TY - GEN
T1 - Pressure-volume coupling in inflatable structures
AU - Coelho, Marianna
AU - Bletzinger, Kai Uwe
AU - Roehl, Deane
PY - 2011
Y1 - 2011
N2 - Inflatable structures or pneumatic structures are air-supported structures and find application in a variety of new engineering projects. By these structures the gas gives shape and strength to the structure in such a way that with larger volumes and higher pressures larger spans can be abridged. Their architectonic flexibility and the search for better structural efficiency are strong favorable arguments to the use of this kind of structure. Furthermore, inflatable structures can be erected or dismantled quickly, are light, portable and materially inexpensive. Also, some characteristics such as the utilization of natural lighting and ventilation and its possibility of reuse contribute to the pursuit of sustainable development. In this work the influence of the pressure-volume coupling on structure behavior is studied. A membrane formulation with deformation-dependent forces was implemented in a finite element model to take into account the influence of gas volume variation, with corresponding change in pressure for enclosed gas on the stiffness of membrane structures. An analytical solution of inflatable membranes was developed for the validation of the numerical results. Comparisons are carried out on a clamped circular membrane inflated by a uniform pressure.
AB - Inflatable structures or pneumatic structures are air-supported structures and find application in a variety of new engineering projects. By these structures the gas gives shape and strength to the structure in such a way that with larger volumes and higher pressures larger spans can be abridged. Their architectonic flexibility and the search for better structural efficiency are strong favorable arguments to the use of this kind of structure. Furthermore, inflatable structures can be erected or dismantled quickly, are light, portable and materially inexpensive. Also, some characteristics such as the utilization of natural lighting and ventilation and its possibility of reuse contribute to the pursuit of sustainable development. In this work the influence of the pressure-volume coupling on structure behavior is studied. A membrane formulation with deformation-dependent forces was implemented in a finite element model to take into account the influence of gas volume variation, with corresponding change in pressure for enclosed gas on the stiffness of membrane structures. An analytical solution of inflatable membranes was developed for the validation of the numerical results. Comparisons are carried out on a clamped circular membrane inflated by a uniform pressure.
KW - Deformation-dependent forces
KW - Inflatable structures
KW - Membrane finite element
KW - Multi-chambers
KW - Pressure-volume coupling
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84860250417&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84860250417
SN - 9788489925588
T3 - Structural Membranes 2011 - 5th International Conference on Textile Composites and Inflatable Structures
SP - 352
EP - 363
BT - Structural Membranes 2011 - 5th International Conference on Textile Composites and Inflatable Structures
T2 - 5th International Conference on Textile Composites and Inflatable Structures, Structural Membranes 2011
Y2 - 5 October 2011 through 7 October 2011
ER -