Advance Building Construction: New

construction technologies
MADE BY: HONEY, SHIVAM, ADITI, HARSH P., NISHIT, NIHAR
 2. Bubble Architecture
Innovative, revolutionary and often avant-garde, inflatable structures are, by their very nature, an expression
of advancement- a reimagining of traditional forms. Influential in aviation for more than two centuries, this
deceptively simple technology has been at the forefront of architectural movements in recent decades,
enabling cutting-edge artistic practice and symbolizing technological utopianism.

BUBBLE ARCHITECTURE TODAY

• While the single membrane structures allowed fats and economical
inflated structures, they had the disadvantage of being transient or
temporary. Hence the double-walled membrane was introduced in the
permanent building systems for composite pneumatic structures.
There are several artists, architects, and engineers experimenting
with bubble architecture sought to extend the boundaries of the
achievable while generating awe and delight. 
• The transient, whimsical, and organic nature of the spaces created by
bubble architecture has inspired many artists and architects to work
towards ephemeral installations and spaces that change their
characteristics with place and time.
The Daedalum, London is a labyrinth of 19 interconnected egg- The New Korean Garden, Seoul is a rooftop park with a
shaped domes made of translucent inflatable material that lets maze of turquoise inflatables forming a reconfigurable
people experience the ‘phenomenon of light’. multipurpose space. 

Tierra Fertil, Mexico is an inflatable bean gallery designed by N. Allianz Arena is a football stadium in Munich, Germany. The
Miranda for a traveling exhibition. The inflatable structures were structural frame of the bowl and the stands are made of
so chosen to facilitate easy transportation and installation.  reinforced concrete while the roof consists of steel latticework. 
 THE BIRTH OF BUBBLETECTURE
• The first inflatable was a hot air balloon created by Joseph-
Michel and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier in the 18th century.
American engineer Walter Bird gave the inflatables a spatial
connotation, for his ingenious invention of ‘radomes’ that
were structural, weatherproof enclosures protecting radar
antennae for the US military triggered the concept of bubble
architecture. Post-war, birds developed inflatable storage
sheds, greenhouses, and pool enclosures, hence marking the
start of a new era in the history of architecture.
• In the late 1950s, Frank Lloyd Wright worked with the
United States Rubber Company to develop a unique and
experimental project called ‘Fiberthin Air house’ that used
durable vinyl-covered nylon to create affordable living
spaces. Though the project did not have long-term success,
the concept was way ahead of its time.
• With the arrival of cheap, mass-produced plastic in the late
1960s, creative architecture groups embraced the potential of
inflatable technology bringing inflatable chairs and cushions
into fashion. FL Wright’s Fiberthin Airhouse ©Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
 EDEN PROJECT, CORNWALL, ENGLAND

• Completed in 2000, the Eden Project is a series of artificial biomes

created in an abandoned mining pit in Cornwall, UK.
• Two design issues drove the development of the enclosure shape.
The first issue was to create a large enough area to house each
biome and its plant mass while the second required that sunlight be
able to penetrate the living biology inside.
• These design challenges led to the use of a geodesic dome as the
structure but filling the spaces between the hexagons became
problematic. The weight of glass and its tolerance meant looking for
a different solution.
• Designers and engineers eventually used a triple-layered pillow of
ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) plastic to enclose the frame. 1
 Not only does the ETFE weigh a tiny percentage of the weight of
glass but it also allows more sunlight through. By inflating the
layers of ETFE, designers were able to trap air between layers and
provide a thermal barrier from outside.
 “WATER CUBE” AQUARIUM, BEIJING OLYMPICS

• A project using ETFE to enclose a structural frame is the Beijing

National Aquatic Center, nicknamed the “Water Cube”. Used for the
2008 Beijing Olympics, the Water Cube took inspiration from
bubbles in an additional way.
• Its structural space-frame was designed to achieve long,
unsupported spans with a method known as the Weaire-Phelan
structure that simulates the way in which bubbles pack in nature.
The seam along each “bubble” meeting another became a structural
steel member. Between steel hexagon’s ETFE pillows 0.2mm thick
complete the enclosure.
• Not only are light and thermal performance improved from the
ETFE but the effect from the outside at night is a spectacular cube
of blue, glowing bubbles. ETFE allows for the ability to build
expansive enclosures, but the layering and pillowing of the material
manipulates light creating unique experiential qualities and has high
corrosion resistance and strength over a wide temperature range.