Light or heavy façades: where is the limit?

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

High-Tech - Low-Tech

Lightweight Building Envelopes

28 October – Bressanone-Brixen, Italy

Advanced Building Skins 2014

Maria Elena Pla

epla@itec.cat

Architect, Barcelona

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Design criteria

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Weight-efficiency?

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Paris, 1771 -> Fardier de Cugnot

Tare:

2.500 kg

Payload: 4.000 kg

Speed: 7,5 Km/h

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Formula-E -> Lightness as a goal

Tare: 888

kg

Payload: 888 kg

Speed: 225 Km/h

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

We = Lp / M

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

What is light or heavy?

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Case study 1 Wall with light steel frame system, thermal

insulation, mineral boards and external

rendering - Aquapanel WM 311C -v14:

tested specimens 2.600 x 3.300 mm, span

between horizontal 3.300 mm span

between vertical 600 mm.

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Aluminium curtain walling by Hydro Building

Systems, practical example (Zamora et al,

2005) with separation between mullions 1.200

mm, separation between transoms 1.000 mm

/ 2.300 mm (3.500 mm total height between

floors), double glazing with 8 mm thick

reflective and toughened glass + 155 mm air

cavity + (4+4) mm laminated glass.

Case study 2

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Case study 3

Solid wood slab system forming a wall with mortar

external rendering, 140 mm insulation of wood

fibre, wood slab made of cross laminated timber

panels, 50 mm insulation of wood fibre and double

layer of laminated gypsum boards.

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Case study 4

Single-leaf masonry wall made of autoclaved aerated

concrete blocks thin layer mortar, external and internal

rendering.

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Single-leaf masonry wall made of vertical perforated

lightweight clay blocks, ordinary mortar on horizontal

joints and external and internal rendering.

Case study 5

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Wefaçades = F / M

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Wefaçades = 200 / M

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Weight on

Basic

Requirements

CPR (EU) 305/2011

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Hygrothermal behaviour

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Performance in front of fire

A. Diego / F. Bermejo - ITeC - Fire Seminar BCN 2014 Fundación Fuego

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Performance in front of fire

A. Diego / F. Bermejo - ITeC - Fire Seminar BCN 2014 Fundación Fuego

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

Life-cycle thinking

Acoustics

Light or heavy façades: Where is the limit?

There is much to be done...Thanks for your attention