35 0 20
S350302 35 30 20
S350602 35 60 20
S350902 35 90 20
S351202 35 120 20

2.2. Fire Test

The conditions of the fire test were operated under ASTM E119 standard [15]. The specimens were cured
for 1 month before testing in a furnace. To evaluate the effect of heating time, the slabs were divided into
four groups corresponding to fire exposure times of 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes. In every specimen, five sides
were covered by high temperature insulation consisting of ceramic fiber wool to ensure that only one surface
would be exposed to the fire (Fig. 2). Moreover, the thermocouples were also installed at four different depths
(0, 25, 75 and 125 mm) from the exposure surface to record the temperature during the test.

Ceramic Fiber
Wool

Fig. 2. Slabs were covered in ceramic fiber wool on 5 sides before the test.

2.3. Assessment of Fire Damage with Non-Destructive Testing

2.3.1. Visual inspection

After the fire test, all of the specimens were moved from the furnace and stored at room temperature for
three days. The first assessment consisted of a visual observation for every slab to determine the degree of
damage to the exposure surfaces. This evaluation was performed by using a transparent plastic plate as shown
in Fig. 3. The plastic plate had dimensions of 60x60 cm and was divided into 144 small rectangles with
dimensions of 5x5 cm. Using this method, the area of concrete spalling could be drawn on the plastic plate
before being calculated. In this research, the degree of damage on exposure surface was quantified based on
the criterion:
Damage degree = As / Ac (1)

where As is the area of concrete spalling on the exposure surface and Ac is the total area of the concrete
surface before testing.

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Fig. 3. Transparent plastic plate on exposure surface.

2.3.2. Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV)

Following the visual inspection, UPV testing was performed to measure the depth of the fire-damaged
concrete layer. This test was conducted under standard ACI 228.2R-98 [16] based on the following principle:
the speed of propagation of stress waves depends on the density and the elastic constants of the solid. The
fire-damaged layer has a lower wave speed than the underlying non-damaged concrete. This test can be
depicted as shown in Fig. 4. The method assumes that the stress waves’ arrival at the receiver occurs along
two paths: Path 1, which is directly through the damaged concrete, and Path 2, which is through the damaged
and the non-damaged concrete. For small separations, the travel time is shorter for Path 1, while for large
separations, the travel time is shorter for Path 2. By plotting the travel time as a function of the distance X,
the presence of the damaged surface layer is indicated by a change in the slope of the data. The depth of the
damaged layer is found from the following:

X0 Vs −VD
d= √V +V (2)
2 S D

where X0 is the distance in which the travel times for the two paths are equal and is found from the
intersection of the straight lines in Fig. 4 (b). VS and VD are the wave speeds in the damaged and the non-
damaged concrete.
In this experiment, the UPV test was performed with a frequency of 54 kHz and the measured positions
were marked by lines with intervals of 100 mm. Data were collected both forwards and backwards in each
line (Fig. 5).

Fig. 4. (a) Wave paths for ultrasonic testing on surface of concrete with a damaged surface layer; and
(b) Travel time as a function of distance between transmitter and receiver [16].

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Fig. 5. UPV test on fire-damaged slabs.

2.3.3. Schmidt rebound hammer

Another NDT method, the Schmidt Rebound Hammer, was performed on the fire-damaged surface to
determine the surface hardness of the concrete in each slab. The test was carried out on six locations of each
slab and 16 testing points were recorded on each location (Fig. 6). This test was conducted based on standard
ASTM C805 / C805M-13a [15].

Fig. 6. Schmidt rebound hammer test.

2.4. Assessment of Fire Damage with Destructive Testing

Two other destructive tests, coring tests and pull-off tests, were conducted to give supplementary data that
could be useful for providing more information about the state of the concrete in the fire-damaged
specimens.

2.4.1. Coring test

To determine the depth of color change due to fire exposure, a coring test was conducted. Although the
method consists of expensive and time consuming operations, cores give reliable and useful results because
they are mechanically tested to destruction [17]. The test was performed under standard ASTM C 42/C 42M-
03 [18] and four concrete cores with a diameter of 50 mm were drilled in each slab.

2.4.2. Pull-off test

This test was performed based on standard ASTM C1583-04 [19] to evaluate the tensile strength at three
depth levels of 10, 20 and 30 mm on the exposure side. In each slab, nine positions were located and divided
into three groups that corresponded with three depth levels (Fig. 7). Then, the concrete in each group was
carefully removed using a drilling machine operated until the maximum level of its cutting depth, as shown
in Fig. 8. All of the new surfaces after cutting were grinded to prepare for the pull-off test (Fig. 9). A 50 mm
diameter circular steel disk was attached to the new surface by epoxy adhesive (Fig. 10). The force required
to pull the disc from the concrete surface by hand-operated loading equipment was measured and calculated
to obtain the tensile strength.

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Fig. 7. The positions were located for the pull-off test.

Fig. 8. Removing concrete via drilling machine.

Fig. 9. Smoothing the surface of concrete.

(a) (b)

Fig. 10. Installing pull-off test: (a) the steel disk; (b) the tensile loading device.

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3. Test Results and Discussions

3.1. The Distribution of Highest Temperature

The maximum temperature at the exposure surface and three other depth levels (25, 75, 125 mm) in each
specimen are reported in Table 2. Moreover, the change of the highest temperature on the depth of concrete
is represented in Fig. 11 and Fig. 12. Due to the breaking of thermocouples in the depths of 75 and 125 mm,
the values of maximum temperature at these positions were not recorded in the case of slab S351202.
However, it could be observed in all specimens that temperature generally reduced corresponding to
increased depth from the exposure surface as concrete is a poor conductor of heat [5], due to its
incombustible nature and its low thermal diffusivity, which guarantee a slow propagation of thermal transients
within the structural members [20].
In all cases, the increase of fire exposure time led to the increase of temperature at every evaluating
location. However, the increase became significant as the time surpassed 60 minutes. At the depth of 25 mm,
the temperature increased 30°C as the fire exposure time reached 60 minutes compared with the heat increase
at 30 minutes. Meanwhile, the heat increased more than 250°C as the time rose over 90 minutes in comparison
with the heating time of 30 minutes. This change was observed in both series of 24 and 35 MPa concrete.
Regarding to the alteration of temperature on further depth, the heat dropped through concrete over 25
mm with a reduction of approximately 600°C. Nevertheless, the decrease became smaller at deeper levels.

Table 2. The maximum temperature recorded at the fire exposure surface.

The depth Specimen Maximum temperature Specimen Maximum temperature

(mm) No. (°C) No. (°C)
0 803 881
25 108.6 125.7
S240302 S350302
75 46.3 49.7
125 45.2 48.7
0 799 868
25 129.1 175.5
S240602 S350602
75 127.5 123.7
125 84.1 117.5
0 949 953
25 358.4 314.2
S240902 S350902
75 131 196.8
125 130.7 134.7
0 1015 1035
25 446.8 437.9
S241202 S351202
75 188.8 -
125 150 -

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The depth from exposure surface (mm)

20

40

60
S240302
80
S240602
S240902
100
S241202
120

140
1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0
The maximum temperature (oC)

Fig. 11. The maximum temperature recorded at different depth levels for the 24 MPa slab.

0
The depth from exposure surface (mm)

20

40

60
S350302
80
S350602
S350902
100
S351202
120

140
1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

The maximum temperature (oC)

Fig. 12. The maximum temperature recorded at different depth levels for the 35 MPa slab.

3.2. Non-Destructive Test

3.2.1. Visual inspection

The assessment began with visual observation of color change, cracking and spalling of the concrete surface.
It was observed that cracks appeared on exposure surface in all slabs and the spalling area was larger on
specimens that had longer fire exposure times (Table 3). Based on the data from the thermocouples on the
exposed surfaces, all of the specimens were heated to over 800°C. At this temperature, the cracks became
very pronounced and increased extensively at 1000°C [9]. After exposure to the fire, the exposure surfaces
showed a brighter color due to the limestone. At temperatures above 700°C, carbonate aggregate decomposes
into CaO and CO2 resulting in brighter colors due to the lime’s whitish tint [21].
The second visual inspection determines the degree of damage on the exposure surfaces using a
transparent plastic plate as mentioned above. The area of spalling was reported (Table 4) and compared with
the control specimens in order to estimate the change caused by high temperatures. Next, an evaluation on
the effect of fire exposure time to the degree of damage were drawn in Fig. 13. The graph shows that the
increase in fire exposure time led to a raise in the degree of damage on the concrete surface. The area of
spalling was not much different in the slabs exposed to fire for 30 and 60 minutes. Obtained values were less
than 6%, while the results from the other specimens were more than six times higher. A remarkable increase
was recorded for the slabs exposed to fire for more than 90 minutes. This could be explained by the high

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temperatures impacting the slabs in cases of long fire exposure time as recorded in the profile of temperature
distribution mentioned above.
The longer exposure time, the more spalling was observed on concrete surface, especially for samples
with more than 90 minutes of exposure time. Meanwhile, the slabs with a heating time of 30 minutes exhibited
the lowest values of damage. Another observation showed that the 35 MPa slabs exhibited a higher degree
of damage than the 24 MPa slabs in all cases of exposure time. It is possible that the higher concrete grade
specimens could be denser and therefore this might stop the water vapor inside the concrete from escaping
from the concrete mass, which increases the susceptibility of spalling under fire conditions [22].

Table 3. The observation on fire exposed surface of specimens.

S240002 S240302 S240602 S240902 S241202

S350002 S350302 S350602 S350902 S351202

Table 4. The degree of damage on the surface exposed to fire.

Specimen No. The damage degree (%) Specimen No. The damage degree (%)
S240002 - S350002 -
S240302 0 S350302 3.3
S240602 4.5 S350602 5.7
S240902 12.3 S350902 43.1
S241202 72.6 S351202 83.6

100

24 MPa
80
35 MPa
The damage degree (%)

60

40

20

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Fire exposure time (minutes)

Fig. 13. The effect of fire exposure time to the damage degree.

3.2.2. Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) test

The results from the UPV test showed that the intersection of the straight lines, corresponding with two
paths as mentioned above, can be observed for specimens S240902 and S350902 as shown in Fig. 14.
Therefore, the depths of fire-damaged layers calculated using Eq. (2) were 34.1 mm (S230902) and 56.1 mm

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(S350902). In contrast, only a straight line was observed in the graphs of control specimens (S240002 and
S350002) since there were not damaged concrete layers in these cases (Fig. 14). In the other slabs, the
intersection between the straight lines matching with two wave paths was not clearly observed. Consequently,
values of the damaged concrete depth were not calculated for the slabs exposed to fire for 30, 60 and 120
minutes.

Fig. 14. Results of the UPV test.

3.2.3. Schmidt rebound hammer test

After testing by UPV, another situ technique (the Schmidt Rebound Hammer test) was used to determine
the surface hardness of the concrete after fire exposure based on the rebound number recorded. The results
of this test are reported in Table 5 and Fig. 15 in terms of the correlation between the rebound number and
fire exposure time. In case of control specimens for the 24 and 35 MPa slabs, the values of the rebound
number were 35.9 and 40.1. Based on the chart in Fig. 15, the rebound number in two series of slabs decreased
when the heating time was longer than 30 minutes. The lowest values obtained for the rebound number were
below 30 in the slabs with a fire exposure time of 120 minutes.
As a result, longer fire exposure times resulted in lower rebound numbers, indicating more decrease in
the concrete strength. These results were compatible with visual observation as the specimens with a long
heating time showed higher degrees of damage on the concrete surface. Moreover, Fig. 16 shows the
remaining rebound number (in percentage) of heated slabs compared to the results of control specimens.
The results from the 35 MPa slabs were lower than the values obtained from the 24 MPa slabs. This indicates
that the hardness of the surface on the 35 MPa slabs is lower than the 24 MPa slabs after fire exposure, which
is similar to the results of the degree of damaged observed on the surface of the slabs as mentioned above.

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Table 5. The results of the Schmidt rebound hammer test.

Specimen No. Rebound Percentage Specimen No. Rebound Percentage

Number Change (%) Number Change (%)
S240002 35.9 100.0 S350002 40.1 100.0
S240302 36.2 100.8 S350302 37.4 93.3
S240602 33.1 92.2 S350602 34.0 84.8
S240902 30.4 84.7 S350902 30.9 77.1
S241202 28.6 79.7 S351202 29.7 74.1

42
24 MPa
40 35 MPa

38
Rebound number

36

34

32

30

28
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Fire exposure time (minutes)

Fig. 15. The correlation between rebound number and fire exposure time.
The remaining rebound hammer number (%)

120
24 MPa
100 35 MPa

80

60

40

20

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Fire exposure time (minutes)

Fig. 16. The remaining rebound hammer number (%).

3.3. Destructive Test

3.3.1. Coring test

To determine the depth of fire damage in the concrete layer, in addition to UPV testing, a coring test was
performed to complement the data of color change in concrete due to fire. In normal conditions without
exposing to fire, the color of the concrete is light gray. However, after heating above 300°C, the color can
change from normal to pink (300-600°C) then to whitish gray (600-900°C) and finally to buff (900-1000°C)
[6]. In this work, the color change on the coring specimens was estimated based on simple visual observation

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by eye and without using any special equipment. The observation aimed to distinguish the areas where the
color of the concrete changed. This could demonstrate the parts that sustained high temperatures, which
would lead to the change of components inside the concrete. Thus, concrete strength on those parts would
be degraded.
In this test, concrete cores (diameter of 50 mm) were drilled in each slab in order to measure the depth
of color change inside the specimens (Fig. 17). The values are reported in Table 6. Based on the observation
of color change in the concrete cores, the depth of color change increased as the fire time increased. With
respect to the slabs fired in 30 minutes, the values were very small. Thus, it could be determined that a fire
exposure time of 30 minutes did not result in much change inside the concrete.

(a) (b)

Fig. 17. Observation of the depths of color change in slabs 24 MPa (a) and 35 MPa (b).

Table 6. The depths of color change recorded.

Specimen No. Depths of Color Change (mm) Specimen No. Depths of Color Change (mm)
S240002 (A) 0 S350002 (A) 0
S240302 (B) <5 S350302 (B) <5
S240602 (C) 35 S350602 (C) 29
S240902 (D) 45 S350902 (D) 42
S241202 (E) 150 S351202 (E) 150

Moreover, referring to the temperature profile in Fig. 11 and Fig. 12, the specimens that were heated for
90 and 120 minutes shoed a temperature of over 300°C at a depth of 0 – 60 mm from exposure surface.
When heating concrete above 300°C, the color of concrete can change [6]. Therefore, the observation of the
depth of color change in coring test was appropriate with the temperature obtained.
Meanwhile, the color change was observed in whole positions on concrete cores from the slabs heated
in 120 minutes. Consequently, longer fire time such as more than 90 minutes could make change of
components in all concrete parts of the slab even for the location far from exposure surface.

3.3.2. Pull-off test

The results from pull-off test in each slab are reported in Table 7. Except for the control specimens which
were only tested at the surface, the test was carried out at four depth levels (0, 10, 20, 30 mm from the
surface). Fig. 18 and Fig. 19 represent the values of pull-off strength obtained in the 24 MPa and 35 MPa
slabs.

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Table 7. The results of pull-off test.

Pull-off Strength (MPa)

Specimen No.
At surface of slab At 10 mm At 20 mm At 30 mm
S240002 2.55 N/A N/A N/A
S240302 2.00 2.32 3.50 3.57
S240602 0.86 0.94 0.94 1.17
S240902 0.81 0.70 0.71 0.75
S241202 0.36 0.56 0.66 0.65
S350002 3.55 N/A N/A N/A
S350302 1.32 1.48 2.41 2.45
S350602 0.44 0.93 1.33 1.82
S350902 0.41 0.92 1.19 1.26
S351202 0.37 0.41 0.64 0.85

4
Fire time = 30 minutes
Fire time = 60 minutes
Fire time = 90 minutes
Fire time = 120 minutes
Pull-off strength (MPa)

3 Control specimen (Test at surface)

0
0 mmm 10 mm 20 mm 30 mm
The depth of position for testing

Fig. 18. The effect of fire exposure time to the pull-off strength in specimens of 24 MPa.

4
Pull-off strength (MPa)

3
Fire time = 30 minutes
Fire time = 60 minutes
Fire time = 90 minutes
2 Fire time = 120 minutes
Control specimen (Test at surface)

0
0 mmm 10 mm 20 mm 30 mm
The depth of position for testing

Fig. 19. The effect of fire exposure time to the pull-off strength in specimens of 35 MPa.

From those figures, it can be seen that the pull-off strengths achieved in specimens with fire exposure
time of 30 minutes were significantly higher than the other specimens. This occurred at all of depth levels in
both concrete grades. Therefore, the long exposure time (of more than 30 minutes) causes a serious decrease
in tensile strength of concrete with the lowest strength value obtained after the longest heating time (120

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minutes). In general, at each depth level, the pull-off strengths decreased corresponding with the increase in
fire exposure time.
In addition, an increase in the pull-off strength at further depth levels was observed for each case of fire
time. This is due to the decreased detrimental effect of fire at positions farther from the exposure surface as
the temperature decreased at deeper concrete layers, as recorded by the thermocouple. Considering the 24
MPa specimens with a heating time of 30 minutes, the pull-off strength at the surface and a depth of 10 mm
were lower than the results obtained from the control specimen. However, higher values were recorded at
the depths of 20 and 30 mm. On the other hand, the pull-off strengths at all evaluated depths of 35 MPa
slabs were lower than the value of control specimens.

3.4. Evaluation of the Fire-Damaged Depth

For the purpose of repairing slabs exposed to fire, the damaged concrete layer should be determined and
replaced by new material. Following the guide of fib Bulletin 46, the tensile strength of the new concrete
layers should be assessed, and pull-off testing can be used, where the minimum value for the pull-off strength
of the concrete substrate is 1.5 MPa [20]. Thus, in combination with the depth of color change and the
damaged depth predicted from UPV testing, the minimum depth of deteriorated layer that should be removed
(h) for each slab could be estimated.
However, UPV testing did not provide reliable data due to the lack of values for the damaged depth
calculated from the test. Based on the experiment in this study, it is strongly recommended to conduct pull-
off testing and core testing in order to evaluate the damaged concrete depth due to fire. The values of h are
reported in Table 8 for each fire exposure time.

Table 8. The damaged depth that should be removed.

Slab 24 MPa Slab 35 MPa

The depth (mm) The depth (mm)
Fire time The depth of The depth of
where pull-off h where pull-off h
(Minutes) color change color change
strength reaches 1.5 (mm) strength reaches 1.5 (mm)
(mm) (mm)
MPa MPa
30 <5 NO 5 <5 20 mm 20
60 35 Deeper than 30 mm 35 29 30 mm 30
90 45 Deeper than 30 mm 45 42 Deeper than 30 mm 42
120 150 Deeper than 30 mm 150 150 Deeper than 30 mm 150

4. Conclusions

The following conclusions can be drawn from the present study:

The longer the fire exposure time, the higher degree of damage on the exposure surface. However, 30
minutes of heating time did not show severe effects on reinforced concrete slabs in comparison with the
cases of 60, 90 and 120 minutes of fire exposure time.
Regarding to the compressive strength of concrete after fire, testing was conducted on the surface of
slabs using the Schmidt Rebound Hammer method. 24 MPa specimens obtained higher values than 35 MPa
slabs. Moreover, 24 MPa slabs also showed a lower degree of damage on the exposure surface.
To determine the depth of the damaged concrete layer that should be removed, a comparison of the
results from UPV, pull-off tests and coring tests was carried out. The study recommends not using only UPV
testing to calculate the damaged concrete depth. Pull-off testing in combination with the observation of
coring specimens should be carried out to provide reliable values for purposes such as strengthening or
repairing structure.
Based on these results, the influence of fire on 24 MPa slabs with 30 minutes of heating time was not
serious and the damaged depth was insignificant. Therefore, repairing the slab in this case might only require
the renewing of the surface exposed to fire. However, a damaged layer of 20 mm should be removed for 35
MPa slabs having same fire exposure time.
A damaged concrete layer of 30 - 35 mm was observed for slabs exposed to fire for 60 minutes. At 90
minutes exposure time, values of 45 and 42 mm of damage depths were obtained for with 24 and 35 MPa

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slabs. Especially as heating time increased over 120 minutes, it could make more serious effect to whole
concrete area of the slab.
The experimental data in this study could be used as a reference for works aiming to repair RC slab
structures after fire exposure. If the slab expose to fire longer than 30 minutes, it is necessary to replace a
damaged concrete layer that can be determined by NDT and DT techniques as mentioned above. On the
other hand, lower concrete grade slab showed lower damage level based on the experimental in this research.
In further research, the effect of concrete covers should be considered to propose an effective value for
RC slab to diminish loss and increase the potential for reusing the structure.

Acknowledgment

The authors acknowledge the support provided by Retrofit Structure Specialist Co., Ltd. The authors would
also like to acknowledge the support received from Chulalongkorn University with a scholarship of the CU-
ASEAN program and “Stimulus Package 2 (SP2) of Ministry of Education under the theme of “Green
Engineering for Green Society” of Thailand.

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