Tunnel Fire Project
Investigators
Students: Nan Hua, PhD
Project description
Major tunnel fires can have catastrophic consequences, including loss of life, property damage, and service disruptions. The objective of this project is to establish fire damage to reinforced concrete tunnel liners using numerical modeling and experimental testing. Researchers at UB performed large-scale furnace testing as well as finite element modeling to test and simulate the effects of fire scenario, soil conditions, etc. on the fire performance of tunnel liners. The outcomes of this project can be used to develop guidelines for the design of fire protection systems to improve the serviceability of concrete lining and resilience of a tunnel structure.
This project is funded by the Institute of Bridge Engineering (IBE), Region II University Transportation Center. The project team includes fire engineer Negar Elhami-Khorasani, geotechnical engineer Anthony Tessari, and their PhD student Nan Hua.
Hear more about the project
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2021). “Characterizing damage in a concrete lining during a tunnel fire,” Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, 109.
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2021). “A review of tunnel fire damage assessment methods and techniques,” Transportation Research Record, http://doi.org/10.1177/0361198120987228
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2020). “Quantifying uncertainties in the temperature-time evolution of railway tunnel fires,” Fire Technology, 57: 361-392, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10694-020-01007-8.
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2021). “Tunnel Fire Damage Assessment: A Review,” Proceedings of the 100th Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., January 21-22 and 25-29 (presented online due to COVID-19).
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2020). “Damage assessment framework for tunnel structures under fire.” Proceedings of 11th International Conference on Structures in Fire, Queensland, Australia, Nov. 30 – Dec. 2.
- Hua, N., Tessari, A., Elhami Khorasani, N. (2019). “Design fire scenarios for railway tunnel fires.” Proceedings of the IABSE Congress, New York City, NY, September 2-6.
- Enhancing the resilience of tunnels subject to fire events.” AASHTO Committee on Bridges and Structures Annual Meeting, Co-Presented: Professor Anthony Tessari and Professor Negar Elhami Khorasani, July 2021.
- Enhancing the resilience of tunnels subject to fire events.” Webinar presented as part of Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation (CAIT) Seminar Series at Rutgers University. Co-Presented: Professor Anthony Tessari and Professor Negar Elhami Khorasani, February 2021.
Awards
Nan Hua won the SEAS Dean's Graduate Achievement Award in 2021 for work associated with this project.
