Coal fly ash-containing sprayed mortar for passive fire protection of steel sections

Abstract

The present article addresses the possible use of coal fly ash as the chief component of sprayed mortars to fireproof steel structures. A pilot wet-mix gunning rig was specifically designed and built to spray different pastes on to sheet steel and sections with different surface/volume ratios. After gunning, the specimens were placed in a furnace and subjected to standard fire resistance testing. Product fire resistance was calculated from the test results. The mortar used in this study, with a high fly ash content, was found to have acceptable mechanical properties as well as afire resistance potential comparable to those of commercial passive fire protection products.