HIGH-TEMPERATURE PROPERTIES OF STAINLESS-STEEL FOR BUILDING STRUCTURES

This paper reports high-temperature properties of stainless steel for structural use in comparison with conventional carbon steels. Because of the elements contained, stainless steel retains strength at high te mperatures. Through high-temperature tensile tests, Young's modulus te sts and creep tests, the constitutive equations for a fire-safe design relating to the stress-strain and creep strain-time relationships at high temperatures were formulated. It was made clear that stainless st eels have relatively large work-hardening of stress-stain curves at hi gh temperatures after the strain surpasses the elastic limit and there by the fire resistance of stainless steel frames is considered to be e xcellent. Also, high-temperature thermal constants such as the thermal expansion rate and the heat transfer rate were measured, and it was m ade clear that these properties should be taken into account upon fire -safe design. Through these studies, it became possible to simulate th ermal and structural behavior of stainless-steel frames during fire.