Design and research of gymnasium structure in Zhejiang University

This paper deals with the issues involved during the design of a complex gymnasium located at the new campus of Zhejiang University. The complexity comes from the gymnasium’s being of three parts: long-span membrane structure, prestressed concrete structure and extraordinarily long tubular steel structure without seams. The paper first presents considera- tions of the prestress design, followed by analyses of the stress states due to temperature changes and concrete shrinkage. Buckling and postbuckling analyses were performed to determine the load-carrying capacity of the perfect and imperfect tubular steel structure of the inclined arch system, while dynamic relaxation method and general nonlinear finite element analysis were used to carry out shape-finding and stress analyses of the membrane structure respectively. Finally, collated monitoring date was applied to control the construction quality and verify the design parameters. Some useful conclusions are available at the end of the paper.

Preliminary analysis of mode truncation of single-layered reticulated domes under earthquakes

In anti-seismic calculation, the mode truncation is a significant problem to engineers if the mode-superposition response spectrum method is used, which has not been completely solved yet in some large and complex structures such as reticulated domes. In this case, some useful advices, concentrating on the problem above, are expected through a careful and comprehensive investigation of this paper. During the investigation, the authors first point out shortcomings of former researches. Then frequency-spectrum characteristics of single-layered reticulated domes were studied from the perspective of structural responses. During this process, some important results such as the existence of the main resonant section, and the fact that the relative sensitivity of these domes under horizontal and vertical impulse varies with the different R/S ratios were achieved. Furthermore, based on the study of frequency-spectrum characteristics, as well as that of earthquake input, reasonable numbers of mode truncation in single layered reticulated domes with different R/S ratio were presented. Results of case studies prove the mode truncation number proposed is valid.

Combustion Properties of Textiles Applied in Tibet Ancient Buildings and Their Clean Flame Retarding Designs

In the Tibet ancient buildings, there are large amounts of combustible decorative textiles that pose great potential fire hazards. Some typical textile samples were collected from the Potala Palace. Their combustion properties were analyzed by UL 94 Vertical Burning test and Limiting Oxygen Index test. The effects of plateau climate on combustion properties, an important fact required to be considered in the flame retarding design for combustible textiles, were preliminarily compared via test data in the plain and those in the plateau. Based on the foregoing analyses, some thoughts were presented on the clean and feasible flame retarding means for the decorative textiles due to their special applications in Tibet, in ancient buildings and in plateau climate. The fire resistance, weather resistance, UV resistance, endurance, ornamentation and religious performances for these textiles must be taken into considerations comprehensively in the designs.

A generalization of Kempe’s linkages

A new, general type of planar linkages is presented, which extends the classical linkages developed by Kempe consisting of two single-looped kinematic chains of linkages, interconnected by revolute hinges. Together with a locking device, these new linkages have only one degree of freedom (DOF), which makes them ideal for serving as deployable structures for different purposes. Here, we start with a fresh matrix method of analysis for double-loop planar linkages, using 2D transformation matrices and a new symbolic notation. Further inspection for one case of Kempe’s linkages is provided. Basing on the inspection, by means of some novel algebraic and geometric techniques, one particularly fascinating solution was found. Physical models were built to show that the derivation in this paper is valid and the new mechanisms are correct.

The Study of Thermal Mass as a Passive Design Technique for Building Comfort and Energy Efficiency

The day/night （diurnal） changes in temperature and solar radiation pose challenges for maintaining human thermal comfort in buildings. Passive and energy-conserving buildings seek to manage the available thermal energy by lowering peaks and dampening the fluctuations in order to maintain conditions for human comfort. Appropriate use of thermal mass moderates the internal temperatures by averaging diurnal extremes. Thermal mass is one of the powerful tools which architects and designers can use to control temperature. It can be used to optimize the performance of energy-conserving buildings that rely primarily on mechanical heating and cooling strategies. Massive building envelopes-such as masonry, concrete, earth, and insulating concrete forms （ICFs） can be utilized as one of the simplest ways of reducing building heating and cooling loads. This article analyses the role and effectiveness of thermal mass as a strategy for providing indoor thermal comfort for passive solar and energy conserving buildings.

Design Principles of External Lighting for Architectural Objects

Nowadays, lighting design is the modern attractive field of professional activity. Although its theoretical and methodological bases are in the initial stage of formulation. Though there are standards for regulating illumination quantitatively, the science has never created a bridge to transfer illumination quantity into illumination quality. How to keep a day image of architectural object without imitating natural lighting？ How unrecognizably to change the image, to make it extraordinary and catchy？ This paper offers a solution in the form of external illumination designing principles. This paper proposes two conceptual ways of creating artificial lighting of buildings and constructions that pursue different goals： the principle of ＂tectonic＂ illumination and the principle of ＂decorative＂ illumination. These principles were developed based on the analysis of the state of the art experience of lighting architectural objects and author＇s empirical study. The latter contained measuring luminosity with luminance meter, processing the data, statistical survey （180 respondents） and lighting modeling in the laboratory of Moscow Architectural Institute.

Slenderness Ratio Influence on the Structural Behavior of Residential Concrete Tall Buildings

The main concern of this paper is to study the influence of the building slenderness ratio on the structural behavior of the residential concrete tall buildings aiming to deepen structure and architect designers understanding for such type of buildings. The study is emphasized only on Kuwait city design conditions for wind and seismic loadings. The paper presents an actual case study for adding two thirty stories residential towers with two different slenderness ratios to an existing residential complex. Wind loading is considered using both code values and wind tunnel results. Three dimensional finite element techniques through ETABS software are used in conducting analysis for structures presented here. A serviceability study is performed to ensure that buildings have sufficient stability to limit lateral drift and peak acceleration within the acceptable range of occupancy comfort. In addition, an ultimate strength study is carried out to verify that all the structural elements are designed to withstand factored gravity and lateral loads in a safe manner according to the international building codes. Analysis results are presented and discussed. A brief idea about foundation design of the new towers and its connection to the existing foundation is presented. Finally conclusions are summarized as guidelines for the structural professions of concrete residential tall buildings.

Groundwork for True XML-based Security Pattern Languages

A pattern is used to describe best practices and principles. Patterns have been used successfully in architecture and in software design. We propose to apply the pattern method to XML-based security engineering. Organized collections of interrelated patterns (called pattern languages) can embody whole bodies of knowledge on specific topics. We will discuss patterns and security pattern, pattern languages and the requirements of the pattern languages proposing its essential requirement (the template), and lays the groundwork for our future development of a true XML-based security pattern language.

Evaluation of the exploitation of nontraditional water resources—Case study of Yantian District in Shenzhen

Yantian District in Shenzhen is a water deficient area. Water shortage has become a major obstacle to its further economic progress. Consequently, rational exploitation of nontraditional water resources(NWR)has been naturally adopted to increase local available water volume. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the exploitation of two kinds of NWR, namely wastewater reuse and seawater utilization, in Yantian District, and assess the contribution of each mode to deal with the water crisis. Two different nontraditional water supply systems respectively based on the reclaimed water and sea water were presented, and the effects of each system were evaluated in terms of technology, economy and environment. The result shows that both wastewater reclamation and reuse (WRR) and direct utilization of seawater (DUS) are of great importance to cope with the tight water resource situation in the district. The data indicate that the fresh water saved by WRR system and DUS system is 29 and 17 million m3/a respectively. Moreover, the BOD, COD, NH3-N and T-P reduced by the WRR system are 870, 2900, 725 and 87 t/a, respectively. Considering the integrated effectiveness, the development of WRR system, which is of specific significance to exploiting new water resource and save natural fresh water supplied from distant water diversion project, is the preferred methods used to solve the water shortage problem in Yantian District and recover the water environment as well as maintain the sustainable development of the city zone.

Windows Influence on Room Daylighting in Residential Buildings

Daylighting studies in buildings are key parts of environmental analysis and can be easily conducted at the early stages of design as part of environmentally responsive building design as well as to inform the final architectural layout and interior design. The main aim of this study is to demonstrate how such daylighting studies can be completed at the early stages of design and, at the same time, to show the impact of window design and positioning on building indoor environments. The paper is focused on a study of window influence on room daylighting in residential buildings and computer lighting simulations in software packages： Windows Daylighting System and Autodesk Ecotect Analysis, have been carried out for different style and positioning of windows using several case studies. The main findings clearly indicated that not only the window size and style matters, but also the positioning of windows considering external walls which would make a significant influence on room daylighting levels and, therefore, such daylight studies are very important for the early stage of environmental analysis during building design.

Optimization of time-delayed feedback control of seismically excited building structures

An optimization method for time-delayed feedback control of partially observable linear building structures subjected to seismic excitation is proposed. A time-delayed control problem of partially observable linear building structure under horizontal ground acceleration excitation is formulated and converted into that of completely observable linear structure by using separation principle. The time-delayed control forces are approximately expressed in terms of control forces without time delay. The control system is then governed by Itoe stochastic differential equations for the conditional means of system states and then transformed into those for the conditional means of modal energies by using the stochastic averaging method for quasi-Hamiltonian systems. The control law is assumed to be modal velocity feedback control with time delay and the unknown control gains are determined by the modal performance indices. A three-storey building structure is taken as example to illustrate the proposal method and the numerical results are confirmed by using Monte Carlo simulation.

The Fashion-Architecture＇s Theory： Reflecting Tribe Civilization into Contemporary Age

In megacities, the phenomenon of the highrise buildings which add fashion elements into the body and facades seems as big sculptures. Architect composed their work by applying the cross-pollination of design method. They adopted the various elements to enrich their building＇s facade in order to look different. On the other hand, the traditional architecture expressed the tribe civilization by placing their proud artifacts into the building＇s facade. The purpose of this study is to find a new theory of architecture during their process of becoming of the architecture＇s form. The study applied a phenomenological investigation method of several highrise building＇s facade at Jakarta and several districts of Singapore, Brisbane and Melbourne. The study result is a new theory named ＂the fashion-architecture＂ is a building composed by adopting the cross-pollination of design method. To enrich the building＇s facade, architect adopted anything including the fashion＇s design elements： accessories, millineries, and cosmetics also reflected by the traditional architecture. Their fashion-architecture works are reflecting the tribe civilization into a contemporary architecture design.

Two designs of thin film for cooling buildings based on photonic crystal

Nowadays, air conditioning, a relatively energy-intensive method, is still the main way to cooling buildings. This paper proposes two designs of thin film which uses photonic crystal and is based on theories of black-body radiation and electrodynamics. By different designs, the two thin films have disparate photonic band gap, making them respectively suitable for wall and windows. As a new type of material for buildings, it has distinguished advantages of low-energy consumption and high efficiency.

Consideration of Shape Characteristics for Apartments Incorporating Daylight and Energy Performance

The objective of this paper is to design units with well-lighted environment and low-energy consumption in the apartment building. Their daylight and energy performance can be determined by the building shape and orientation. The paper initially produced the results of illuminations and energy efficiency using the daylight and thermal simulations by Autodesk ＂ECOTECT＂. It then provided the comparison on simulation results of two type buildings： Flat-type and L-type apartment. The available options for the design incorporating the environmental performance have less flexibility in fiat-type apartments than in L-type ones. The best unit in the fiat apartment is fixed from -45 to 45 degrees rotation, however, that in the L-type one can change depending on rotating the building. Moreover, if the upper level units had the appropriate environment, the lower level could have larger window areas in order to meet those daylight performance needs. Results show that the facade design should have the different window areas depending on the location of each unit. It can assist in the comfort and low-energy consumption design by using simulation tools that achieve the more predictable understandings.

Deformation Analysis Due to Early Loading of Concrete Buildings

The building industry has experienced in recent years a strong growth in demand in general and in the case of reinforced concrete buildings this increase has been more marked. This fact has also contributed to accelerate all stages of the production process of these constructions with more pronounced effects on the methodologies used in the constructive steps that influence directly the structural design of the building. Structures loaded at ever earlier ages, in which the strength and deformation properties of materials are not yet sufficiently mature. It is a variable that needs to be taken into account already in the design phase so that the concrete structure behaves within acceptable level of reliability taking into account design code recommendations for service life. To understand the importance of constructive effects and to assess its magnitude in the execution of reinforced concrete buildings, this paper presents result from nonlinear analyses using finite element method adopting an approach commonly referred as staged construction applied to a typical building found in the practice. The effects of creep and shrinkage were considered and the results obtained demonstrate that the strains due to constructive effects can, in certain cases, assume representative values which, if ignored, can lead to important pathologies in the building.

Seismic Safety of RC Framed Buildings Designed According to Modern Codes

In order to ensure that a structure does not collapse when subjected to the action of strong ground motions, modern codes include prescriptions in order to guarantee the ductile behavior of the elements and of the whole structure. Obviously, it would be of special importance for the designer to know during the design process the extent of damage that the structure will suffer under the seismic action specified by the design spectrum and also the probability of occurrence of different states of behavior. The incremental nonlinear static analysis procedure used in this paper allows formulating a new, simplified, seismic damage index and damage thresholds associated with five limit states. The seismic behavior of a set of regular reinforced concrete buildings designed according to the EC-2/EC-8 prescriptions for a high seismic hazard level is then studied using the proposed damage index and damage states. Fragility curves and damage probability matrices corresponding to the performance point are calculated for the studied buildings. The obtained results show that the collapse damage state is not reached in the buildings designed according to the prescriptions of EC-2/EC-8 and also that the damage does not exceed the irreparable damage limit state.

Design and Management of Building＇s Resources

The developed modem control systems and buildings management resource systems would be effective if they are based on previously established optimal conditions during the building design. This is one of the key issues for a responsible architecture. The focus of this paper is on sustainable design methods and techniques for saving resources and their management throughout the building lifecycle. The main subject of the present article is the characteristics of these methods and their fundamental role in sustainable resource management during the building operation. The results which are based on conducted case studies of European and international practice in the construction of sustainable buildings are implemented here. Key features of a comprehensive approach for design and construction are outlined via comparative analysis, as well as various systems for the evaluation of sustainability for already constructed buildings. The mostly used criteria and indicators for sustainability are systematized, including those related to resource consumption. By analyzing a specific example, the role of sustainable design methods is justified as an important prerequisite for effective management of building resources in the process building maintenance. According to the conducted studies, during the longest life cycle period of a building, by implementation of control systems and resource management of building, the costs are successfully optimized. Specific directions that prove the effectiveness of such systems are systematized in the paper. Innovative approaches, complex methods and measures for design and management of buildings resources are presented as results of this study.

A Study about the Effect of Space Size on the Individual Distance

This study is the design guidelines for the living space with robots. The study can be applied to the architectural planning and focused on the basic environmental primary factor. The authors focused on space size, specifical distance from the wall in the front direction, position, and distance between an individual as factors affecting individual distance. The authors research the distances a small mobile robot moves to a six mats space compared with that toward a distances 5 m or more （space less physical factors）. The following three results were obtained： （1） The individual distance is smaller than 30 cm in both the approach angle in the experiment space of six mats; （2） The distance from the wall in the front increased, and the individual distance between a participant and a robot also increased; （3） In terms of body position, the upright positioning was clarified and the individual distance was small.

Apartments for Elderly People in a Building Designed as a Retirement Home

The building as a model for conceiving a project： The future of the construction industry will be a science of what to do with the built environment rather than the classical problem of what is needed to be built. The necessary areas for living, working and entertainment are probably already built, but we need to update them to comply with the new codes, the new needs and the new uses of our society. For this reason we are looking at new ways of addressing our profession： Firstly we have to decide whether a new way of living requires a new space or if there is already an existing space available. Secondly, we have to adapt the chosen space to the new requirements of society and the new codes and regulations. Thirdly, we have to think about the sustainable and energetic needs, in order to update the building to the new efficiency requirements in terms of energy. Life cicle： We want to add a vision of life cycle to a building in terms of changing and updating. With this vision we are looking for ＂quality existing buildings＂ and for a way of designing ＂versatile frameworks＂ and layouts allowing for future renovation and refurbishments, Therefore our research is two pronged： （1） Identify examples of transformable buildings; （2） Looking for a design strategy that allows for easy changes of use.