TIMBER FRAME CONSTRUCTION FIRE RESISTANCE EVALUTION

In timber frame construction, a longitudinal groove with a thermal insulation is placed between two pieces of solid construction timber. In terms of fire resistance, this contact of two massive elements must meet the required criteria. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the criteria of thermal insulation and integrity of the longitudinal groove. The fire resistance, thermal insulation and integrity criteria were assessed on the basis of a medium-scale test. The theoretical approach is based on thestandard STN EN 13501-2:2016 and its follow-up standards. Some parts of the medium-scale test are different from the STN EN 1363-1 and STN 1365-1. Fire scenario of the medium-scale test is the standard time-temperature curve. Two timber frame constructions with different longitudinal groove, the longitudinal groove with polyurethane foam and the longitudinal groove with mineral wool insulation were subjected to thermal loading for 60 min. The integrity criterion was evaluated based on the visual inspection of the unexposed side of the test samples. The integrity criterion of the sample with mineral wool insulation and of the sample with polyurethane foam met the requirement for 60 min. The thermal insulation criterion was evaluated on the basis of the temperatures recorded by thermocouples. Tdhermal insulation met the requirement for 60 min.