TENSILE STRUCTURE

R. VINITHA
20181AA058
 WHAT IS A TENSILE STRUCTURE?

• A tensile structure is a construction of elements carrying only tension

and no compression or bending.
• Tensile structures are used to cover large areas and long spaces. These tensile
structures remain stable under tension, and no compression. It creates a visual
focus of attention and used as roofing for walkways at the airport, outdoor
dining canopies, sports facilities, storage buildings, warehousing, etc.
 ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

• The minimum number of supports • The major disadvantage of these structures

means that tensile structures can cover is that before receiving external loads, they
expansive areas.  transmit strong compression and tension
to the foundation, so that the resultant
• Tensile fabric structures are lightweight
balances to zero, but it requires expensive
compared to other types of construction,
buried infrastructure.
but also extremely strong.
• They are designed to withstand even the
most severe weather conditions,
providing protection from both the rain
and sun.
 MATERIALS USED

• Structurally, the system is formalized by combining

three elements: membranes, rigid structures such as
pole and masts, and cables.
• For external Use there are two main choices PVC
(Poly Vinyl Chloride) coated polyester cloth and
PTFE (Poly Tetra Fluro Ethlene) (Teflon) coated
glass cloth. The PVC coating contains additives that
include UV stabilisers, fire retardants, colouring and
antifungicides.
• The membranes of PVC-coated polyester fibers have
greater ease in factory production and installation;
lower cost; and medium durability—around 10 years.
 MILLINNIUM DOME

• The Millennium Dome is the largest domed-shaped tensile structure in the world.
• Area: 2.2 million cubic meters. Which increased to 170 acres from the initial offering of the 48 acres
enclosed by the Dome
• Imagination tracked the trajectories of stars and comets from dawn until dusk, plotting their celestial
paths onto early concept models of the Dome. Today the panels of the canopy are based on the
cosmic lines of longitude and latitude.
• The Millennium Dome was delivered within
15 months, under-budget and at a relatively
inexpensive cost of £43 million.
 ABOUT THE STRUCTURE

• The Millennium Dome features twelve 100m high steel masts that support a tensioned net of
seventy kilometres worth of steel cables, arranged radially on the surface of the roof and held in
place by hanger and tie down cables.
• The canopy itself is a one millimetre white PTFE (polytetraflouroethylene) fabric with an interior
lining designed to reduce thermal gain, and improve thermal and acoustic performance – in
essence absorb both sound and condensation.
• The Dome is naturally ventilated with openings at the centre of the roof to allow rising hot air to
escape, while 12 fans work to draw cool air from the outside, in.
• Great care was taken with the design of the Millennium Dome to minimise the environmental
impact. Rainwater runoff is collected, naturally filtered through the reed beds and recycled as
grey water for the toilets.
 CONCEPT IN STRUCTURE

• The 12 support towers represent the 12 hours, 12 months

and 12 constellations of the sky.
• The Dome is 52 meters at its highest point, representing
the 52 weeks of the year.
• Each span is 365 meters apart, symbolic of the numbers of
days in a standard year.
• There are 24 scalloped edges at the base of the canopy, for
each hour of the day. 
 DIMENSIONS

• Dome height: 100-metre-high (330 ft)

• Diameter: In plan view it is circular, 365 metres (1,200 ft) (one metre or 39 inches for
each day in a standard year) in diameter.
• Canopy: The canopy is 52 metres (170 ft) high in the middle
• The design of the dome features a circle of twelve steel masts, one hundred meters
high, which support a network of high-tensile cables.