Numerical investigations on the thermo-mechanical behavior of steel-to-timber joints exposed to fire

A three-dimensional finite element model is developed to predict the thermo-mechanical behavior of steel-to-timber doweled joints in tension parallel to grain exposed to fire. To manage the plastic yielding of the materials, the mechanical model is based on the von Mises criterion for steel and the Hill criterion for timber. In fire, the material characteristics depend on the temperature. Two different meshes are used for the thermal and the thermo-mechanical models. The thermal model is continuous, to take account of the thermal continuity between the joint components. The thermo-mechanical model is discontinuous, to consider the contact evolution between the joint components. The thermal model is used to predict the evolution of the temperature field inside the joint which depend on the gas temperature. It is validated on the basis of measured temperatures during fire tests. The complex transformations in wood during fire are represented by apparent values of thermo-physical characteristics proposed in the bibliography and calibrated on the basis of the experimental measurements. The mechanical model is validated by comparison with the experimental results of joints in normal conditions. The thermo-mechanical model is validated by considering the experimental failure times of some joints. The numerical models showed a good capacity to simulate the behavior of the timber joints in cold and in fire situations. These developed and tested models can be used as a general tool to analyze the behavior of a large variety of joint configurations to constitute a data base that can be used in safe and economic practice of fire engineering of wood joints.

► A three-dimensional finite element model is developed to simulate the behavior of steel-to-timber joints in fire.
► The model is validated by comparison with test results in normal and fire conditions.
► The thermal model predicts the evolution of the temperature inside the joint well.
► The Hill criterion used for timber in fire represents the plastic behavior of the joint well.
► The thermo-mechanical model predicts the time to failure of the joints in fire well.