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Explain the inherent characteristics of skeleton space structures and compare them with
conventional steel roof structures.
A space frame or space structure is a truss-like, lightweight rigid structure constructed from
interlocking struts in a geometrical pattern.
Space frame can be used to span large areas with few interior supports. Like truss, a space
frame is strong because of the inherent rigidity of the triangle; flexing loads are transmitted
as tension and compression loads along the length of each strut.
The simplest form of space frame is a horizontal slab of interlocking square pyramids and
tetrahedral built from aluminium or tubular steel struts.
In many ways this looks like the horizontal jib of tower crane repeated many times to make
it wider.
A stronger form is composed of interlocking tetrahedral in which all the struts have unit
length.
More complex variations change the lengths of the struts to curve the overall structure or
may incorporate other geometrical shapes.
Space frame are typically designed using a rigidity matrix. The special characteristics of the
stiffness matrix in an architectural space frame are the independence of the angular factors.
If the joints are sufficiently rigid, the angular deflections can be neglected, simplifying the
calculations.
Conventional steel structures are very common in industrial construction. They are also well
partial suitable for total as well as partial site fabrication.
The upper most part of a constructed structure is the roof which will be designed as an A
type, lean type or lean to roof type design. The design of the roof should be strong, stable,
weatherproof and safe against wind, and other natural calamities.
This comes in many different styles, partly for aesthetics and partially for functional one.
Sheds construction has been preferred for a wide variety of reasons and needs. Some of
these have been industrial in nature while others have been domestic.
Used for everything from small car sheds to big ware houses and industrial sheds, metal
roofing has become more modernised, easy to install and have a good re sale value.
In conventional steel structures it is possible to carry out some changes in structure without
stopping production.
(b) Describe and differentiate single layer and double layer grid structure and with reasons explain
where the single layer and double layer shell structures will be used.
Ans: a grid can be comprised of two or more sets of parallel members intersecting each other at an
angle and loaded perpendicular to their planes.
If all the members of a grid are in the same plane, it is called a single-layer grid.
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There are different types of single-layer grid used as the main structural systems for roofs
and floors.
These interconnected patterns consist of two-way, three-way or four-way configurations,
with the most common pattern being rectangular grid in which the intersecting elements
are perpendicular to each other.
The diagonal grid, in which the members are oriented in an oblique manner to the
supporting structure along the edge, has great rigidity i.e., substantial reduction in
deflection.
The three-way single-layer grids are generally used for larger span or when the structure is
subjected to large concentrated loads.
This system has a more even stress distribution than the two-way grids.
The four way-grids are made of a combination of rectangular and diagonal grids.
These systems are not commonly used. For up to 12m span single-layer grids are efficient.
The span to depth ratio for single layer rectangular grids is about 30 and for diagonal grids
are about 40.
Double-layer grids are extensions of single-layer grid systems, which consist of two sets of
parallel beams connected to each other at right or oblique angles and loaded by force
perpendicular to the plane of the grid.
Even though double-layer grid are customarily made of parallel planes. It is possible to
create free-forms by modifying the shape of the top and bottom layers independently.
They are used for floors or roofs of multi-story buildings. The roof systems in most cases
consists of purlins supported by joints, however, in some cases the top layer directly
supports the roof.
In addition they are also used for vertical and inclined walls.
In double-layer grids the number of different member’s lengths can be limited and
connection angles at the joints standardised.
Therefore, regular shaped grids are usually adopted for both the top and bottom layers of
space grids but there are only three regular polygons, the equilateral triangle, square and
hexagon that can be used exclusively to completely fill a plane.
In square grids the lines can be parallel to the edges of the grid or set on the diagonal,
usually at 450 to the edged. Both of these are two-way grids having members oriented in
two directions, however, plane grids of triangle and hexagons produce three-way grids with
members oriented in three directions.
Q. define and describe shell structure and list out various types of shell structures. Also differentiate
between shell structures and grid structures.
A shell is defined as a shell with a thickness which is small compared to its other dimensions
and in which deformation are not large compared to thickness.
A primary difference between a shell structure and a plate structure is that, in the
unstressed state, the shell structure has curved as opposed to the plate structure which is
flat.
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Membrane action in a shell is primarily caused by in-plane forces, though there may be
secondary forces resulting from flexural deformations.
Where a flat plate acts similar to a beam with bending and shear stresses, shells are
analogous to a cable which resists loads through tensile stresses.
Though the ideal thin shell must be capable of developing both tension and compression.
Single curvature:
Long span barrel vaults are perhaps the most useful of the shell structure because they can
span up to 45m with a minimum material.
They are very efficient structures because the use the arch form to reduce stresses and
thickness in the transverse direction.
Barrel vaults are essentially deep concrete beams with very thin web members and may be
designed as such by the ordinary methods of reinforced concrete.
A number of terms have been developed to describe cylindrical shells. If the span is large in
comparison to the width, the form is called a long shell.
An arbitrary ratio for longs is a span/radius ratio of 5.
For a span of 30-35 m the radius of curvature is 7.5 m, and for a span of 30-45 m the
radius of curvature is 12 m.
A short shell has a span/radius ratio less than 1 and shells between these limits are called
intermediate shells.
This structure is a cylindrical shell having a large radius in comparison to the length.
Many structures build with short shells, such a large hangers and auditoriums, could have
been built with little more dead load by using a ribbed slab or other lightweight concrete
framing system rather than the shell.
The architecture of short shell therefore must be based on the exploitation of the shape of
arch rather than on the shell itself.
15-30 m is the economical size of the span. Generally adapted 9-12 m size of the small span.
It has about 6-8 m of radius of curvature.
Shell structure:
A shell is a type of structural element which is characterised by its geometry, being a three-
dimensional solid whose thickness is very small when compared with other dimensions.
Essentially, a shell can be derived from a plate by two means: by initially forming the middle
surface as a singly or doubly curved surface, and by applying loads which are coplanar to a
plate’s plane which generate significant stresses.
Shell structure, in building construction, a thin curved plate structure shaped to transmit
applied forces by compressive, tensile, and shear stresses that act in the plane of the surface.
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They are usually constructed of concrete reinforced with steel mesh.
Thin parabolic shell vaults stiffened with ribs have been built with spans up to about 90 m.
More complex forms of concrete shells have been made, including hyperbolic paraboloids, or
saddle shape, and intersecting parabolic vaults less than 1.25 thick.
Grid structure:
A grid is a structure made up of a series of intersecting straight or curved guide lines used
to structure content.
A grid can be comprised of two or more sets of parallel members intersecting each other at
an angle and loaded perpendicular to their planes.
If all the members of a grid are in the same plane, it is called a single-layer grid.
There are different types of single-layer grid used as the main structural systems for roofs
and floors.
These interconnected patterns consist of two-way, three-way or four-way configurations,
with the most common pattern being rectangular grid in which the intersecting elements
are perpendicular to each other.
The diagonal grid, in which the member are oriented in an oblique manner to the
supporting structure along the edge, has great rigidity i.e., substantial reduction in
deflection.
Q. describes the construction and basic characteristics of north light shell roof.
To avoid the possibility of overheating and glare from top lights in the summer months a
system of north light barrel vaults is used.
The roof consists of a thin reinforced concrete shell on the south-facing side of the roof,
with a reinforced concrete framed north-facing slope, and pitched at from 600 to 800.
The rigidity of the barrel vault depends on its continuous curvature, which in this type of
roof is interrupted by the north light opening.
The economic span of a north light shell is 12 m to 15 m as compared to the 30 m or more
of the barrel vault.
The north light slope is glazed with patent metal glazing or profiled plastic sheeting fixed to
timber grounds or metal angles screwed to the concrete.
This type of shell structure is used to provide large areas of north light windows for
factories requiring excellent natural lighting.
The windows may be slanting or may be vertical.
The edge member at the bottom forms drainage through with the curved shell and
materially assists in stiffing the structure.
The effective depth of the shell is not the vertical distance between the two ends but is more
nearly represented by the depth is the shell is laid flat with the ends of circle on the same
horizontal line.
Therefore, the spans for a north light shell must be rather small in comparison to the
vertical depth of construction.
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The edges of adjacent shells should be tied together by concrete struts serving as mullions
between the window glazings.
Q. list out various types of skeletal dome structures with reference to the material used.
A dome shape structure formed from a plurality of prefabricated actuate rib assemblies
having their lower ends affixed to bases with moment free connections and their upper ends
secured to a lantern ring.
The disclosure includes a method of constructing and erecting a dome shape structure
including anchoring the rib assemblies in position and relaxing the anchoring connections to
relieve moment stresses between the rib assemblies and the bases they are secured to.
Ribbed domes, Schwedler domes, stiff jointed domes, flat type domes, network domes,
Zimmerman domes, geodesic domes, grid domes.
Lamella domes:
Lamella domes are generated with concentric rings, where each subsequent ring is rotated
by a half module. This reduces the length of ht erring tubes as the geometry proceeds
towards the apex.
When the tubes of the rings become too small, they consolidate to the next ring, joining the
two divisions into one.
The separation between rings in lamella domes can be varied so they are equilateral triangles
forming each ring.
Because the tubes of each ring are equal, the manufacturing time is fast and assembly is
easy.
Lamella domes are beautiful and a favourite architectural applications.
Domes such as Cancun Hyatt and the Mustafa centre use lamella geometry.
Geodesic domes:
A geodesic dome starts with a regular polyhedron, and subdivides each triangular face to
then project the new nodes onto the surface of the sphere.
As in the lace geometry, the geodesic geometry has nearly-equilateral triangles, but the base
of the dome is generally not uniform unless the dome is a hemisphere.
Also the geodesic pattern is limited to spherical domes.
Schwedler domes:
This geometry is generated by laying out principle members along meridians and rings, and
then introducing diagonals to triangulate the rectangular modules.
It is easy to generate, but not very efficient.
Diagonal members are substantially longer than ring or meridian bars, and must therefore
be more robust to resist buckling loads.
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It finds some application in glass-clad domes, as trapezoidal glazing is less expensive than
triangular.
For other uses this geometry will result in structures 20 to 30 % heavier than the alternative
geometries.
Schwedler domes:
This geometry is generated by laying out principle members along meridians and rings, and
then introducing diagonals to triangulate the rectangular modules.
It is easy to generate, but not very efficient.
Diagonal members are substantially longer than ring or meridian bars, and must therefore
be more robust to resist buckling loads.
It finds some application in glass-clad domes, as trapezoidal glazing is less expensive than
triangular.
For other uses this geometry will result in structures 20 to 30 % heavier than the alternative
geometries.
Q. list out the various groups under which cladding is categorised. Briefly explain facings.
Ans: cladding:
Cladding is an external envelop of framed building that clad the building in a protective coating i.e.,
hunged, supported by or secured to a structural frame as a jacket.
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Moreover, combined with additional insulation it improves the indoor climate and is very
reliable and durable while being comparatively low maintenance.
Glass reinforced plastic is a versatile product which can be used in many application where
conventional materials cannot meet required specifications such as fire ratings, impact resistance and
weight considerations.
Glass reinforced plastic is manufactured by combining hundreds of glass strands with pigmented
thermo stating UV resins.
This produces an immensely strong and durable panel whilst maintaining an attractive appearance.
Glass reinforced concrete sprays mix is a fibre reinforced pre-cast concrete with a 50-50
sand cement matrix in atypical wall thickness of 12 to 15 mm thick.
GRC is made in thin concrete sections created by a proprietary process of machine spraying
an enriched OP cement and aggregate mix within which alkali resistant glass fibres provide
the reinforcement.
Unlike steel, glass fibres will never rust and are placed throughout the thickness of the
panels.
The word is used to describe thin non-structural slab of natural or reconstructed stone,
ceramic and glass tiles, mosaic which are fixed to the face and supported by solid
background as a decorative finish.
To all for elastic and flexural movement of the structural frames and different thermal and
moisture movement, there must be flexible, horizontal joint below the support and vertical
movement joint along the length of the facing.
Both the horizontal and vertical joint must be sufficiently flexible to accommodate
anticipated movement and be water restrain and to prevent the penetration of rain water.
Q. describe with help of neatly made sketches the constructional aspects and methods of structural
glazing.
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Allows for broader architectural designs flexibility.
Increases the thermal efficiency of buildings, because the exterior exposure of metal framing
is either reduced or,
Reduces or eliminates water and air infiltration.
Reduces the potential for thermal breakage of glass.
Q. where is prestressing used? Explain benefits of prestressing. Enumerate the two systems of
prestressing.
Ans: prestressing:
Prestressing means the intentional creation of permanent stresses in a structure for the
purpose of improving its performance under various service conditions.
high tensile steel reinforcing wires are stretched between anchorages at each end of a
casting bed and concrete is cast around the wires is maintained until the concrete around
them has attained sufficient strength to take up the prestress caused by releasing the wires
from the anchorages.
The bond between the stretched wires and the concrete is maintained by the adhesion of the
cement to the wires, by frictional resistance and the tendency of the wires to shorten on
release and wedge into the concrete.
To improve frictional resistance the wires may be crimped or intended.
When stressing wires are cut and released from the anchorages in the stressing frame the
wires tend to shorten, and this shortening is accompanied by an increase in diameter of the
wires which wedge into the ends of the member.
Benefits of prestressing:
The following text broadly mentions the advantages of a prestressed concrete member with an
equivalent RC member,
Electrical prestressing:
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In this method, reinforcing bars is coated with thermoplastic material such as sulphur or
low melting alloy and buried in the concrete.
After the concrete is set, electric current of low voltage but high amperage is passed
through the bar.
Electric current heats the bar and the bar elongates.
Bar provided with threads at the other end tightened against heavy washers, after required
elongation is obtained.
When the bar cools, prestress develops and the bond is restored by resolidificatiom of the
coating.
Chemical prestressing:
Ans: post-tensioning:
Types of post-tensioning:
Bar post-tensioning:
SSL bar post-tensioning systems are ideal for the economic application of post –tensioning
forces on relatively short tendons.
Through the use of threaded connections and anchorages they are simple to use and led
themselves to many applications.
The bar post-tensioning can be generally used for building, bridges, hovers and jetties, soil
and rock anchors and specialist engineering.
External post-tensioning:
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Compare to internal and bonded prestressing, the external prestressing has the following
distinct advantages:
Facilitating of concrete placing due to the absence of tendons in the webs, and ease for
placing tendons.
Reduction of friction losses are practically eliminated with the use of polyethylene sheeting,
the friction coefficient is drastically reduced compared to standard internal and bonded
prestressing using corrugated sheet metal ducts.
The SSL multi wire post-tensioning system is more compact than the multi-strand post-
tensioning system and is often preferred for coupled cables, incrementally launched bridges,
and is deadly suited where cables are to be prefabricated as well as where re-stressing or
distressing is required.
The multi wire tendons are composed of a bundle of 7 mm dia wires. Each individual wire is
fixed in the anchorage with a multi wire button head, which is cold-upset onto the wire by
means of special machines.
The optimum multi wire upsetting technique with regard to the size of button head, bearing
conditions accuracy of dimensions and balanced deformation process results in high quality
anchorages.
Q. describes precast concrete construction and with reasons explains where you will recommend its
application.
Installation of precast concrete structures is familiar and often practised in the construction
industry.
An environmentally friendly product, precast concrete requires less energy to manufacture
than plastic products require.
Precast concrete provides the manufacturers with the ability to produce a wide range of
engineered earth retaining systems.
Products include: commercial retaining wall, residential retaining walls, sea walls,
mechanically stabilized earth panels, modular block systems, segmental retaining walls, etc.
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Retaining walls have 5 different types which include: gravity retaining wall, semi gravity
retaining wall, cantilever retaining wall, counter fort retaining wall, and buttress retaining
wall.
Sanitary and storm water management products are structures designed for underground
installation that have been specifically engineered for the treatment and removal of
pollutants from sanitary and storm water run-off.
These precast concrete products include storm water detention vaults, catch basins, and
manholes.
Utility structures:
For communications, electrical, gas or steam systems, precast concrete utility structures
protect the vital connections and controls for utility distribution.
Precast concrete is nontoxic and environmentally safe. Products include: hand holes, hollow
core products, light pole boxes, telecommunications structures, transformer pads,
transformer vaults, trenches, utility buildings, utility vaults, utility poles, controlled
environment vaults and other utility structures.
Precast concrete sandwich wall panels have been used on virtually every type of building,
apartment buildings, townhouses, hotels, motels, dormitories, etc.
Although typically considered part of a building’s enclosure or envelope, they can be
designed to additionally serve as part of the building’s structural system, eliminating the
need for beams and columns on the building perimeter.
Besides their energy efficiency and aesthetic versatility, they also provide excellent noise
attenuation, outstanding durability and rapid construction.
Q. list out and explain various methods for connection between precast column and precast beams.
Columns are provided with necessary supports for the steel ends of the precast beams
(corbel or cast-in steel sections).
There will also be some form of connection to provide beam-column moment connection
and continuity.
For interior columns this may be by holes through which reinforcing bars pass from one
beam to another.
For edge columns, some form of bracket or socket is required.
During erection columns must be braced until stability is achieved by making the necessary
connections to the beams and slabs.
Precast corbels and precast beams shoes are used for connections between columns and
beams.
The p.c corbels and p.c beam shoe are then secured with the anchor bolts.
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Beams with topping can be quickly installed using PHB corbels and moment resisting
connections between columns and beams can be efficiently made using RBC beam shoes.
Rued surface and specially, conoid surfaces are widely used all around the world.
The simplicity of production and very rich spectrum of shapes are the main reasons for
application as roof structures but also for some other functions wrapped surfaces from
boards even though they are surface of double curvature.
This type of shell structure can be built to what appears to be the ultimate in lightness of
construction, minimum reinforcing and ease of moving forms.
Ruled surface is a surface which can be swept out by moving a line in space and therefore
has a parameterization of the form.
The space deck was a British modular system introduced to market in 1950’s, made of
inverted pyramids placed side-by-side and connected to each other.
The top layer of the space deck was made of steel angles.
The pyramids units were shop-manufactured in special high accuracy jigs by welding the
components to each other.
Once assembled, the units are connected to each other using tie bars and bolts.
The tie bars are connected to the bosses of the units and form the bottom layer of the
spatial structure.
There are main and secondary tie bars.
The main tie bars are jointed at the boss directly, and the secondary members are placed
perpendicular to them.
All tie bars are threaded at one end with a right hand thread and left hand thread on the
other end.
The assembly of this system is done by bolting the adjacent unit trays and connecting the tie
bars between the bosses next to each other.
(c). Conoid:
In geometry, a Conoid is a Catalan surface all of whose rulings intersect a fixed line, called
the axis of the Conoid.
If all its rulings are perpendicular to its axis, then the Conoid is called a right Conoid.
A Conoid surface is formed by drawing straight lines between a curve such as a circle and a
straight line.
It is a ruled surface because it can be formed by straight lines.
A cylinder and a cone also are ruled surfaces but a sphere is not in this category.
In the above cases, the shell is supported by a wall or a beam at the left and by arch at the
right.
The appearance of the roof of the building can be reproduced in a concrete thin shell
construction by using short shells for the middle bays and Conoid for the ends.
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This structure is suitable for a large entrance canopy.
The horizontal line at the rear can be the second floor level, the curved arch the entrance to
the canopy.
Modular coordination is essentially based on the use of modules (basic module and multi-
modules) and a reference system to define coordinating spaces and zones for building
elements and for the components which form them.
There are standard rules to abide by- rules for locating building elements within the
reference systems; rules for sizing building components in order to determine preferred
sizes for building components and coordinating dimensions for building.
The application of modular coordination may be applied to the design, manufacture and
assembly of buildings, their components and installation, and it affects the twin factors of
position and dimension.
For each participant in the building team, it can be allow a relative independence in decision
making with the common dimensional language.
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Therefore, where ever it is necessary to position and size components and to ensure their fit
with minimum on-site modification and materials wastage, modular co-ordination is found
to be essential.
concrete shells have been widely used in the past as economical and suitable solutions for a
number of structures such as shell roofs etc.
Taking advantage of their single or double curvature, bending moments and shear forces are
limited, and the structures develop mostly membrane forces, allowing them to span large
distances with limited thickness.
In recent decades, advances in numerical modelling, formwork erection and concrete
technology have opened up a new set of possibilities for the use of concrete shells.
This describes the design and construction of a shell in the form of an ellipsoid and with
thickness varying between 100 and 200 mm.
The shell was built using sprayed concrete and also ordinary concrete in some regions.
A number of tailored solutions were also adopted, such as post tensioning, addition of fibres
and shear studs, to ensure satisfactory performance at both the serviceability and ultimate
limit state.
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