Textile forwork for concrete shell

Abstract

Fabric formwork is a new application for textile membranes that provides numerous advantages and new opportunities for architecture and engineering compared to well known traditional formworks. The installation of fabric formwork requires less manual labor and has reduced material, storage, and transportation costs. But the most significant advantage of fabric moulds is the form freedom and structural performance they offer to shell design. This paper presents the state of the art of the preceeded research on fabric formed shells. Subsequently it includes a numerical form finding method based on the force density for an anticlastic geometry. An initial saddle will be 'formfinded' to obtain shell shape that under self weight only experiences axial stresses. Finally a numerical finite element analysis of the initial and 'formfinded' saddle will be done. The different results are summarized and discussed in terms of implications for future research.