,

MA",,:::;'r,-;:ALS JUID r.:BTHODS

l:r;'Gi 0", sefr, l'\'lO I

JI) sue O~ ~~~SSI\'E

,. ~K ~TEGrUR.e:
VoL. j....\ ) rvq. 9
-. .,

Pneumatic Construction Applied

to Multistory Buildings
Extension of the principles' of pneumatic construction to include multistory buildings
is discussed by Peter R. Smith, Senior Lecturer in Architectural Science at
The University of Sydney (Australia) andQens G. Pohl,J~~cturer,
School of Architecture and Building, University of New South Wales

T he possible utilization of sealed

membranes supported by a small in­
..
~~~rWEIGHTS
shape, resistance to bending, local
buckling, and torsion. For short col­
ternal air pressure' has now become
a practical solution for a number of
architectural problems, We are fa­
miliar with the application of pneu­
matic enclosures to sports arenas,
.
1__ - . .!( umns, this resistance will be a func­
tion of the magnitude of the internal
pressure as well as membrane thick­
ness, section modulus, and elasticity.
It is thus possible to utilize the
1+ +1 FI..EX!8LE
hermetically-sealed food stores, and P\.~STIC
T\/BE load-bearing capacity of this type of
INF~Te:O

warehouses, as well as temporary I column, whether the load is applied

~ externally to the free end or SllS­
convention and exhibition stadiums. ~I
In all of these cases, lightness of
weight, mobility, and the possibility
of accommodating large spans
(sometimes in excess of 200 it) have
.. pended internally in the form of
floors (2), Furthermore, taking into
account that the normal floor load
considered in the design of 'high-rise
led to the adoption of air-supported buildings is in the vicinity of 140
structures. Even though these air­ STANO psf, it is logical to ex:pect that for
halls form a unique class of construc­ every 1 psi (Le., 144 psi) internal
rtQse;
tion, and unquestionably provide an AIR
pressure above external atmospheric
economically enclosed space suitable pressure we wiII be able to support
for specific functions, they are nev­ one floor of a multistory structure.
ertheless of relatively small impor­ 1(b). INI'"LATEO FLEXIBLE TUBE While the structural morphology
tance in a building industry pre­ of this pneumatic system is straight­
occupied largely \vith multistory struction wiII develop into a more
construction. significant structural system, if its
The potentialities of a newly devel­ principles may be extended to include --
X
oped structural system may be
gaged, in part at least, by its versa­
multistory buildings, Recent re­
search conducted at the Department :
-
\ . /. SUS?'~"tO£i
1~'i~R,··al.
FL.OQl:tS

tility in being able to satisfy ex­ of Architectural Science, University r\ Ft..EXIBU!

f-'t-- ft-~S"l"IC
pected future trends on a broad of Sydney (Australia), dealing with :\/ \ Ttl8~
INFl.ATEO

basis. Accordingly, pneumatic con- specific aspects of pneumatic con­ - \ /

struction has culminated in the de­ -:jI 1\
_!iUSP!NSI(
Roes

velopment of pressurized multistory IX'

membrane buildings!·3. The under­
lying principles of the proposed sys­ -"" ..;.
- f\./
~fxTE~roFl
DI"GQN4l..
BRJ,ClkG

tem are illustrated (1,2), Let us con­

sider a flexible plastic tube sealed at I
both ends (la). Although this tube ...

has no load-bearing capacity in the 'sn"o

. .

deflated state, it becomes a stable

compression member when subjected
to a proportionate internal air pres­
sure (lb).· A membrane column de­
:Y
2. SUSPENOED ,LOORS WITHIN
lea). COLLAPSIBLE I'"LEXIBLE Tuee: pends upon internal pressure for its IN,LATe:O PLASTIC TUBE

Hi) SEPTEMBER 1970 PIA

 ~
~/

-,

forward and may indeed appeal to

the progressIve architect and engi-
F 1...... C "
'" ...EI!i~
~ROOF
~~~~,. .. _,
~rntr,'r4-~ =I't~ f-~EA"N~
neer due to its simplicity, its prac- BEARING Fl.OOR
tical application will nevertheless re-
_J
,
FIXED OR SI.IQING

~,~~g~1~1-E';gCN
'III I' I'
!+- I
=s
• r"I

, '-.
FLOOR
s ..'OES FREELY

quire the solution of a number of

complex, technical problems:
I-- ~ " l~ET OR ",G/O ""'LL
II I II r-R'o'o EXTER',. ' '...L,-
(a) Physiological effects of the
compressed air environment. 'I -al SUILolNCi
~MENT PRt!.iSURIZED
E.~V1RON· II I I 11
(b) Performance of suitable mem- f+- II I I 1/ 3 f--~~~fS~g,~~~iR'
ME.... :-

brane materials.
(c) The nature of the relationship II I I II
of internal pressure to load- ALl. FLOORS
SUSPt!,NDEO ;R'jM
~ II " 'II ~ -:~5:~~~"~N~U~ ~~~~
bearing capacity (Le., pres- BE,\R1NG FLOOR

sure-utilization efficienc~r). II I I \I
(d) Safety, in respect to main-
tenance of design pressure
SERVICES AND
FIRE ESCAPE
'II I t
II II V~RTIC.11.. TilI.1N!,j "".r
SHAn

and fire hazard. --l----J. II I! LIFT SHAFT ~ II 111--

(e) The mechanical problems as-
sociated with entry and exit" ~II+ I, __ +! ~ II!
from a pressurized environ- '+ -. 1,1 A~L/.rR"N
ment.
.. ,."".,.~>"
." ,,,,,,~, t ~ -Ir
SERVICE Pt.ANT
The physiological aspects of ambient, '~., --!-I
• •_"","*,, ... ,,"v, ".'>_",,,,

hyperbaric conditions and the per- 1+ I..... _

formance of membrane materials
have been dealt with' exten- o zo' -L:.\l.l---~ <:~... A"~
sively;'3.4 so that a brief summary
of the conclusions reached will suf-
fice here. According to medical re-
search reports, it seems likely that RiGID CYLIP-lOAICAl.
there will be no long-range physi- WAI..L UNO(1t rE~SICN

ological effects after subjection to

pressures below h"lo atmospheres ab-

((
SY;:?'~IFTS
FLOOR PLAN
solute, regardless of duration or rate
~SE:i:tY'!C!SAND
of decompression. For this reason a ~J FIAE ESC"PE
. u '.
tentative pressure range of 1 to 2 at-
mospheres absolute (Le., 0 to 14 psi
lNTEi:tN~l.. PRESSURE
internal pressure, above external at-
mospheric pressure) has been
adopted for the design of multistory, PRESSURIZEC
4. RIOlO OPEN-COLUMN aUILOINO
pneumatic buildings.
AIRLOCK ENTRANCE'
The most distinguishing charac-
3, PNEUMATIC CRITERIA F'OR 10
teristic of membrane buildings is un- STORY OF'F'ICE aUll.OING

doubtedly that structure and enclo-

.1
"',Following a discussion of hasic structural variations, the
authors report on seven. ..peets of fire protection, offer
a discussion of erection techniques, and analyze the
problems of pressurization and air-conditioning equipment.

,
.-!'U,"'N'
""xU
'LOOIt
- IICA;li1'tO I"LJ)Q"
performance of two structural ele-
~t II
I
~ .! Mt: ......J
OlAl;ONJ
....-
Tl!:"'SIOff
I EM: I I ments - the internal air-pressure
II ~r.l
I I I I I~!lj!)(~ eu"1'A,~
;'l..0" III[MIIII."'£
and the membrance envelope. In this
II - ... c.-, .$l/)flW"LI.
-Oltrtlltl Olt ell-LoS
I I I ...- respect the satisfactory performance
of the membrane material is critical
10--
I II I I I ~ ---I > ooR$ SlISP£lII0t.1)
....(.um"a ' ... 0011
in regard to tensile strength, tear re-
... I I',.......... ::'=- _:!-oo"" $USP[NOEO
,""OIll'!l .a.Iftl!lIG'I..O']III
I I _ sistance, weatherability, and fire re-
,I 11- - ... _:U1UJtH< E!IoVI"aN~1!:"T

I I I - ."",,,.,.! II\.OIJrt~ ["'Vt"I)N""~"'T

sistance. Furthermore, to offset any
.
NOr ,",I' S$UAI,U;,J I'IIlUSII"I.I:(1)

!0-

i~
Il -
"Ill!)
'.6GOJI.&L" nHStON Ilt£T decrease in pressure as a direct re-
~ltiESSU 111.£0 .. HINt-US
-. sult of leakage or localized membrane
I II --- I
i- II -1'
1I£ItTICl
S"."
\,. """"SPOAr I! II I :. , " !$SU"IZ!O 'I'U'£
rupture, the duplication of critical
mechanical equipment will be
II I II 'I , I I
!

"-J~'.
._- ~ !
'"'"
~
-ENtltol~
1 .-, -<
justified.
Basic Structural Variations
~.
to-
~.-
--S(IIVIC£

1, J, - -s, IIvlC£ ~ .....r

A typical design of a 10-story office
building based on pneumatic criteria
is shown (3). Access to this building
is gained by means of an airlock tun-
" - - - I I ' G I O ....I.l. nel at ground floor level. It has been
C:O",u.ItESS,Olli <:'''Llo'oOEIt
0" l'f"S'O"l (;iH.LS
assumed that the rate of pressur-
ization wiII be slightly less than the
_1,.,- S(llVleE:S AJCl
'I"E £ie..I.;>( time required for an adl,llt person to
Sl!:lh"ttESA"IC
FIIiE [SC~PI!: walk at a comfortable p;lce the dis-
~ ["'U:"I.'I'''4I\1S,"0'''I'
tance between airlock-doors. Having
entered the ground floor lobby, the
normal choice of vertical tnmsport is
provided (Le., lifts or -staircase).
S. CELt.,ut.,Aft ..[IoIIJ1l"',.!·N£T ....ORJ( BUILDING Each floor level is planned to in-
6. lo'lGK '''['SuA£, NtMSRA,1iE: COilE .'.JI1.tllhG
corporate a service space comprising
sanitary requirements, ducts, and
fire-escape staircase. At the per~
imeter of these floors, movable
sure are synonymous. In this regard Experiments conducted in our lab- screens are fitted and these serve the
it is likely that we have found a oratories have indicated that the dual function of allowing acoustical
means of utilizing plastics as an ef- structural pressure-utilization of and visual privacy as weil as pl'ovid-
ficient structural material. As'the re- membrane buildings (i,e., the ability ing an effective fire barrier if neces-
sult of a recent investigation regard- of a membrane column to support an sary. At ground and basement level,
ing suitable, commercially available axial load in proportion to its inter7 substantial plant areas are required
membrane materials, it was con- nal pressure) diminishes rapidly for for air-conditioning and pressur-
cluded that nylon scrim-based lami- slender columns and high pressures. ization equipment. These areas are
nates capable of developing a yield In this respect we have been able to not pressurized. An interesting vari-
strength of 1000 lb per in., or more, develop relatively simple formulas ation of these principles is illustrated
are most suitable for this appIi- for the design of multistory, pressur- (4), where mainly for convenience of
cation.. However, indications are that ized, membrane buildings with slen- erection the top bearing floor is not
for most projects it wiII be desirable derness ratios (Le., of less than
30. From a general point of view, if
+) rigidly fixed to the membrane enve-
lope. Accordingly a rigid, self-sup-
to use an external t.ension net as a
. means of reinforcing the membrane. the tentative physiological pressure porting membrane has been chosen
Under these conditions the required limit of ~ atmospheres absolute and a so that the buIlding enveiope can be
membrane strength will be simply a height to diametel: ratio of 2 to 1 are erected to full height before the
function of the mesh-size. A tension not e;$ceeded, then' the pressure-uti- building is pressurized, From a tech-
net in dir'ect contact with tq~ build- lization will be above 80 percent. nical point of view we are concerned
ing membrane may be more efficient The safety of a membrane build- hel"e with an open, pressurized col-
in stabliiing the building laterall:r. ing will depend on the satisfactory umn supporting a load on a piston,

112 Pneumatic Construction SEPTEMRER 1970 PIA

I
I
l
f
which is in itself supported by inter- not be amended to fully realize the faiiure can take place. It may
nal pressure. potential structural applications of be desirable to plan evac-
Objection to a pressurized build- plastics, it may be necessary to re- uation in two stages: first, to
ing environment does not necessar- evaluate fundamental concepts on the a fire-rated shelter at base-
ily rule out pneumatic construction basis of relating fire-hazard to the ment level within the building
systems. Two systems that do not re- complete structure. In the case at confines; second from this
quire pressurization of the building hand, it is clear that economic risk shelter to the exterior.
environment are illustrated (5,6). In must be sacrificed in relation to the Consideration must be given to
the cellular membrane-network build- danger to human life. The problem of shielding of the membrane envelope
ing (5), a pressurized annulus fire-protection for multistory, pres- from radiation, and heat insulation
(which may be of a cellular nature) surized, membrane buildings ,vill of the suspension cable system. In
provides structural support for 10 thus be tackled in respect to: the first case, the authors have pro-
suspended floors. In fact this is basi- (a) Minimization of fire-loads in posed the installation of automati-
cally a: double-skin system carrying relation to structure, cladding, cally controlled, reflective, sliding
with it the advantage of thermal and and contents. It seems likely screens positioned at the perimeter
acoustical insulation. The extra ex- that the effective fire-load of a of each floor (7). In the case of a
pense of cellular systems may be building could be reduced by fire at any point, these screens will
warranted when design consid- providing separate fire-rated slide between the fire and the mem-
erations, such as minimum heat storage units for areal) con- brane acting as shields against radi-
transfer, indestructibility, etc., taining a high density of com- ation, heat transfer, and flame pene-
predominate. bustibles. In isolating com- tration. At the same time, deluge
Normally, in this type of building bustible content we are able to sprinkler nozzles will spray water
the cross·sectional area of the an- reduce the fire-protection of against the membrane and the re-
nulus would be equal to the floor the noncombustible structure verse side of the screens.
area, so that our assumptions re- and concentrate treatment in
smaller areas more effec- Erection Techniques
garding pressure"utilization would
still apply. However, this is not the. tively. Pneumatic structures of the type de-
case when a high-pressure column is Ib) The installation of effective scribed will require new proced ures
situated at the center of the building fire-services in the form of de- for erection, new sequences of as-
and annular floors are suspended tectors" shielding systems, sembly, and different allocations of
from a cantilever beam system (6). and deluge sprinklers that wil~ manpow·er. The suspension scheme
~ere we may expect a· pre;>sure-uti- allow sufficient· time fo~' mass depends upon a framework of Vie-
lization of as low as 40 percent. evacuation before structural rendeel-type trllsses or a beam sys-
Thus, a column of ·cros's-s.ectional
area A c sq ft (slenderness ratio less PRESSURE TANK

than 60), pressurized to 100 psi, may

be capable of supporting 10 floors of =~ HIGH PRESSUR~
SPRlNI(!.(RS
II ////
// "

4A c sq ft area each. While benefits =~=_=':"",:l',-/ /

t
",~;;'::~)li~:~:
that are fundamental to the fully
FEEDERS EAtH FLJOR
pressurized; flexible, membrane-net-
work buildings (3) are sacrificed in Ii
the high-pressure system, the h.tter
HIGH PRESSURE HEFty ',>~" aMSR..1HE
may nevertheless provide a con- PIPES AT P!.RIP

venient compromise solution to the ,,/ "

conservative investor and building -~~~J'-
authority.
Aspects of Fire-Protection
» SUSPENDED
FLOORS

SLIDING
PARTITION
/,//,

\Vithin the context of presently ac- // /,/'

cepted standards of fire-resistance,
multistory membrane buildings will
1~~,:,"'~>.~; i< :;. >,<., ~.~~' :~"£5'1
present problems that may well seem
insurmountable at first sight. How-
,
'"
',/"/
/ ~
", , / " "' ,
. , . . .,
", I
I

ever, since existing regulations c. n- SIAMESE CO~NE eTiON ',// ' I

FOR FIRE BFtlG, DE , __~~~~_"",-"-.._....,.
......I"

SEPTEMBER 1970 PIA ~ ~. ..' .... ,. ~ •... .........

"'''> '

PUMP"\, ~I ... wATER SERVICE 7. FIRE-PROTECTION INSTA!.LU'ON

Since continuous maintenar)("p. of internal pressure is
essential for structural sta .J. the topic of safety leads to
several vital considerations.

tem at the top, with main supporting been developed in other construction the internal pressure and allow any
fixtures at the perimeter. From fields. It is thus apparent that the excess air to escape. This will also
these, whole floors or units are sus- erection of pneumatic buildings re- take care of changes in air pressure
pended by means of high~tensile steel quires little development work, by due to diurnal temperature changes.
cables. First floor to basement level being able to draw upon existing Accidental leakage up to the amount
will be a normal compression struc- methods of engineering construction. "of air 'which would escape through
ture with circular, prestressed-con- this valve will therefore cause no
crete" walls enclosing all pressurized Pressurization and Air-Conditioned harm to the building.
areas. Suspended floor slabs will be Equipment
The total heat gain in sunlight
prestressed and poured sandwich The concept of a sealed, pressurized conditions is likely to be much higher
fashion similar to normal lift-slab building at once eliminates the infil- than for a conventional building
construction routine. In most cases tration of dust, unwanted hot or cold because:
trades will be able to commence work air, and even rainwater leakage into (a) There is no optimumori-
inside the building at an early stage the building, but introduces a strin- entation for a circular
in construction (Le., as soon as mem- gent requirement for conditioning building.
brane and cable-network are in posi- and changing the air and main- (b) There is no provision for sun-
tion). A more detailed master pro- taining its pressure. shading in the basic pneu-
gram based on main erection The range of pressures indicated, matic building as described.
operations is outlined (8) for the 0-14 psig, is well below the usual (c) The transmission of heat by
four building types previously de- range of reciprocating compressors radiation and conduction
scribed. Time schedules have been but above that of centrifugal blow- through a thin membrane will
expressed as a percentage of total ers. The most appropriate method of approach that of the glass in a
time to obviate the need for specific achieving pressures toward the up- conventional building, and will
time allotment at this early devel- per end of this range would probably occur over the whole of the
opment stage. be with a rotary vane compressor, vertical surface.
There is some justification in the that could conveniently be directly The maximum solar heat falling on a
thesis that the shortage of skilled coupled to a high-speed motor or to a cylindrical surface occurs when the
craftsmen and experienced labor in turbine. The output of the com- sun's altitude is in the range 30-40
the Western World will, in the face pressor \vould be at an elevated tem- degrees. (The intensity of radiation
of greater demands, increase the cost perature so that aftercooling would normal to the sun's rays falls off as
of those buildings that are planned be necessary in summer. The winter .the altitude decreases. This falling-
and constructed by conventional requirement would depend upon the off is much more rapid at altitudes
methQds, requiring a large amount of rates of air exchange between the below about 30 degrees. The sun
skilled labor. The problem is particu- building and the outside air. Since strikes a maximum projected area of
larly acute in urban areas where mul- the building is sealed against air ex- the cylindrical surface \vhen the alti-
tistory buildings are required in in- change with the atmosphere, fresh tude is zero.) This maximum corre-
creasing numbers. In this context air will need to be supplied to the oc- sponds to about 4 P.M. on a summel'
the pneumatic-suspension system cupants; and since the membrane is afternoon in Sydney, at which time
will realign the work of skilled labor envisaged as a thin and partly trans- the air temperature may be also close
for greater efficiency. The construc- parent envelope, considerable trans- to its maximum. It also occurs even
tion program, by virtue of a higher fer of heat by conduction and radi- in midwinter, so that on a sunny
content of prefabricated components ation can be expected. Therefore, an winter day considerable cooling may
and the ability to mechanize on-site air-conditioning system will be re- be required.
erection operations, \vill lower erec- quired which provides enough make- Let us assume a building 60 ft in
tion time with subsequent savings in up air to supply oxygen to the occu- diameter and 120 ft high, with a de-
labor costs and investment losses. A pants, and which controls the sign temperature difference of20 de-
variety of advanced technologies ap- temperature and humidity within a grees between inside and outside,
plicable to buildings can be utilized. comfortable range. The make-up air and a thermal transmittance
In' addition to the industrial tech- will replace air lost through acciden. (V-factor) "of 1.10· for the mem-
niques that are readily applied to the tal leakages and through the en- brane. This will be compared with a
construction of membrane, cable-net- trance air-lock. It is intended that conventional square building of sim-
work, and the high percentage of the total make-up air should be con- ilar area, having windows occupying
nonload bearing elements, one can siderably greater than these losses, 25 percent of the external wall area,
employ the latest techniques for lift- so that an additional self-balancing and using typical values for
ing heavy loads that have already air escape will be pl'ovided to control V-factors of the walls and roofs. Ap-

114 Pneumatic Construction SE?TEMBER 1970 PIA

 No OPERATION TIME SEQUENCE BASED ON PROPORTIONALITY
ERECTION OF COMPRESSION
I STRUCTURE TO FIRST FLOOR ,-
LEVEL.
15
2 FABRICATION OF MEMBRANE
ANO SUSPENSION FITTlNG~
D T

3
INSTALLATION OF
PRESSURIZATION SYSTEM.

POUR FLOOR SLABS AND

[] S I

8 ~ SB
4 BEARING FLOOR IN LAYERS
AT FIRST FLOOR LEVEL.

~
POUR FLOOR SLABS AND
4 BEARING FLOOR IN LAYERS
A AT GROUND LEVEL.
I

5
PREPARE ALL FLOORS FOR
FITTING MEMBRANE ANO
CABLE NETWORK.

ERECTION OF RIGID EXTERIOR

0 SI .
iff:
:';'.'A
:::......
I

8 8
5
A WALL AND CABLE FITTINGS.
ill
6 MEMBRANE THREADED OVER
FLOORS' AND FIXED IN PLACE. [
~
LIFT BEARING FLOOR TO FULL
HEIGHT WITH CRANE AND
7 SMALL INTERNAL PRESSURE. 7 ....
c::
ROOF FIXEO AND FLASHED. <t
::I:

~
(,)

;:•
CABLE NETWORK FIXED IN
8 PRELIMINARY POSITION.
0
6 -------, -l

~
I ~
PREPARE FLOORS FOR

10
9 HOISTING, PRESSURIZE TO
FINAL DESIGN PRESSURE.

FLOORS LIFTED IN POSITION

ON SUSPENSION CABLES. 5
[I
I
I
1 I
I
I

.~~iB
ERECTION OF INNER WALL TO I

~
IDA FULL HEIGHT AND CORE TO BE
DE-PRESSURIZED.
I
I
4 3
I
CONSTRUCTION OF S'TAIRCASES,
II SERVICE DUCTS, PERIMETER
PARTITIONS.
,
---'

~
FIX CURTAIN WALL OR
II MEMBRANE. I 2
A
ADJUST CABLES TO FINAL
12 POSITION.

MOVE IN ALL TRADES AND

13 SERVICES.

14 LIFT INSTALLATION.
I I I
15 FINAL FINISHES.

No OPERATION TIME SEQUENCE BASED ON PROPORTIONALITY

~
HIGH PRESSURE MEMBRANE-
CORE BUILDING

8.
[8illJ
/!/\
..
.....
:.:.::::;~
".
CELLULAR MEMBRANE NET-
WORK BUILDING •
RIGID OPEN-COLUMN BUILDING

SCHEMATIC ERECTION SEQUENCE AND FLOW-CHART FOR FOUR VARIATIONS OF PNEUMATIC BUILDINGS

SEPTEMRFR \q7n PIA

Apart from the direct savh _ that tend to favor the
membrane building, the authors conclude that thare VliII
undoubtedly be considerable indirect savings in respect to
labor and erection time.

proximate figures for external heat reflective coatings to the spandrels, Because of the requirement of reli-
gain are tabulated below: and even of partially-reflective coat- ability, the design of the mechanical
ings to the window strips; by adding equipment will present problems not
Heat gain
(Btu/hr) Membrane Conventional flexible insulation material to the usually encountered in building con-
due to Building Building opaque sections of the membrane; struction. The provision of standby
Wall and by the addition of sunshading plant, and probably alternative
conductivity 500.000 237,000
Wall direct
devices externally. Horizontal sun- energy sources,wilI be necessary. It
radiation 1,060,000 324,000 shading louvers could be hung from may be pointed out that single-en-
Wall diffuse the top bearing floor on the external gined aircraft and helicopters are ac-
radiation 340,000 110,000
Roof conductivity 22.000 22,000 side of the membrane and attached cepted as a reasonable risk, being
1,922,000 693,000
at intermediate points to the exist- solely dependent on' a single power
ing cable-network. In this case, that unit. A better analogy for the pneu-
Thus, the heat gain of this mem- portion of the heat load which is pro- matic building would be the multiple-
brane building at the worst time is duced by solar radiation impinging engined airliner, which is capable of
about three times that of a· con- directly on the building enclosure operating with part of its power sys-
ventional building. The radiant heat could be reduced at will as a function tem out of action;
gain through the membrane can be of the vertical spacing and horizontal Let us now consider the perform-
substantially reduced by coating all projection of the louvers. The desir- ance of the building membrane. One
but the "vision strips" with an ability of doing any or all of these type of plastic material, at present
opaque, reflecting surface such as a must be evaluated by considering available to satisfy the performance
metallic coating or a high!;r reflective also the essentially simple, demount- requirements, such as tensile
white paint. Using a reflectivity to able nature of the building. The ef- strength, \veatherability, etc., is a
solar radiation of 0.80 over three- fect any such addition would have on nylon scrim base laminate coated
quarters of the surface reduces the the speed and ease of erection of the with. a PVC or PYF film externally
total external heat load of the mem- envelope needs to be viewed against and polyurethane internally. The ny-
brane building to about twice that of the cost of. operation over the ex- lon scrim has the ability to localize
a comparable conventional building. pected life of the structure. rupture by developing a fairly high
In the example taken above, an From the considerations of heat tear-strength. Should the building
air-supply at the rate of six air load, air supply, and access, it be- membrane be punctured by accident
changes per hour (at atmospheric comes clear that the pneumatic build- or as an indirect result of civil dis-
pressure, Le., three changes per hour ing has particular merit where the turbances (e.g. bullets and larger pro-
at two atmospheres) \vould permit a number of occupants is small and the jectiles), and this perforation re-
heat exchange of 700,000 Btu/hr anticipated life is not great. In the mains localized due to the tear-
with a temperature difference of 20 case of a building housing mainly resistance of the material, then the
.degrees between inlet and outlet. For equipment or materials, the delay of continuing stability of the building
the peak cooling condition, it would ingress and egress through the air- structure wiII be purely a question of
be necessary either to increase the air lock, the problems of fire escape, the pressurized air-input. The design of
supply to about 12 changes per hour need for fresh-air supply and the the mechanical equipment can there-
at 1 atmosphere, or to use secondary need for transparent areas in the fore be dealt ,:vith statistically; Le.,
cooling such as chilled-water fan-coil membrane are all reduced. what is the probability of failure in
units within the building. If addi- relation to the effective size of a
tional air-handling is used, it should General Safety Considerations puncture that may occur in the life-
be carried out in a high-pressure cir- Since continuous maintenance of the time of a building?
cuit with the acceptable minimum of internal pressure is essential to the Le., lower material
make-up air, since the energy re- structural stability of a multistory cost and insurance
quired to compress the make-up air pneumatic building, the topic of must balance
to building pressure could otherwise safety is heavily dependent upon:
add greatly to the energy needed for (a) The satisfactory performance lower equipment cost risk
cooling the building. of the pressurization equip- In fact, the designer is taking a cal-
Although the thermal performance ment in being capable of sus- culated risk (i.e., insurance risk)
of the pneumatic membrane building taining an increased air-input that the conditions which would
in its simple form is substantially in- under emergency conditions. cause the building to collapse will not
ferior to that of a conventional (b) The ability of the building occur during its lifetime. It may be
building, the situation could be membrane to resist tearing noted that the proposed theory of
greatly improved by the addition of after punctures have occurred. "differential load factors" is based on
 ·~".: ~i·;~~~~~:~~~;f:~?:~:~:~~~:;??~~·. ~r:·>7~:-/_~" ~~.i~~~~~:ft¥t~~fr:~~~~·~~;.~r!:,~~,~~~Yj~~·+~~ :~~~]~~~~~~.t8~}T~~ The type of pressurized building en-
cr.mr.tlit~ (li!Jiir;8"(@i1: U'~~~ WW:n&£-<f ' . rrtrtf~l1"{: " visaged here has obviously' not yet

.~~,'" ,~:, ~ ;~,;~.~.~)~<; ~~l~~~~ill~;;" . ;,,::".", ;_Y;~;~L.;;J~

been developed to the stage of prac-
tical construction, although a design
" .',:,':., " ... r..
has been prepared for an ex-
,Foundations .•.........•..••...... -. .. -40% Lighter overall weight. perimental three-storied prototype.
Therefore, any attempt to estimate
Floors (incl. beams) ......•.....•..•.•. -10% Smaller spans are costs will be largely intuitive, based
possible with supension
on the assumption that some pre-
system."
vious experience had in fact been
Columns •......•.•........•..•...•.. -:70% Suspension cables only gained in erecting a building of this
above first floor. type. The principal differences are
listed (see table).
External Walls •..............•..•..... -60% Plastic membrane and Apart from the direct savings
cable·network only. which tend to favor the membrane
building, there will undoubtedly be
Air·Conditioning _..... ; .•............ +100% More elaborate plant considerable indirect savings in re-
(incl. pressurization) required. , speet to labor and erection time. The
desirability of predetermining life-
Fire Services .• _...........•.•.•...... +30% Greater protection
span on the basis of a dynamic, re-
needed for membrane.
placement policy will become a neces-
Internal Finishes ......• _.......••.... -20% No wall finishes sity for this type of multistory
, reqUired. building. We may in fact treat pneu-
matic structures as mechanical build-
ings, designed for specific' require-
ments and governed by critical
performance standards on par with
identical premises.' A similar sort of a set of variables not so far consid- aeronautical engineering concepts.
risk is taken in any structural de- ered in multistory, architectural
sign. The natural desire to have the construction. References
greatest economy compatible with a (a) Full realization of material ILanchester; "Lecture On Span"; Special Pub-
sufficiently improbable risk is re- strength due to the conversion lication of the Manchester Association of Civil
En>!i"eer•• Manchester; (Butterby and Wood.
flected in the gradual reduction of of axial load forces into ten- 1938).
factors of safety in structural codes. sile stresses. In this regard 2pohl. J. G.; "Multi-storey Pneumatic Buildings
In the present case, the risk is one of pneumatic structures will in- as a Challenge to the Plastics Industry": Aus-
total collapse in the event of an ap- vite the use of high-strength tralian Building Science and Technology. Jour·
nal of the Building Science Forum of Australia
preciable, sudden loss of pressure, materials, leading to the appli- (June. 1967).
and therefore the probability of this cation of more accurate and 3Lantier, E: "Man In High Pressures"; Handbook
happening must be made extremely critical design theories. of Physiology, ed. D. B. Dill. Section 4; Wash·
ington: American Physiological Society; (1964)
remote by adequate design safe- (b) With the efficient use of mate-
'Dewey. A.W.; "Decompression Sickness, an
guards. rials in tension, minimum Emerging Recreational Hazard": The New Eng·
On the other hand, the pressurized weight design criteria become land Journal of Medicine; Vol. 267, Nos. 15 "nd
16 (1962).
membrane-cable-network building, relevant as a means of opti-
mizing the strength-weight SPohl, J.G.; "Pneumatic Structures"; Architec-
by virtue of its flexibility, is much ture in Australia (August, 1968).
more resistant to damage by earth- ratio of the structure.
'''Principles of Modern Building"; D.S.I.R.-
quake or by the blast from an ex- (c) In thuse cases ,vhere the Building Research Station; Vol. 1; H.M.S.O.,
plosion than a conventional building building environment is re- (1962): p. 4-6.
constructed of more brittle mate- quired to be pressurized, we 1a Plastic membrane tube sealed at both ends
Ib Same tube in the pressurized condition act-
rials. This property could be ex- are able to consider structure ' ing as a stable compression member
ploited in regions subject to -seismic and enclosure as one entity. 2. With the addition of suspended floors, a
multistory building evolves
disturbances. Moreover, the enclosure will 3. Typical multistory pressurized. membrane·
be continuous, thus eliminat- cable·network building. -
The Mechanical Building ing problems associated with
4. Rigid open-column building
5. Cellular membrane·network building
The economical aspects of pneumatic joint sealants, drainage, ex- 6. High pressure membrane core building
7. Fire-protective installations
buildings are strongly influenced by pansion, and moving parts. 8. Master program of main erection operations

SEPTEMBER 1970 PIA ........... _.....Pneumatic Construction ] 11