Model BasedThin-Shell Structures

What Happened to Them?

Eiffel Tower - Paris, France

Analysis Based

Turning Torso - Santiago Calatrava

Model Based

STRUCTURAL ART

Analysis Based Structural Art

The Market Hall in Leipzig, Germany (1929) by Franz Dischinger

Analysis Based Structural Art

Analysis Based Structural Art

Petroleum Coke Bulk Storage - Pittsburg, California

OPAC Consulting Engineers

Model Based Structures

Sea-Rose Sheets of the Giant Sea-Rose Victoria in the Amazon

Model Based Structures

Ribbed Support in Roofs and Plants

Was Nervi inspired by Nature?

Eduardo Torroja

• Born August 27, 1899

• Spanish engineer who was considered a pioneer in concrete-shell structures

• Believed identity of form and structure could be realized with thin vaults of concrete

• Graduated in 1923

• Died June 15, 1961

Pierre Lardy

• Born in 1903

• Attended Federal Institute of Technology in 1923

• Hired Heinz Isler in 1951

• Proponent for model based designs

• Emphasized the importance of aesthetics for full-scale structures

• Died in 1958

Heinz Isler

• Born July 26, 1926 in Zollikon, Switzerland

• Attended Federal Technical Institute

• Graduated in 1950 with a degree in Civil Engineering

• Only student out of 100+ to choose thin-shells for senior design

• Worked as an assistant to Pierre Lardy

• Based most of his structures on smaller models

• Stated there were 3 ways to arrive at shell shapes, (Freely shaped hills, Rubber Balloon Membranes, and Reversed Hanging Cloths

Hanging membranes by Heinz Isler

Thin-Shell Roof over gas station in Bern-Zurich Highway

Wyss Garden Center

Indoor Tennis Center in Heimberg, Switzerland

Indoor Tennis Center in Heimberg, Switzerland

Indoor Tennis Center in Heimberg, Switzerland

Ever wonder what the inside looks like?

Indoor Tennis Center in Heimberg, Switzerland

Now you know

The barrel shell to be described is that in the set of programs SHELLS.zip, which may be downloaded from this web site. It is a single barrel with an edge beam on the left and the valley it is a section of symmetry. so the analysis is for two barrels. Layout of joints and members is shown in the sketch. The shell is divided into 12 equal angle members plus the edge beam.

The dimensions that must be used are feet for distances, and pounds for weights. The resulting deflections and stresses are as noted in the output. The coordinates and dimensions were created by the program, CIRCLES.BAS which is also included. These same values are given for the built-in example. Dimensions and loads are as follows:     Span = 60 ft., Width=30 ft., Rise=6.5 ft     The radius is 20.55 ft., and the end slopeis 46.86 degrees.     This is about the maximum suitable slope of a shell.     Shell thickness=0.29 ft (3.5 in.), Edge beam 1ft.x 3 ft.     Length of shell segment=2.802 ft.     Weight of concrete=150 pcf, Weight of one segment=122.9     Snow load, (per length of segment)=25 psf. One segment=71.4 p

    Extra load has been placed at the valleys to compensate for the in-fill.

Input for the program is listed at location 5,000 as follows: 5000 DATA SINGLE BARREL WITH EDGE BEAM 5010 ' Span, E, No. of members, No. of joints 5020 DATA 60,432E+6,13,14 5030 ' Generate member/joint relations (Y?N) ? 5040 DATA "Y" 5050 ' Member/joint relations: Member, X joint, Y joint. 5060 ' Special supports: Joint, X, Y, Z, Phi, (0 to exit) 5070 DATA 14,0,1,1,0, 0 5080 ' Member, thickness, Special I value, (0 for no special value) 5090 DATA 1,1.00,0, 2,.290,0, 4,.290,0, 4,.290,0, 5,.290,0, 6,.290,0 5100 DATA 7,.290,0, 8,.290,0, 9,.29,0, 10,.29,0, 11,.29,0, 12,.29,0 5110 DATA 13,.29,0 5120 ' Do some members have no longitudinal stiffness, (List number) 5130 DATA 0 5140 ' Coordinates: Joint. X, Y 5150 DATA 1,0,0, 2,0,3, 3,2.047,4.908, 4,4.339,6.520, 5,6.826,7.805 5160 DATA 6,9.465,8.741, 7,12.207,9.309, 8,15.000,9.500 5170 DATA 9,17.79,9.31, 10,20.53,8.74, 11,23.174,7.805, 12,25.66,6.52 5180 DATA 13,27.951,4.908, 14,30,3 5190 ' Loads: Joint, X, Y, (0 to Exit) 5200 DATA 1,0,225, 2,0,322, 3,0,194, 4,0,194, 5,0,194, 6,0,194 5210 DATA 7,0,194, 8,0,194, 9,0,194, 10,0,194, 11,0,194, 12,0,184, 0

Petroleum Coke Bulk Storage - Pittsburg, California

OPAC Consulting Engineers

Twisting Torso

Turning Torso by Santiago Calatrava

Turning TorsoTwisting Torso

Ice Shell Creation at Cornell University (1999) by Dr. Mark Valenzuela and Professor Arwade himself

Ice Shells by students at The Johns Hopkins University (Inspired by Heinz Isler)

Watch a Clip!

If a picture is worth a 1000

words, then a simple model

is worth a 1000 calculations