A COMPARATIVE PERFORMANCE STUDY OF MEMBRANE MATERIALS USED IN TROPICAL CLIMATE

Abstract

With the recent advancement in materials technology, the development of membrane has slowly evolved from natural products to synthetic materials that exhibit the high quality properties of membranes. Because of their qualities and characteristics, these state-of-theart materials had given designers, architects and engineers not only the ability to experiment with form and visual excitement but also environmentally sensitive and economically competitive as well. However, despite these increasing numbers of membrane structures, the availability of useful information and research on the use of membrane in the tropical climate is scarce. As such, the aim of this study is to expand the knowledge and adaptability of the membrane usage in tropical climates with the aid of two local case studies (Clarke Quay and Choa Chu Kang (CCK) Swimming Complex). By means of case studies, the characteristics and properties of the employed membrane material for its roof i.e. ETFE foil, PTFE fiberglass and PVC/PVDF coated membrane, were looked into against their performance (such as lighting and thermal comfort, efficient handling and installation, durability, resistance to tearing etc.). Based on the comparison of the two case studies, it can be concluded that ETFE foil and PTFE fiberglass membranes served the tropical climates better than PVC/PVDF coated membrane. The limitations of this study include the limited types of membranes involved for a more conclusive comparison, the uniqueness of each project which might restrict the intended performance of the membranes studied and the lack of proven results to establish the practical lifespan of ETFE foils.