Influence of connection capacity on the behavior of floor systems under realistic fire loading

Steel buildings with composite floor systems are used extensively due to their economic and structural advantages. The current building codes (IBC, 2006) emphasize prescriptive fire design, which is based on the ASTM E119 (2005) standard fire test. The ASTM tests focuses on the fire resistance rating of isolated components and floor subassemblies. It does not include the effects of interactions with the surrounding structure. Additionally, the standard fire time-temperature T-t curve lacks a cooling phase, which can be a significant issue for connections.