MATERIAL STUDY: STEEL

BY PHIL HOFFMANN

STRUCTURAL MATERIALS RESEARCH CATALOGUE STUDIO 703

CONTRIBUTORS ARCH 3501 - ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN STUDIO 4
James Donovan, Marshall Drennan, Gregory Hemmelgarn, Phil Hoffmann, Cody Johnson, David Ladewig, Laura Lopez, COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE
Katherine Marshall, John Redington, Greg Roffino, Jose Sanchez, Chelsea Serrano-Piche, Leo Spurgin, Jasmine Strickland TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY - FALL 2008
 STEEL USES TODAY

Steel was first used in the creation of long spanning bridges and
railroad tracks across the world. It has quickly become one of
the most popular structural elements in the construction of tall
buildings and skyscapers due to its incredible compressive and
tensile strength. Steel consists almost entirely of iron, with just a
hint of carbon in its composition. Because of this, steel weighs
less than iron, even though they have many of the same com-
pontents.

Steel has quickly broken away from its common use of purely
structural strength as its beauty has been discovered. Today
steel is used throughout the world to not only strengthen struc-
tures, but also make them look great. Steel can be bent, curved,
and twisted to create amazing architectural components. Steel
can be used to span long areas to open up large interior spaces.
Steel can be used to create window walls as it can carry much
larger loads that most other materials. It seems as we continue
to try new things with materials, we will continue to see new
ideas used in different ways.

Above: an aerial perspective of Incheon In-

ternational Airport located 30 minutes away
from Seoul, the capital of South Korea.

Right: an interior perspective of Munich

Airport located in Munich, Germany.

Far Right: an interior perspective of Beijing

International Airport located in Beijing,
 INCHEON INT’L AIRPORT

Incheon International Airport was one of our top building choices when we were looking into the
material study of steel. Incheon is located just outside of Seoul, South Korea and remains the
largest and most interactive airport in the country today.

The steel lattices that make up the rooving system in the picture below is perhaps the most beauti-
ful part of the building. The strength of the steel allows for windows to flood the entire interior cor-
ridor with light. And with the great spanning abilities of steel, the interior space has little problem
accepting it.

Exposed steel has only recently become a commonly used idea. Modern airport architecture has
been a leading building type in popularizing this technique, Incheon Airport uses exposed steel
throughout its structure to show how the elements of strength and beauty can work together to
create attractive architecture.

Above: The steel awning that travelers pass under is made of gigantic steel columns and
beams that hold up the elaborate structure.

Right: The complex steel lattice that creates the long arched corridor remains structurally
strong but capable of allowing the sun to inflitrate just about every section of the room.
 MUNICH INT’L AIRPORT
Munich International Airport utilizes the same steel structural
system as Incheon. The large central membrane consists of a
steel lattice that allows natural light to flow in freely without sac-
rificing structural support.

The terminal shown below acts as a tent, since the covering is

still exposed to the exterior. Although the area is enclosed, on-
lookers don’t have the feeling because of the long spans and
high columns that make up the roof.

Steel is perhaps the only material that could make a structure

like this stand without failure.

Above: A great example showing the long distance that the steel spans to create the wide
open interior space.

Above: An interior perspective of the column connections at the roof lattice. The load from
the arched corridor is carried down the long and slender vertical steel columns.
 STANSTED INT’N AIRPORT
We chose Stansted International Airport because of the unique
canopy design Norman Foster utilized to create a roofing sys-
tem.

The four columns that protrude from the ground carry the load
from the dome lattice above it. Attached to the pyramid above
this section are cables that span outward toward the corners
of the canopy itself. This system gives onlookers the idea that
the diagonal beams are supported solely by these cables, which
actually act to pull the dome in to prevent failure and keep the
roofing structure stable.

The Jesus Bolt is the name for the connection atop the pyramid
where all four cables are attached. A large single bolt straight
down the middle holds the welded cable rods in place. It is nick-
named the “Jesus Bolt” because if this bolt is removed from its
position, the entire lattice would fail.

Above: A detail of the “Jesus Bolt” from below. As seen, the bolt slices through the peak of
the pyramid and holds all four cables in their positions.

Right: Shown is a good example of the scale of the structure, particularly the size of the
“Jesus Bolt” that holds the canopy and its pieces together.
 MODELING STUDIES
Through study models, we can see our own work come together
to help better our understanding of the way a particular mate-
rial works. We tried many methods of working with metal so
we could obtain some basic knowledge about steel through first
hand experience.

Being rough draft study models, we put together our first forms
using hot glue. We can build structures with this that are not
necessarily neat, but quick and simple to put together.

Next we tried soldering, which involves melting a metallic solid

around a joint of two metal strips, and waiting for it to dry. This is
great for combining metal pieces, because once dry, the solder
provides a very strudy connection that looks much cleaner and
realistic than glue.

Last we tried to weld, which involves applying pure heat to a me-

tallic substance until two pieces can melt into eachother. This is
ideal for large scale models and even buildings, as it provides a
very thick and strong connection without sacrificing good looks.
However, the only drawback with welding is that it is very difficult
to use on small scale models.

Above: David is looking through a book we checked out for the best picture to convey our
idea about the airport.

Right: A display of all the study models we have worked on thusfar. We started by working
with simple triangular truss systems and worked up to a portion of Stansted Airport.
 MODELING STUDIES
The triangulated truss is perhaps the most typical way steel is
structurally spanned in a building with an exposed skeleton.

The thinner upper columns each carry half the load placed upon
the truss. From there, the loads are carried down the diagonal
columns proportionally to the thicker base beam. This is the
most effective way to carry loads upon steel down to the ground
while minimizing the amount of material used.

This is a small study model of the truss system from Shenzhen

Airport located in China. It is made of thin aluminum pipes and
piano wire, and is put together using hot glue. This is one of the
first models we built to study the uses of steel in architecture.

Above: An overall view of our study model of the truss system at Shenzhen Airport. All the
parts work together to carry the load gradually down to the ground.

Right: A bottom view perspective of the Shenzhen study model. The museum just acts as
a filler to show the basic structure of the building and what is supported.
 MODELING STUDIES
The triangulated truss is perhaps the most typical way steel is
structurally spanned in a building with an exposed skeleton.

The thinner upper columns each carry half the load placed upon
the truss. From there, the loads are carried down the diagonal
columns proportionally to the thicker base beam. This is the
most effective way to carry loads upon steel down to the ground
while minimizing the amount of material used.

This is a small study model of the truss system from Shenzhen

Airport located in China. It is made of thin aluminum pipes and
piano wire, and is put together using hot glue. This is one of the
first models we built to study the uses of steel in architecture.

Above: David is looking through a book we checked out for the best picture to convey our
idea about the airport.

Right: A display of all the study models we have worked on thusfar. We started by working
with simple triangular truss systems and worked up to a portion of Stansted Airport.
 MODELING STUDIES
The triangulated truss is perhaps the most typical way steel is
structurally spanned in a building with an exposed skeleton.

The thinner upper columns each carry half the load placed upon
the truss. From there, the loads are carried down the diagonal
columns proportionally to the thicker base beam. This is the
most effective way to carry loads upon steel down to the ground
while minimizing the amount of material used.

This is a small study model of the truss system from Shenzhen

Airport located in China. It is made of thin aluminum pipes and
piano wire, and is put together using hot glue. This is one of the
first models we built to study the uses of steel in architecture.

Above: David is looking through a book we checked out for the best picture to convey our
idea about the airport.

Right: A display of all the study models we have worked on thusfar. We started by working
with simple triangular truss systems and worked up to a portion of Stansted Airport.