dima

  • Folded-Plate Dome: Structure analysis

    M.Sc Year 1. TU Delft.

     8 weeks

     Team with : Peter Polhuijs, Puttakhun Vongsingha

     Assignment: The course assignment was to design a glass (roof) structure that covers an area of is 42m by 28m or a similar area in size. There is no height limit. The roof structure and the columns or load bearing walls should be made from glass (panels). However, if there are design problems which cannot be solved in glass, steel connections or tension cables may be applied. The function of the area under the glass structure is not defined; therefore it can be anything from a museum, to a playground or any public or commercial space. We choose to make a folded plate dome to create a strong structure while giving a good architectural appeal. In a dome the structure behaves omni-directional and can therefore handle vertical load in every direction.

    Design: We used the factory standard size of float glass (3210x6000mm).  Using Sentry glass by DuPoint, we could design a laminated glass in order to achieve panels larger than 3210x6000. Sentry glass was chosen because of the safety factor that allows the laminated glass panel to stay intact even when faced with high impact. The initial design proposal of low dome was modified to high dome due to possible lower tensile stresses and less deflection. The design was modified to avoid unnecessary large peak stresses. Connection details: Various types of connection methods were studied. It was concluded to use hinge connections to allow panel movement in 3-axis while avoiding peak stresses and bending moments under standard load conditions. The hinges are connected to panels using adhesives.

    Structural analysis: Software 'fx+ for Diana ' was used. 4 load cases were considered: Dead weight, snow load, wind load, All three loads (serviceability limit state) and all load multiplied with safety factors (Ultimate limit state). Maximum displacement, stresses and bending moments were studied from the results. after studying the support reactions, support details were drawn: pin joint was used along with roller joints to allow x and y direction movements.