Objective Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) is widely used due to its dense microstructure, which provides ultra-high mechanical properties. Under earthquake action, it has a strong synergistic deformation capacity with steel, ensuring that structures or components do not experience stress performance degradation due to early interface bonding failure. Fire is one of the important forms of urban disasters. UHPC is usually directly exposed to high-temperature environments, where high internal steam pressure results in numerous cracks and corner spalling, causing material performance degradation. Firefighting is an indispensable measure for urban building fires. During firefighting, the ambient temperature decreases rapidly. For UHPC with a dense microstructure, the internal temperature stress distribution is extremely uneven, which accelerates the expansion and even bursting of concrete cracks, resulting in unclear mechanisms for the deterioration of the interface bonding performance between UHPC and steel. Therefore, accurately understanding the degradation mechanism of the bonding performance at the steel‒UHPC interface after high temperature and water cooling is crucial for evaluating the seismic performance of building structures after fire extinguishing. Currently, no report addresses the interfacial bonding performance of steel‒UHPC after high-temperature water cooling. This study presents experimental research on the bond‒slip performance between steel and UHPC after high temperature and water cooling, revealing the degradation mechanism of bond‒slip performance. Methods The research findings on the mechanical properties of reinforced concrete after high-temperature exposure and the interfacial bonding performance with steel, along with the pretest results and existing research results, were considered. This study conducted tests under three temperature and cooling conditions, including room temperature, water cooling, and natural cooling. In addition, temperature (T), constant temperature duration (t), steel protective layer thickness (Cs), and volume reinforcement ratio (ρv) were selected as test design parameters. Monotonic push-out tests were conducted on twelve steel-UHPC specimens after high-temperature exposure with different cooling methods. The apparent characteristics and mass loss rate of the specimens after high-temperature exposure were recorded in the experiment, and the displacement slips at the loading end and free end were monitored during the loading process. Based on the experiments, the interfacial bonding performance between UHPC and steel after high-temperature exposure with water cooling was analyzed by examining the collected curve data and observed phenomena, and a calculation method for interfacial bonding strength was proposed to evaluate the bonding performance after firefighting. Results and Discussions The main results and discussions were as follows: 1) The surface features, including color and crack development, were observed. The mass loss rate was measured. As the temperature increased from 20 ℃ to 800 ℃, the color of the specimen changed from dark gray to grayish white, and the surface cracks gradually increased. As the temperature increased from 200 ℃ to 800 ℃, the mass loss rates were 1.60%, 2.54%, 4.00%, and 4.48%. 2) The process and morphology of bond failure were observed. The characteristics of the load-slip curves and the bonding strength of the corresponding characteristic points were analyzed. The surface cracks of the specimen developed outward along the original cracks after high-temperature exposure, including cracks along the 45° direction at the tip of the steel flange, cracks parallel to the flange, and cracks in the middle of the flange, and extended to the side of the concrete. The load-slip curves of all specimens roughly passed through three stages, namely the initial slip stage, the slip failure stage, and the stable slip stage, in which the chemical cementation force, mechanical biting force, and frictional resistance gradually acted and successively provided the bonding force at different stages. 3) The effects of temperature (20 ℃, 200 ℃, 400 ℃, 600 ℃, 800 ℃), cooling method (water cooling and natural cooling), constant temperature duration (60, 90, and 120 min), steel protective layer thickness (50 mm, 60 mm, and 70 mm), and volume reinforcement ratio (0.160%, 0.238%, and 0.317%) on the interfacial bonding performance between UHPC and steel were studied. Compared to normal temperature conditions, after exposure to temperatures of 200 ℃, 400 ℃, 600 ℃, and 800 ℃, the ultimate bonding strength decreased by 13.6%, 49.3%, 92.3%, and 98.2%, respectively, and the residual bonding strength decreased by 16.8%, 57.1%, 94.6%, and 98.9%, respectively. Compared to the constant temperature duration of 60 min, when the constant temperature duration reached 90 min, the ultimate bonding strength and residual bonding strength increased by 15.4% and 36.2%, respectively. When the constant temperature duration reached 120 min, the ultimate bonding strength and residual bonding strength decreased by 24.7% and 31.0%, respectively. When the steel protective layer thickness increased from 50 mm to 60 mm, the ultimate bonding strength increased by 15.2%, and the residual bonding strength increased by 1.25%. When it increased from 60 mm to 70 mm, the ultimate bonding strength increased by 7.75%, and the residual bonding strength increased by 11.3%. When the volume reinforcement ratio increased from 0.160% to 0.238%, the ultimate bonding strength increased by 7.7%, and the residual bonding strength increased by 25.4%. When it increased from 0.238% to 0.317%, the ultimate bonding strength increased by 25.9%, and the residual bonding strength increased by 25.3%. When the temperature was 400 °C, compared to natural cooling, the ultimate bonding strength and residual bonding strength of the specimens after water cooling were greater, with increases of 41.7% and 64.5%, respectively. 4) Based on the experimental results, a calculation method for the bonding strength after water cooling was proposed. Conclusions As the temperature increases from 20 ℃ to 800 ℃, the mass loss rate gradually increases to 4.48%, with the growth rate showing a trend of rapid initial increase followed by slower growth. The load-slip curves of all specimens generally pass through three stages, namely the initial slip stage, the slip failure stage, and the stable slip stage, during which chemical cementation force, mechanical interlocking force, and frictional resistance gradually take effect and successively provide bonding force at different stages. The bonding strength continues to degrade, and compared to normal-temperature conditions, the loss of bonding strength after 400 ℃ exceeds 50%. As t increases, the bonding strength first increases and then decreases, with the maximum bonding strength observed at a constant temperature duration of 90 minutes. Increasing Cs and ρv can effectively improve the bonding strength of the specimens. Compared to naturally cooled specimens, the ultimate bonding strength τu and residual bonding strength τr both increase by approximately 30% after water-spray cooling. The proposed calculation method can provide a basis for performance evaluation, repair, and reinforcement of steel‒UHPC composite structures after disasters.
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