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This paper numerically investigates the effect of cavity radiation on the thermal response of hollow aluminium tubes and facade systems subjected to fire.

Finite element simulations were performed using ABAQUS 6.14. The accuracy of the numerical model was established through experimental and numerical results available in the literature. The proposed numerical model was utilised to study the effect of cavity radiation on the thermal response of aluminium hollow tubes and facade system. Different scenarios were considered to assess the applicability of the commonly used lumped capacitance heat transfer model.

The effects of cavity radiation were found to be significant for non-uniform fire exposure conditions. The maximum temperature of a hollow aluminium tube with 1-sided fire exposure was found to be 86% greater when cavity radiation was considered. Further, the time to attain critical temperature under non-uniform fire exposure, as calculated from the conventional lumped heat capacity heat transfer model, was non-conservative when compared to that predicted by the proposed simulation approach considering cavity radiation. A metal temperature of 550 °C was attained about 18 min earlier than what was calculated by the lumped heat capacitance model.

The present study will serve as a basis for the study of the effects of cavity radiation on the thermo-mechanical response of aluminium hollow tubes and facade systems. Such thermo-mechanical analyses will enable the study of the effects of cavity radiation on the failure mechanisms of facade systems.

Cavity radiation was found to significantly affect the thermal response of hollow aluminium tubes and façade systems. In design processes, it is essential to consider the potential consequences of non-uniform heating situations, as they can have a significant impact on the temperature of structures. It was also shown that the use of lumped heat capacity heat transfer model in cases of non-uniform fire exposure is unsuitable for the thermal analysis of such systems.

This is the first detailed investigation of the effects of cavity radiation on the thermal response of aluminium tubes and façade systems for different fire exposure conditions.