is the top surface temperature (see
Designing concrete
mixes for increased
fire or heat resistance
Fire endurance can sometimes be doubled simply by
changing the mix
he fire resistance of a build-
T ing will hinge on many mat-
ters. These include the
building design, the materi-
als used in its construction, the
potential fire load created by mate-
rials stored or used in the building,
the kind of fire detection and extin-
guishing devices installed, the way
the building is used and main-
tained.
One factor that is seldom consid-
ered in striving for a high degree of
fire or heat resistance in a concrete
s t ru c t u re is the design of the con-
crete mixture itself. And yet, to
name just one example, a study has
shown that an appropriate change
in the type of aggregate used can
sometimes double the fire en-
durance of concrete.
Heat resistance
Before considering the contribu-
tion made to heat and fire en-
durance by each individual con-
crete ingredient it is worth
examining a few facts about con-
crete performance in general when
subjected to high temperatures. Fig-
ure 1 shows the effect of high tem-
peratures on compressive strength
of concretes made with three kinds
of aggregate. During heating each
specimen was loaded to 40 percent
of its original strength, then loaded
to failure at the temperature desig-
nated. The concretes underwent lit-
tle loss in strength up to tempera-
tures of about 900°F.
Water saturation of the concrete
also bears on the amount of spalling
that occurs during a fire. If the con-
crete contains a high water content
at the time it is exposed to fire its
tendency to spall may be increased.
On the other hand, when the water
content of a concrete is high, as in
some lightweight aggregate con-
cretes before they are dried, it was
found that a higher fire rating was
achieved in some instances. On the
side of the concrete test specimen
not exposed to fire the temperature
curve typically rises to 212°F and
levels off until the water in the sam-
ple is driven off. Then the tempera-
ture begins to rise again. The higher
the water content of the concrete
test specimen the longer it will stay
at the 212°F plateau. If the deter-
mining factor in the rating of a unit
Figure 1. Effect of aggregate type on the compressive strength of concrete
stressed during heating to 40 percent of original strength. (Average original
strength was 3900 psi.)
—From “Compressive Strength of Concrete at Temperatures to 1,600 F”, by M.S.
Abrams, a part of ACI Special Publication SP-25, Temperature and Concrete.
the article “What is a Standard Fire
Test?”) this extra time afforded by
the plateau could cause the unit to
receive a higher fire rating. To mini-
mize the likelihood that this will
happen ASTM E 119 was changed in
1959 to call for closer control of the
moisture content of concrete sam-
ples being fire tested.
Since tests of the effect of fire on
concrete strength are usually made
on small specimens—two- by four-
or four- by six-inch cylinders—in-
formation obtained can be some-
what misleading if several factors
are not kept in mind. Because the
specimens are small and subjected
to heat on all sides, they heat rapid-
ly. Therefore concrete in entire
specimen begins to deteri o ra t e
soon after the test is initiated. Under
actual fire conditions, on the other
hand, high temperatures are often
reached on only one face of a con-
crete unit. In addition, because con-
crete structural members are typi-
cally considerably thicker than test
specimens, it takes much longer for
concrete throughout the member to
be brought to the elevated tempera-
ture. It should also be remembered
that in an actual fire hardened con-
crete which is new and wet may not
p e rf o rm as well as more mature,
dried concrete.
 The water that has combined
with cement during hydration is dri-
ven off by high temperatures. Natu-
rally, this dehydration starts at the
concrete surface. Fo rt u n a t e l y, the
d e h yd rated concrete has even bet-
ter insulation value than normal
concrete. The result is that the heat-
ing of the interior, important por-
tion of a concrete structural mem-
ber is retarded.
A number of common applica-
tions in which concrete is exposed
to high temperatures over long peri-
ods of time under actual field condi-
tions also bear testimony to its good
performance at high temperatures.
There are concrete chimneys, for ex-
ample, that have performed well de-
spite being exposed to temperatures
up to 600°F for periods of 20 years.
Concrete in chimney linings has al-
so provided excellent service even
when exposed to 1,000°F. Concrete
made with aggregates of crushed
fire brick is used in fire test furnaces
that are heated to over 2,000°F and
maintained at that temperature for
hours.
Public utility companies report
good service from concrete heated
to 500°F in the foundations for nat-
ural gas compressors. Concrete in
beams supporting their boilers per-
forms well structurally even though
subjected to 700°F. At one station,
the concrete piers supporting a boil-
er floor were heated repeatedly to
950°F and yet no spalling or deteri-
oration showed.
In re f ra c t o ry concrete (concrete
designed for service at temperatures
in excess of 1,000°F) special ce-
ments and aggregates are frequent-
ly used to enhance its resistance to
extremely high temperatures. This is
a subject all to itself and is not in the
province of this article, which will
confine itself mainly to standard ce-
ments and mineral aggregates.
Whenever concrete is being de-
signed for resistance to fire or great
heat, the matters of curing, age at
time of exposure and saturation
must be taken into consideration.
But the data to be given here regard-
ing the contribution the ingredients
make to the resistance of concrete
to fire and heat must also be known
and applied if maximum perfor-
mance is to be achieved.
Cement
High alumina and, to a lesser de-
g re e, pozzolanic and blast furnace
slag cements have been shown to
deliver better heat resistance and
fire endurance than the standard
portland cements. Howe ve r, high
alumina cements are not widely
used in general concrete construc-
tion because of considerations of
expense, extremely rapid setting
characteristics, and loss of strength
at later ages. Spotty availability of
the pozzolanic and blast furnace
slag cements may limit their appli-
cation, but if they are available it is
advisable to employ them for high
temperature concrete.
The original water-cement ratio
in itself appears not to have a bear-
ing on the percentage reduction in
strength that will be experienced by
concrete in a fire.
As the cement paste undergoes
d e h yd ration, its response is to
shrink in an attempt to compensate
for this loss of water. Aggregates, on
the other hand, expand when sub-
jected to high tempera t u re s. This
contrary physical response—at dif-
ferent rates—sets up internal stress-
es and explains why a low aggre-
gate-cement ratio is desirable.
Aggregates
Crushed brick, charmottes,
corundum and other special aggre-
gates can be used for concrete to be
exposed to fire or high tempera-
t u re s. We are concerned here with
aggregates commonly used in gen-
eral concrete construction.
One of the important factors in
judging the performance of an ag-
gregate under high temperatures is
its contribution to spalling. The
great majority of comparative fire
tests have indicated that many
siliceous aggregates can cause
spalling; these aggregates have been
penalized in ratings.
American and British agencies
frequently divide aggregates into
two types: Type I includes all with
less than 30 percent free silica, Type
II includes all others. Aggregates in
the latter category (with higher sili-
ca) commonly receive a lower fire
resistance rating.
The American Insurance Associa-
tion classifies aggregates into two
groups for fire insurance purposes.
Another insurance classification
separates aggregates into four
groups on the basis of their physical
reactions to high temperatures. Ref-
erences to these classifications may
be found in various codes but fire
research of the past ten years makes
it appear that the groupings do not
furnish realistic or systematic guid-
ance for concrete mix design.
The practical classification of the
future may designate three groups:
carbonate, siliceous and sanded
lightweight aggregates.
Carbonate aggregates undergo
loss of carbon dioxide at tempera-
tures mainly in the ranges of 1320 to
1795°F for calcium carbonate and
1365°F to 1540°F for magnesium
carbonate. This chemical change
absorbs heat without correspond-
ing temperature rise. (About 80 per-
cent as much heat is consumed in
liberating this carbon dioxide as
would be consumed in evaporation
of the same weight of water at at-
mospheric pressure.) At the same
time it builds up a film of carbon
dioxide at the concrete surface to
produce an insulating layer, espe-
cially when the gas is being gener-
ated in considerable volume. This
further retards the rate of tempera-
ture rise. The net effect is better fire
endurance than is found in a con-
crete with siliceous aggregate. Small
disadvantages are that concrete
continues to flake off the affected
regions for some time after the fire
and that there is local loss of
strength.
Siliceous aggregates (those con-
taining silica) do not have this built-
in safeguard. In the past they have
also been faulted because of the ex-
pansion accompanying the silica in-
version which occurs at a tempera-
ture of about 1,600°F. The effect of
the silica inversion does not become
important in most fires, howe ve r,
Fire rating of cast-in-place floor slabs made from various aggregates
slab thickness, aggregate
inches used
4 Siliceous
3 Limestone
6 Traprock, limestone,
calcareous, siliceous
43⁄4 Air-cooled slag
6 Air-cooled slag
41⁄2 Expanded slag
(Test data from Underwriters’ Laboratories)
Figure 2. How the nature of the aggregate affects the fire
endurance of the concrete.
and it is likely that the main differ-
ences in fire endurance between
siliceous and carbonate aggregates
are ascribable to the benefits ob-
tained by driving off carbon dioxide
from the carbonate aggregates.
There is a possible counter advan-
tage offered by siliceous aggregates
in that they do not lose strength by
loss of carbon dioxide.
Lightweight aggregate with natur-
al sand as the fine aggregate is the
third useful class of aggregates in
terms of fire endurance. The coarse
aggregate has higher resistance to
heat flow than normal weight aggre-
gates and helps insulate the interior
and the unexposed surface against
rapid increase in temperature. It al-
so has higher water holding capaci-
ty than normal weight aggregate,
but the extent of its absorption
varies a great deal from one light-
weight aggregate to another.
concrete slabs made with va ri o u s
types of aggregates are compared.
reinforcement FIRE RATING
As can be seen, merely by switching
cover, inches HOURS
from a siliceous aggregate to an ex-
3
⁄4 1 panded slag it is possible to more
than double fire endurance of a
3
⁄4 1
floor slab.
1 3 A better idea of how much data
translate into actual fire ratings may
3
⁄4 21⁄2 be obtained from the comparison in
the table of fire ratings of cast-in-
1 4 place floor slabs made from various
3/4 4 aggregates, as conducted at Under-
w ri t e r s’ Labora t o ri e s. The table
makes it evident that the thickness
as well as the aggregate type of a
floor slab have a major bearing on
the fire rating it will achieve because
of the heat transmission require-
ments of ASTM E119.
To examine the relative influence
on fire ratings of slab thickness and
aggregate type refer to Figure 3.
With a fire endurance of three hours
for a goal, a 4.4-inch slab using ex-
panded slag would provide the
same endurance as a slab 6.2 inches
thick made with a siliceous aggre-
gate. Thus in cast-in-place concrete
s t ru c t u re wherever the slab thick-
ness can reasonably be reduced by
one-third by using a lightweight ag-
gregate a savings in slab weight can
be had with little or no change in
The comparative resistance of fire endurance. This savings in
various aggregate materials to heat weight could mean a marked reduc-
and fire, in terms of their volume tion in foundation costs. St ru c t u ra l
change, is illustrated by the follow- considerations are, of course, usual-
ing compilation of coefficients ly the overriding factor in deciding
of thermal expansion (expressed in on the thickness of a floor slab, but
millionths of an inch per inch as the current interest in fire resis-
per degree F) by the Bureau of tance continues to increase the fire
Reclamation: rating of a given slab may well be
worth additional thought.
Base Material Patented precast units must be
Basalts, gabbros 3.0 fire rated to gain wide acceptance
Marbles 3.9 and their weight is a large consider-
Limestones 4.4 ation in handling and transporting.
Granites, rhyolites 4.4 The depth and weight of these units
Sandstones 5.6 loom large in their commercial via-
Quartzites 6.1 bility.
This listing underlines the fact Water
that the higher the silica content of As already noted, water plays a
an aggregate, the greater will be its role in several aspects of fire resis-
coefficient of thermal expansion. tance. If the water content of hard-
In Figure 2 the fire test perfor- ened concrete is at saturation when
mances of 4 3/4-inch-thick solid the concrete is exposed to fire or

Figure 3. How fire endurance increases with slab thickness
for various aggregates.
great heat the water strongly affects
its performance. The original water-
cement ratio in itself has little or no
bearing on performance except to
the extent that it affects compres-
sive strength where strength is im-
portant.
In slabs and beams concrete
strength is of negligible importance
in determining a fire rating because
they usually fail from heat transmis-
sion. On the other hand, in fire tests
of columns the structural capacity is
usually what determines a fire rating
and consequently the concrete
strength is a significant factor.
In regard to water in concrete
mixtures for fire resistance, then, it
would be wise to keep water content
in the plastic concrete low, cure
thoroughly to achieve a high
strength and then thoroughly dry
the concrete before exposure to fire
or great heat.
Admixtures
In concrete designed specifically
for exposure to severe heat, finely
ground admixtures such as sodium
silicate (water glass) are sometimes
used to bind the free lime in con-
crete to increase the bond and
strength of the portland cement
paste. Plasticizing water reducing
admixtures have been reported to
be of help in increasing fire en-
durance by reducing shrinkage.
General guides to mix design
To sum up, if the designer of a
concrete mix wishes to achieve a
high degree of fire endurance in the
concrete itself without going to the
use of special refractory materials,
he should heed the following ad-
vice:
• Of the aggregates available, use the
one that exhibits the greatest sta-
bility at high temperatures.
• Use a low aggregate-cement ratio.
• If available, employ pozzolanic or
blast furnace slag cement.
• Design the mix for a strength in ex-
cess of what is structurally needed,
determining the increase in terms
of what is needed to endure the
greatest temperature anticipated.
• Cure the concrete long enough to
achieve the needed strength.
• Thoroughly dry the concrete be-
fore exposing it to fire or to really
great heat.
PUBLICATION #C740403
Copyright © 1974, The Aberdeen Group
All rights reserved