Tensile Membrane and

Cable Structures

Prepared by:
Ar. Emmanuel Plan
Instructor, BT5
Membrane Structures
Membrane Structures
• Thin, flexible surfaces that carry
loads primarily through the
development of tensile stresses.

• May be suspended or stretched

between posts, or be supported by
air pressure.

• Forces may be applied and retained

around the edges or over the
surface of the membrane to induce
tensile stresses that are larger than
the larger compressive stresses that
loads will be imposed.
Membrane Structures
• Membrane and steel cables transmit
external loads to masts and ground
anchors by means of tensile forces.

• Reinforcing edge cables stiffen the

free edges of a tent structure.

• The membrane may be tied to the

mast supports by a reinforcing cable
loop or be stretched over a
distribution cap.

• The masts are designed to resist

buckling under compressive loading.
Membrane Structures
Tent Structures
• Tent structures are membrane structures that are
pre stressed by externally applied forces and held
completely taut.
Membrane Forms
• Hyperbolic paraboloid (Hypar)
• Barrel vault
• Conical or double conical
Membrane Forms
Membrane Forms
Membrane Structures - mast
• Requires a compression member (mast or
arch) to form a complex shape.

• Welded “cleats” or “struts” enable it to

support the membrane, cable or other
structural.

• Perimeter mast requires either a large

moment connection or a series of cable tie
downs to withstand the loads.

• Tie down cables are attached to cleats on

the top of a mast and connected to anchors
installed on the ground with turnbuckles.
Membrane Structures - anchorage
• The base plate forms the connection
between the tension membrane
structure and the ground, wall,
building or adjacent structural system.

• Shackles and turnbuckles link the

membrane and the primary structural
support.
Membrane Structures – plate and catenary
• Membrane plates are the key to successful
tension membrane structures.

• Membrane plates provide a “link” from the

membrane to the structural masts. These plates
are installed to accept membrane catenary
cables and pin connection hardware.

• “Catenaries” are formed along the fabric

perimeter stretching from mast to mast.

• Catenary cables are installed inside a pocket in

the membrane or supported along the edge
with cable straps
 Membrane Structures – edge details

Tubular edge with lacing Rope edge Webbing edge

Clamping plate from rope Clamping plate edge

Membrane Structures - end connections
• Keders - prevent the membrane
from sliding out of the profile

• Webbing – Reinforced flexible

edges of textile membrane
surfaces parallel to the edge
Membrane Structures – end connections
• Rope socket - thick-walled, high-
strength wrought iron or cast steel
with conical inner walls transmitting
force from wire rope to the cone
through friction and chemical-
mechanical material bond
Membrane Fabric
• Require minimal support
• Opportunity for architectural expression
in color and geometry
• Translucent quality that provides an
outside feel inside, whilst combining
shaded cover from the sun and shelter
from rain.
• Applications: entrance features and
function areas in buildings, sports
venues, airports and convention centers
• Historically, animal hides were the first
materials used for tensile fabric
structures, but more recently woven
fibres of hemp, flax or other natural yarns
have evolved as canvas.
• Contemporary synthetic materials have a
plastic coating on a fibrous base.
Membrane Fabric – surface treatment
• Class A: high strength fiber fabric as base material of PTFE
coating, referred to as the membrane material;
• Class B: high-strength fabric as base material PVDF coating;
• Class C: is based on the material of polyester fabric coated PVC.
Membrane Fabric – coating material
• Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) – resistant to
ultra violet light, fire and long lifespan; teflon
• Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) - can withstand
aggressive handling or be used with automated
equipment without breaking or tearing;
exceptional tensile strength, preventing it from
cracking, tearing, breaking or curling.
• Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) – good
heat and chemical resistance with satisfactory
tensile strength.
• Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) – cost effective, usually
coated with other material to improve life span
• Polyurethane (PU) – usually used for laminating
as additional layer to other coating material
Membrane Fabric
• Design life will depend very much on type of
exposure.

• Previous use of these materials would indicate that

at least 20 -30 years is anticipated

• Jointing can be by fusion welding of plastics,

bonding with adhesives and stitching with glass
threads.
Membrane Fabric - jointing
• Permanent
• Welded seams - overlapping thermoplastic joints
with varying overlaps or as butt joints joins together two
with the use of heat without the use of additional
adhesive
• Sewn seams - direct connection of fabric thread to fabric
thread to transfer force
• Glued seams - solvent in the adhesive swells up the
surface, the adhesion of the molecules is broken and a
better adhesion is reached

.
Membrane Fabric - jointing
• Reusable / non-permanent
• Clamping - combination of frictional
and form-fit connections

• Looped and laced- for less heavily

loaded joints
Pneumatic Structures
Pneumatic Structures
• Pneumatic structures are membrane
structures that are placed in tension
and stabilized against loads by the
pressure of compressed air.
• The membrane is usually a woven
textile or glass-fiber fabric coated
with a synthetic material.
• Made of lightweight materials to
span large distances.
• A method of pre tensioning a
membrane enclosure is to pressurize
the interior with air.
• Kinds of pneumatic structures: air-
supported structures and air-inflated
structures.
Air-supported Pneumatic Structures
• Single membrane supported by an
internal air pressure slightly higher
than normal atmospheric pressure

• Anchored and sealed along the

perimeter to prevent leaking.

• Air locks are required at entrances to

maintain the internal air pressure

• A net of cables placed in tension by

the inflating force restrain the
membrane from developing its
natural inflated profile.
Air-supported Pneumatic Structures
• The main systems: envelope, cables, air
blower, doors, and foundation.

• The envelope is the outer most membrane

that is held up with the support cables.

• The cables are used to provide support for

the envelope, and also anchor it to the
foundation. The cables help to transfer the
loads from the top of the structure to the
ground.

• The air blower is a unit that blows air into

the envelope.

• The doors functions as airlock around to

door to be certain that no air escapes.
Air-inflated Pneumatic Structures
• Supported by pressurized air within
inflated building elements.

• Shaped to carry loads in a traditional

manner, while the enclosed volume
of building air remains at normal
atmospheric pressure.

• The tendency for a double-

membrane structure to bulge in the
middle is restrained by a
compression ring or by internal ties
or diaphragms

• Inflated-rib structures and inflated

dual-wall structures.
Air-inflated Pneumatic Structures
• In inflated-rib construction, the
membrane enclosure is supported
by a framework of air-pressurized
tubes, which serve much like arch
ribs in thin-shell construction

• In inflated dual-walled
construction, pressurized air is
trapped between two concentric
membranes.

• Because of the large volume of air

compressed between the
membranes, this type of
construction can span longer
distances than can inflated-rib
structures.
Air-inflated Pneumatic Structures
• Inflatable arches are connected into a
single structure and form the frame of the
building to which the shell is fixed.

• The frame elements and the shell of the

structure are made of a technical fabric
with PVC coating

• All seams are tight and high strength.

• An air blower with an automatic pressure

control unit turns on to maintain the
desired pressure as needed.

• Depending on the frame design, inflatable

structures are divided into two types:
modular and single unit ones.
Cable Structures
Cable Structures
• Utilizes a network of cables
suspended and pre stressed
between compression members to
directly support applied loads

• Utilizes the cable as the principal

means of support.

• A cable is a linear structural

member, like a bar of a truss and
have high tensile strength but offer
no resistance to compression or
bending, and therefore must be
used purely in tension.
Cable Structures
• A funicular shape is the shape
assumed by a freely deforming cable
in direct response to the magnitude
and location of external forces
(concentrated load).

• A catenary is the curve assumed by a

perfectly flexible, uniform cable
suspended freely from two points
not in the same vertical line. For a
load that is uniformly distributed in
a horizontal projection, the curve
approaches that of a parabola.
Cable Structures
• Guy cables absorb the
horizontal component of thrust
in a suspension or cable-stayed
structure and transfer the force
to a foundation.

• The mast is a vertical or inclined

compression member in a
suspension or cable-stayed
structure, supporting the sum of
the vertical force components in
the primary and guy cables.
Single-curve Cable Structures
• Parallel series of cables to
support surface-forming beams
or plates.

• Flutter due to the effects of

wind can be reduced by
increasing the dead load on the
structure or by anchoring the
primary cables to the ground
with transverse guy cables.
Double-cable Cable Structures
• Upper and lower sets of
cables of different curvatures

• Pre tensioned by ties or

compression struts to make
the system more rigid and
resistant to flutter.
Cable-stayed Structures
• Vertical or inclined masts.
• Cables extend to support
horizontally spanning
members arranged in a
parallel or radial pattern.
Cable-stayed Structures
• Radial systems attach the upper
ends of the cable stays to a single
point at the top of the tower.

• Parallel systems secure the upper

ends of the cable stays to the
mast at different heights.
Cable Structures
• Structural cables of high-strength steel can be
stretched, crisscrossed, and combined with
surfacing materials to achieve relatively lightweight,
long-span roof structures.
Cable Systems
• Cable systems can be designed to
offer much higher resistance to
vibrations than simple cables do.

• Cable systems may be stiffened or

unstiffened.

• Stiffened systems, usually used for

suspension bridges are rarely used in
buildings.

• Unstiffened systems may be classified

as a network or as a cable truss or
double-layered plane system.
Cable Trusses
• Cables of a cable truss are initially
tensioned or pre stressed to a
predetermined shape, usually
parabolic.

• The relative vertical position of the

cables is maintained by verticals, or
spreaders, or by diagonals.

• Diagonals in the truss plane do not

appear to increase significantly the
stiffness of a cable truss.
Cable Trusses
• For supporting roofs, cable
trusses often are placed
radially at regular intervals.

• Around the perimeter of the

roof, the horizontal
component of the tension
usually is resisted by a circular
or elliptical compression ring.

• To avoid a joint with a jumble

of cables at the center, the
cables usually are also
connected to a tension ring
circumscribing the center.
Cable Trusses
Cable Trusses
Cable Trusses
Cable Trusses
Ropes and Cables and
Rods
Tension Rod and Cables
• Cables are made of high-strength steel,
usually encased in a plastic or steel
covering that is filled with grout, a fine
grained form of concrete, for protection
against corrosion.

• Used as guy or tie back installations

• Used as hanging cables, catenary cables

for membrane structures or truss
elements for glazed facades and roofing
Tension Rod and Cables
• Rod and cable materials and different
cable constructions offer a range of
mechanical properties, visual effects,
and inherent costs.

• Cables are more efficient when

lengths are long, loads are high, or
the member passes several struts or
clamps.

• Rods are often used when the

member length is relatively short (32
feet or less), clean and smooth
appearance is important, or when
stiffness rather than strength is the
driving design consideration.
Wire rope
• Consist essentially of wires, cores and strands.
• The core lies in the centre of the strands and ropes and
serves to bed and support the wires, strands or ropes.
• The two types are fiber inserts and steel inserts. Static
ropes mostly have steel inserts, which ensure stiff
bonding of the wires
Wire rope – spiral rope
• Open spiral strands
• consist of spirally spun round wires with
almost identical diameters, which are
spun round a core wire in many layers
• suitable for light to medium forces and
are frequently used for edge ropes in
membrane construction

• Locked spiral strands

• consist of a core of round wires and one
or more layers of shaped wires.
• The external arrangement of shaped
wires also improves the mechanical
protection.
• For permanent structures, they are used
mainly as carrier and tensioning ropes for
lightweight structures or as stay ropes for
masts.
Wire rope – stranded rope
• Round spiral strand ropes
• formed from many strands which
are spun spirally in regular
• Mostly used when more flexible
ropes are required
• more susceptible to corrosion
and wear than spiral ropes;
• used as bracing, stay wires and
low-level truss tension members
for temporary buildings