Light weight tension strip structures

Abstract

This paper introduces the key concept of light weight tension strip structures and presents a novel hybrid structure composed of pre-buckled strips and high strength tensile elements using cables and membrane. The potential application is for axially loaded members. The adoption of curved strips could avoid early global buckling of the axially loaded members. High strength tensile elements are applied to stabilize the axially loaded system when they are deployed and to increase its stiffness and load carrying capacity. Strips and membrane in this system are combined to minimize bending forces in the strip, which is critical for membrane structures. The basic design concept is explained first and deployment and/or folding patterns are illustrated by computer simulation. Nonlinear inelastic finite element analysis is carried out to evaluate the loading bearing capacity of the proposed light tension strip structures. Comparison with conventional tubular structures shows that the proposed structure has higher structural efficiency for strut-like element applications, in particularly for slenderness ratio ranging between 100 and 150. Finally, the concept is expanded for larger span applications, which lead to the creation of novel deployable cable chain structures.