Robustness of steel and composite buildings under impact loading

In case of a vehicle impact against a building frame, one or more columns may be damaged or even fully destroyed. In such an exceptional event, the risk of progressive collapse of the whole structure has to be mitigated. Several approaches potentially exist to face this problem. In the present study, the so-called alternative load path method is followed. In two recent PhD studies at Liège University, a complete analytical procedure was developed permitting the prediction of the structural response of steel or composite plane frames further to the loss of a column. For sake of simplicity, these first works were based on the assumption of static behaviour. More recently, complementary research was carried out with the objective to address the dynamic effects. As a result, an original procedure for the appraisal of the structural robustness of plane building frames was proposed. The present paper presents this work.