The perspectives of application of thin-walled plastic and composite polymer shells in civil and industrial architecture

Abstract

The paper contains a brief historical review of application of thin-walled plastics and composite polymer shells in architecture. Concrete examples show the possibilities of using polymer composites as general (basic) elements of erections of industrial and civil purposes. Potential possibilities of polymer composite shells in architecture are illustrated with 23 pictures. It is shown that thin-walled plastic and composite polymer shells can be used in dwelling domes, spherical radio-parent hangars for radars, large-span covers over markets and exhibitions, high-mountain inns, semi-transparent semi-spherical inns for tourists, transparent sky-lights on the roofs of industrial buildings, and temporary summer cafes. Pneumatic and tent erections made of synthetic materials are not examined in the paper. They are under consideration in other paper of the author. Brief information and the latest references presented in the paper on existing methods of strength analysis of composite thin-walled shells will help to plan the subsequent researches of considered structures. This paper would be useful for researchers who want to begin to work with polymer composite thin-walled structures, for lecturers giving a course of studies on ‘composites in architecture’, and for architects.

Energy Performances Assessment of Extruded and 3D Printed Polymers Integrated into Building Envelopes for a South Italian Case Study

“…Moreover, polymers form good thermal and electrical insulators that are not affected by chemical and biological risks [35]. They have not only been used to replace the traditional construction materials (cement, brick, concrete, wood, metal, and glass), but these materials have also been used in a complementary way to improve the building envelope performance to satisfy the modern demands of both new projects and refurbishment ones [32][33][34][35]. From an aesthetic point of view, these materials are available in several colors and texture alternatives.…”

“…From an aesthetic point of view, these materials are available in several colors and texture alternatives. Several applications of plastic and composite polymer walls in buildings were reported in the literature [33]. In [33], 23 examples of architecture were reported, demonstrating that plastic and composite polymers can be used in dwelling domes, large-span volumes or envelop large facade surfaces, and transparent sky-lights on the roofs of industrial buildings.…”

“…Several applications of plastic and composite polymer walls in buildings were reported in the literature [33]. In [33], 23 examples of architecture were reported, demonstrating that plastic and composite polymers can be used in dwelling domes, large-span volumes or envelop large facade surfaces, and transparent sky-lights on the roofs of industrial buildings. Another example can be found in [36,37], where the designers have realized a temporary pavilion with an envelope made of double-walled transparent corrugated sheets of PolyEthylene Terephthalate (PET) recycled plastic.…”

“…Nowadays, there are always more innovative materials [32][33][34][35] used in architecture, also as a second-skin layer, even if evaluating their impact on the envelope's energy performance is a complex task [6,11]. In this work, plastic and composite polymers have been investigated with the aim to evaluate their integration in the building facade and their potential benefits achievable in refurbishment case studies.…”