MEMBRANE STRUCTURE AND CABLE

STRUCTURES
SUBJECT :  ADVANCED CONSTRUCTION AND MATERIALS

NAME:  Y. DEVI NAVYA SRI.

ROLL NO: 17C11C4028.
MEMBRANE STRUCTURE:
• Membrane structures are spatial structures made out of tensioned membranes.
•  The structural use of membranes can be divided into  1.pneumatic structures,

                                                                                            2. tensile membrane structures,

                                                                                            3.  cable domes. 

• In these three kinds of structure, membranes work together with cables, columns and other
construction members to find a form.

pneumatic structures tensile membrane structures Cable domes

Fabrics used:
• PES :  Coated-PES membranes – a coated polyester base fabric – often have
additional protective PVDF fluoropolymer coatings on both sides, which helps
protect the surface, and also creates a membrane that is easy to clean. This fabric
is the most common in tensile architecture because of its lifespan exceeding 20
years. Coated-PES structures typically offer the owner the best overall value.
• PTFE Fiberglass: The most durable membrane used in tensile membrane
systems consists of a woven glass fiber-base fabric coated with
polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE fabric). This coating is highly inert and generally
unaffected by environmental contaminants and ultra-violet light. Additionally, it
has superior fire resistant properties. The lifespan of PTFE is proven to exceed 30
years.
• PVDF/ePTFE:  It is also known as Polyvinylidene Fluoride, is is a highly non-
reactive and pure thermoplastic fluoropolymer. Our ePTFE fiberglass fabric
membrane is stain resistant and easy to clean, offering a cost effective solution.
• ETFE FOIL/FILM:   Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) offers a creative and
lightweight alternative to glass. It is a transparent extruded film, or foil, with
similar light transmission to glass, but is just 1% of the weight. With a lifespan of
over 20 years and excellent weathering properties, it’s no wonder ETFE foil has
been used on many high profile projects and stadiums around the globe.
PNEUMATIC STRUCTURE:
• Pneumatic Systems are air supported structural membranes that requires constant internal air pressure, cables and ballasts for
stability.
• Pneumatic structures have a wide variety of applications that include military, commercial, and recreational uses.
• Pneumatic systems are a network of components with specific functions and relationships that can perform both dependently
or independently to comprise the system.
• To complete a set of predefined requirements, each system component works together in  tension to stabilize the structure
against wind, snow and additional weather loads, using internal air pressure and support framing.
• A Pneumatic structure is a system that requires air pressure to filled up the entire structure or in
between the layers of the envelope.

•  Pneumatic structures can be divided into two systems, which are called 1. air supported

                                                                                                                         2. air inflated.

• Air supported structure:  Air supported structure supported by the internal air pressure of the

structure. The air pressure inside of the structure is higher than the atmospheric pressure which helps
to keep the structure supported. However, this structure has slightly different aspect  for foundation
design. Rather than supporting the bottom of the structure, it  is used to hold the structure to the
ground. Because of this unique aspect of the structure, pneumatic systems requires different
foundations and calculations. This structure usually has closed doors or use revolving doors to keep
the internal pressure increased with the fan or pump.

• Construction technique:  https://youtu.be/m5YRUVx6dF0 ,

                                            https://youtu.be/v2IqJAvVHtY 
• Air inflated structure: Air inflated structure have inflated membranes
which are supporting its own weight. This structure is simply using inflated
membranes as external wall. What makes it different is from
other structural systems, is that this structure is light, quick, and easy to decorate
with lights. Due to its weight, engineers can build enormous structures without
the expansive foundation or limited span. It also can be built very quick,
which would cut down in cost of labor. Military operations prefer this
quickness, not because of the cutting down on cost, but the cutting down in
time. Pneumatic structure is mostly transparent or translucent, so it is easy to
display lights in or outside of membrane or structure.

• Construction technique: https://youtu.be/WaOESs5M3VY ,

                                             https://youtu.be/JeqqtuxTErs                                        
   
  The main components of a Pneumatic structure are foundation, envelope, cables, HVAC, and doors.
• Foundation - It is hard to find a typical Pneumatic foundation system. Especially for air supported
structure, the entire structure needs to be anchor down on the ground so there won't be any air leakage to
neutralize the internal and external pressure. Anchors also holds on to the lateral loads caused by the wind.
• Envelope - Depends on its structure type, it could be supported by the internal air pressure or the structure.
Usually a Pneumatic structure has single or double membrane layers to keep the structure rigid. However,
extra layers could provide higher insulation and acoustics.
• Cables - Cables help to stabilize the entire structure. Cables will use tension to hold the envelope down to
the ground. To have evenly distributed load for cables, the envelope needs to be pressurized evenly.
• HVAC - One of the most important aspect of this structural system. HVAC system will keep the air inside
of entire structure or PVC coated fabrics constantly to keep the envelope inflated. Constant and equal
amount of pressure is the key to this structure.
• Doors - For air supported structure, any kind of openings would cause the failure of this structure. To
minimize loosing air from this structure, revolving doors are commonly used. Other types of doors are the
double doors with airlock inside.
MATERIALS:
• Pneumatic structures have a wide range of possible materials. The materials used can be broken down into three main
categories: the fluid that the structure is suspended in, supports/anchors, and the spanning material

• FLUIDS :  One of the main concepts behind pneumatic structures is that of pressure. The structure is designed to be held
up by the force a fluid under pressure creates. The primary and essentially sole fluid used in pneumatic structures is air.
While some fluids may be lighter and would cause a higher amount of force from pressure difference (i.e. Helium), cost
is prohibitive. Air is free and its properties allow it to be used in the process successfully.

• SUPPORTS AND ANCHORS:  Depending on the use of the pneumatic system, the types of anchors or supports that can
be used are very wide ranging. For pneumatic structures connected directly to the ground, cable ties are most common.
These are chosen because they are relatively cheap, very strong in tension, have a long life span and are readily available
almost anywhere. For pneumatic structures that are not directly attached to ground surface concrete rings are most often
used to anchor the pneumatic structure to the other structural system that holds up the building.  

• SPANNING MATERIAL: the most commonly used covering materials are PVC, PTFE (polytetrofluoroethylene, shown
on a stadium roof to the right)  or silicon coated fiberglass, ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene).

      
Joining Techniques:
• Members: 
       Pneumatic structures have membranes that can
be made of different materials and compositions.
Regardless of the material, the entire membrane
cannot be made in one continuous piece.

 Large expanses of material must be seamed

together by sealing, heat bonding or mechanical
jointing. When sealed or heat bonded, the
membrane material must overlap by two to three
inches to ensure that the seam will be able to take
the load from the internal air pressure as well as
outside forces such as natural weather
conditions. 

 For smaller structures, the mechanical jointing

will also overlap and be bolted together.
   The mechanical jointing in larger structures will have a
plate holding the two pieces of material together by bolting.
The large plate allows for the accommodation of a cable,
which will be needed to hold the larger expanse of the
pneumatic structure. The different types of seams hold
the material together to create larger membranes.

• Cable system:
    The cable system is the support system for the pneumatic
structure in the same way that beams and girders support
the floor or roof of a non-pneumatic structure. The air in the
membranes has an upward force due to the internal pressure
of the structure. This force is counteracted by a system of
cables that hold the air structure and keep it in place. These
cables experience a tension force due to the upward force of
the air. Cables can be place in only one direction or two
directions to create a network and better stability. The many
cables act as a system of components to reinforce and
stabilize the pneumatic structure.
• Anchorage and Connection/Foundation:
  Uses for pneumatic structures vary from permanent to
temporary structures and thus, the foundation of the
system will also vary dependently. 

 Types of foundations are actually ways to anchor the

system either to the ground or to another structure. The
ground lying structures can also be anchored into soil or
into concrete foundation.

  When anchoring in soil, the cable is attached to an

anchor directly inserted into the soil.  This type of
anchor is dependent on the frictional forces of the soil to
hold it down.

  Soil anchoring systems include screw, disk, expanding,

duckbill and arrowhead anchors.

 When anchored onto a concrete foundation the cable is

hooked on to a shackle or hook that is
embedded permanently or temporarily in the  concrete
which sits directly in the soil.
  Another way for a pneumatic structure to be anchored is for it
to be directly anchored and fastened mechanically by bolts and
plates to a concrete structure.

 The cable is hooked to the anchor which is embedded into the

ground or structure to stabilize the inflated membrane as a
system.
Installion process:
• Air supported structure:
Step 1 : the structure , hvac, doors and required materials should be bought into the site

Step 2: the hvac , doors are needed to be places at their required position in the site

Step 3: the foundation should be done with the help of I sections or anchors(in case of cable air supported structures)  and
bolting should be done.

Step 4: then the structure should be unrolled and then be spread on the site carefully

Step 5: the structure should be placed carefully and be covered or attached to the air lockers.  

Step 6: then the structure should be boulted to the foundation.

Step 7: as the structure is not a single member, the members should be joined either by heating or bolting or  clamping.

            In cases of cable air supported structure the cables should be placed carefully on air structure and then they be attached
to the anchors.

Step 8: then the air is pump into the structure .

• Construction technique:  https://youtu.be/m5YRUVx6dF0 ,

                                            https://youtu.be/v2IqJAvVHtY 
• Air inflated structure: 
Step-1 The building has been unrolled on the floor (the tarps are not required but are used to keep everything spotless
during inspection) and the inflator's have just been turned on. The air space inside the arch segments has been filled. The
building has not begun to lift into the arch shape. 

Step-2 As the pneumatic cells become pressurized they become rigid and within a very short time the structure begins to
take shape. The center of the arch segment has lifted clear off the floor. Inflation process in progress  

 Step-3 The buildings virtually inflate themselves requiring minimum of personnel. The inflation is nearing completion and
the arch is approaching its full height. Notice that no internal or external skeleton, framework, or supports are required.  

Step-4 The building is fully inflated and is completely self-supporting. The end walls have not been installed and are not
needed to support the building.

 Once the proper air pressure is reached within an arch segment a pressure sensor switches that segments inflator off. This
sensor automatically switches the inflator back on when necessary to maintain the proper air pressure. The number of
inflators and their cycle time will vary with the size of the building. 

Step 5: The buildings must be properly anchored to withstand winds. This may be accomplished securing the structure to
anchor bolts that screw into the ground, to portable concrete barrier sections, or to water filled ballast tanks. The selection
depending on weather conditions, the surface the structure is located on and the expected duration the building will be in
place.

• Construction technique: https://youtu.be/WaOESs5M3VY ,

                                             https://youtu.be/JeqqtuxTErs    
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES:
• ADVANTAGES:      

1. Light weight.

2. Covers large spans without internal supports.

3. Rapid assembly and have low intial and operating cost.

4. Portability.

• DISADVANTAGES:

1. Need for continuous maintenance of excess pressure in the envelope.

2. Relatively operation of fans to maintain pressure

3. Continuous operation of fans to maintain pressure

4. Cannot reach the insulation values of hard walled structures.

TENSILE MEMBRANE STRUCTURE:

• Tensile membrane structures and tensile building envelopes are thin-shell structures.

•  Tensile membranes carry tension with no compression or bending, supported by a

lightweight structural system.

• Most often used for roofs and canopies, tensile structures are capable of creating
unique private and public spaces.

• Tensile structural systems are low-maintenance and provide year-round protection

from the elements.

• The smooth, reflective surfaces of tensioned membrane structures provide plenty of

daylighting, reduce cooling costs and solar gain, and allow the buildings to be more
energy efficient.

• Their innovative forms and inherent efficiencies reduce the amount of materials
required to build a structure and the transportation costs, resulting in cost savings.

• They can be used in buildings like Pavilions, amphitheaters, entertainment venues,

museums, hotels, and government and municipal buildings.
• The basic forms of tensile membrane structures are

1. Hypar

2. Conical

3. Barrel vault 

• There are even more forms for tensile membrane structure

• The fixtures depend on the shape of the structure. So the boundary details changes. The main 3 types of
boundary details depend on 

1. Curved edges,   2. Straignt edges,   3. Fabric edges.

• Boundary Details:

1. Curved or Scalloped edge: This generally consists of a cable slid through a pocket on the edge of the
membrane. In larger canopies webbing belts are added parallel to the edge to take out the shear loads.

• Installion process: https://youtu.be/3Zkzz_tAQwI
2.  Straight edge: The membrane would have a bead/keder edge formed by sealing a flexible PVC rod in a
small pocket. This can then be trapped behind an aluminium clamp plate bolted directly onto the structural
steel work or slid into an aluminium luff track extrusion.

• Installion process: https://youtu.be/l-bE0-uugY8 , https://youtu.be/P4mOCpPMWd4 
3. Fabric edges: 
         To get a staight edge or curved edge the fabrics
are bolted or riveted to the frame work.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES:

• ADVANTAGES:

1. They have unique designs

2. It is light in weight

3. Flexible

4. Environmentally sensitive

• DISADVANTAGES:

1. No rigidity

2. Loss of tension is dangerous for stability

CABLE NET DOMES:
• A cable net structure is an example of a tensile structure, i.e. a structure that is stabilised
by tension rather than compression. For example, a piece of fabric pulled in opposite
directions

•  Cable dome achieves its span by means of continuous tension cables and discontinuous
compression posts. 

• Loads are carried from a central tension ring through a series of radial ridge cables,
tension hoops, and intermediate diagonals until they are resolved in a perimeter
compression ring.

• The dome behaves like a series of paired cantilever trusses not quite touching at the
center. One of the system's advantages is that, as the length of span increases, the weight,
2 psf, remains constant and the cost per sq ft increases very little. All that is needed to
accommodate increased spans is the addition of another module defined by its tension
hoop.

• The membrane that covers the dome comprises four independent layers. The outermost
is a high-strength fiberglass fabric with a silicone coating on both sides. Beneath this is
an 8-in. insulating layer of fine, silky fiberglass enclosed in polyester bags. Six inches
beneath the insulation is a Mylar vapor barrier. Two feet below the Mylar is a silicone
coated acoustic liner made with an open-weave, fiberglass fabric. The thermal
performance of the membrane system is R10; its overall light transmission is 6 percent,
which enables the sun to meet most daytime lighting needs
• The Dome Roof Design: 

The innovatory structural concept for the roof of the Millennium Dome is seemingly simple. Arranged radially over the surface are 72 tensioned steel stringer

cables in pairs of 32mm diameter steel spiral strand. The stringers are supported at a radial spacing between 25 and 30m by an arrangement of upper hanger and

lower tie-down cables set out around the twelve 100-metre-high primary steelwork masts. Circumferential cables keep the stringers on their radial lines.

Tensioned PTFE-coated fibreglass fabric was used as cladding. The tensioned cables are straight, and the fabric is basically flat. They both carry the loads by

deflection accompanied by an increase of tension. This concept is simple, but there are dangers associated with the deflections, particularly that of ponding

caused by snow or heavy rain. When loaded by wind or snow, the upper hangar, the lower tie-down and the radial cables carry the loads from the fabric down to

the ground. The forces from the primary radial cables are collected at the centre by a 30-metre-diameter cable ring. This was constructed with twelve 48mm

diameter cables to provide safety against failure of any single one. At the perimeter, the radial cable forces are collected by 12 curved boundary cables and taken

to 24 anchorage points.

Tension structures rely on the shape of the stressed surface for their performance under load. Forces are resisted by the tension and the curvature: the greater the

curvature, the smaller will be the tension needed to resist a given load. The radial stringer cables are prestressed to 400kN/line, and the fabric is prestressed to 4

kN/m.

The shape of the dome roof, with tapering segments, has the advantage that the slope of the fabric panels increases with the span. If the circumferential cables

were in contact with the surface of the fabric, however, their hard lines would cause dams and potential ponding. It was necessary, therefore, to remove these

cables from the surface. This was achieved by raising the circumferential cables above the surface by means of rigid members (wishbones) and connecting them

to the nodes with criss-cross cables.

• Construction of Millennium Dome: https://youtu.be/fHS5y2jbWfQ 

CABLE STRUCTURES:
• A cable is a flexible structural component that offers no resistance when compressed or bent in a curved
shape. Techinally we can say cable has zero bending rigidity
• It can only support tensile loading
• Cables are often used in engineering structure for support and to transmit load from one point to another
when used to support suspension roofs, bridge and trolley wheels, cables form the main load carrying
elements in the structure
• In analysis of cable the weight of itself cable is rejected. We assume that cable is flexible and
inextensible. Due to its flexibility cables offers no resistence to shear or bending
COMPONENTS:
• Lateral bracing
• Suspended highrise structures
• Single-layer, simply suspended cable roof
• Prestressed tensile memberances and cable nets

TYPES OF CABLES:
• There are generally two types of cable structure

1. Suspension type cables

2. Stayed type cables

SUSPENSION TYPE CABLES:
•   A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on
vertical suspenders. 
• The basic structural components of a suspension bridge system include stiffening girders/trusses, the
main suspension cables, main towers, and the anchorages for the cables at each end of the bridge. 
• The main cables are suspended between towers and are finally connected to the anchorage or the
bridge itself, and vertical suspenders carry the weight of the deck and the traffic load on it
Classification of suspension bridges:

• According to span numbers: 

       Based on the number of spans and towers, there are

single-span, two-span, or three-span suspension
bridges. Among them, three-span suspension bridges with
two main towers are the most commonly used
• According to stiffening griders:

      Based on the continuity, there are two types of

stiffening girders, namely two-hinge or continuous types. 

    Two hinge stiffening girders are commonly used for

highway bridges, while the continuous stiffening girder is
often used for combined highway-railway bridges to
ensure the continuity between adjacent spans and to secure
the smooth operation of the trains.
• According to suspenders: 

         In suspension bridges, suspenders (or hangers)

can be designed as either vertical or diagonal.

         Vertical suspenders are more often used in

suspension bridges, but diagonal hangers are
sometimes used for the sake of increasing the damping
and improving the seismic performance of such
bridges.

• According to anchoring condition:

          Based on anchoring conditions, the suspension

bridges can be classified into externally anchored or
self-anchored types.

         For externally anchored suspension bridges, the

anchorages need to be built on both ends of the
bridges to sustain the tensile forces from the main
cable, which is the most common type of suspension
bridges. As for self-anchored suspension bridges, the
anchorages are not necessary and main cables are
connected directly to the stiffening girders.
Parts of bridge: 
• Main towers: 

          In the longitudinal direction, main towers can be

classified into three types; rigid, flexible, and locking types.

         Flexible towers are commonly used in long-span

suspension bridges, rigid towers for multispan suspension
bridges to provide enough stiffness to the bridge, and
locking towers occasionally for relatively short span
suspension bridges.

• Cables: 

          For modern long-span suspension bridges, the cold

drawn and galvanized steel wires are generally used. In
general, strands are bundled into a circular shape to form one
main cable. Hanger ropes can be steel rods, steel bars, stranded
wire ropes, and parallel wire strands, etc.          
• Stiffening griders:

        In suspensions, the often used stiffening girders are I-girders,

trusses, and box girders.

       I-girders (or plate girders) are simple in design but has

disadvantageous with regard to aerodynamic stability. For modern
long-span suspension bridges, trusses, or box girders are more
often used.

• Anchorages:

         Anchorages (or anchors) are important members in

suspension bridges because most of the self-weight and other load
of the bridge is finally transferred by the cables to the anchorage
systems.

       Inside the anchorages, the cables are spread over a large area
to evenly distribute the load and to prevent the damages that may
be caused by concentrated cable forces. The safety check should
be confirmed to avoid the rotary movement and slippage of the
anchorages.

       In general, anchorage structure includes the foundation,

anchor block, bent block, cable anchor frames, and protective
housing. There are two often used anchorages: gravity type or
tunnel type anchorage systems.

        
Connections:
• Hangers and cable bands:

          Socketed hangers connect the main cable and girder.

          The hanger is connected to the main cable via a cable

band consisting of two semi-cylindrical halves, connected
together by high tensile steel bolts to develop the necessary
friction. The hanger is connected to this cable band via a
pin connection or it may be looped over the cable band.

         The cable bands are firmly tightened onto the main

cable and get their load carrying resistance mainly from
friction and compression of the cable (Figure 17). The
cable bands are carefully machined, taking into account an
air void of approximately 20% in the cable.

        The main cable is subject to an axial loading that

increases during erection of the bridge. The elongation of
the cable from the anchor block to the pylon should be
taken into account, e.g. by giving the pylons a pull-back 

        
• For the cable bands, the transverse
contraction of the cable section is of the
utmost importance. It causes the friction
between cable band and cable to decrease
and, as a result, the load carrying
resistance goes down. Precautions should
be taken to measure the relaxation and to
tighten the bolts during erection, e.g. by
making a backlash (Figure 19). For
reasons of maintenance, the remaining
gap is filled with rubber. In view of the
contraction, the cable wrapping should be
carried out after the bridge carries almost
all of its full dead load.
• Construction process:

1. When bridges requiring piers are built over a body of water, foundations are made by sinking caissons into
the riverbed and filling them with concrete.  Note: Caissons are large boxes or cylinders that have been
made from wood, metal, or concrete.

2. In the case of suspension bridges, towers are built atop the caissons. The first suspension-bridge towers were
stone, but now they are either steel or concrete.

3. Next, the anchorages are built on both ends, usually of reinforced concrete with embedded steel eyebars to
which the cables will be fastened.  Note: An eyebar is a length of metal with a hole (or “eye”) at the ends.

4. Cables are generally made of thousands of steel wires spun together at the construction site.

5. Spinning is done by rope pulleys that carry each wire across the top of the towers to the opposite anchorage
and back.

6.  The wires are then bundled and covered to prevent corrosion.

7. When the cables are complete, suspenders are hung, and finally the deck is erected—usually by floating
deck sections out on ships, hoisting them with cranes, and securing them to the suspenders.

https://youtu.be/0gtUkIlm5Jk 
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES FOR SUSPENSION CABLE BRIDGE:
• ADVANTAGES:

1. Cost Effective

2. Can Be Built High Up

3. Span Great Lengths

4. Has Flexibility

5. Simple Construction
• DISADVANTAGES:

1. Soft Ground Issues

2. Too Flexible

3. Cannot Support High Traffic

STAYED TYPE CABLES:
• A cable-stayed bridge is a structural system with a continuous girder (or bridge deck) supported by inclined stay cables
from the towers (or pylons).

• The cable-stayed bridge ranks first for a span range approximately from 150 to 600 m, which has longer spanning
capacity bridges, but shorter than that of suspension bridges.

• the cable-stayed bridge is very economical and has elegant appearance due to the relatively small girder depth.

• The concept of a cable-stayed bridge is simple, as all the members in a cable-stayed bridge mainly work in either tension or
compression.

• The cable stayed bridge is mainly used for road bridges, where it is applicable for both narrow 2-lane roads and for wide 6
or 8 lane motorways.
Types of cable stayed bridges:
Longitudinal cable arrangement:

1. Mono cable system: The mono design uses a single cable from

its towers, and is one of the lesser-used cable-stayed bridge type
and is rarely built.

2. Fan cable stystem: In the fan design, all stay cables connect to
or pass over the top of the towers. Due to the steeper cable
slopes, the fan design is structurally efficient with maximum
vertical component for sustaining the vertical loads, but
smallest axial force applied to the main girders.

3. Modified fan cable system: In this system, the cables connect

near the top of the tower but is spaced sufficiently from
each other for the benefits of better fixation like improved force
transmission, and easy access to individual cables for inspection
and maintenance.

4. Harp cable system: In the harp cable system, the cables are
nearly parallel to each other so that the height of their fixed
points on the tower is proportional to the distance
Lateral cable arrangement:

    In the lateral direction, the cable

system can be arranged as one single
plane above the center line,two planes
(either vertical or inclined) at the edges
of the girder, or three planes connect
the centerline and both edges of the
girder.

Number of spans: 
• The cable-stayed bridge can be
designed as single span, two spans,
three spans, or multiple spans.
However, cable-stayed bridges
having either three or two cable-
stayed spans are more widely used,
which is because the cablestays and
the anchor pier are important for the
stability of the pylon.
Parts in cable stayed bridge: 
• Cables : 

       The cable stays are the key load carrying and transferring
members in cable-stayed bridges. Available stay systems for
modern cable-stayed bridges include prefabricated locked coil, 
prefabricated helical, or spiral strand, bar bundles, parallel wire
strand, parallel strand, and advanced composite stays,
etc. Diameters in the range 40-125 mm are typical

• Pylon: 

          The pylons can be designed as a single column projecting

through the center of the deck. It is also possible to arrange a pair
of columns on both sides of the deck. Types of pylons: 

1. H- frame pylon

2. A- frame pylon

3. Invert y pylon

4. Diamond pylon

5. Double diamond pylon

• Deck:

      In general, the deck needs to resist both bending moment from
the dead-weight and live load, and axial force derived from the
horizontal component of the stay force. Therefore, unlike the deck
in a suspension bridge, the deck can be designed as different
sections (or structural forms) in cable-stayed bridges. 

There are 3types of decks mostly used:  1. steel deck, 2. composite

deck, 3. concrete deck

• Cable anchors: 
Connections:
• Usually the cable has a pin type joint to the Pylon

•  Have either swaged or filled sockets

• The deck-to-cable connection is usually of the 'free' type to accommodate

adjustment

• Cable Anchorages in Pylon are usually expensive

Construction:
• Construction of cable-stayed bridges
usually follows the cantilever
method, so their construction begins
with the sinking of caissons and the
erection of towers and anchorages.
After the tower is built, one cable
and a section of the deck are
constructed in each direction. Each
section of the deck is prestressed
before continuing. The process is
repeated until the deck sections meet
in the middle, where they are
connected. The ends are anchored at
the abutments.
• https://youtu.be/YT0jlNbchf4 
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OD STRAYED CABLE BRIDGES:
ADVANTAGES: DISADVANTAGES:

1. Cable-stayed bridges take less time to complete than other 1. Cable-stayed bridges do have a maximum
options. length to consider.

2. The strength of a cable-stayed bridge is unquestionable. 2. This design option can become unstable in
specific environments.
3. It can be significantly cheaper to build a cable-stayed bridge.
3. Cable-stayed bridges can be challenging to
4. Cable-stayed bridges can be constructed to almost any length. inspect and repair.
5. There are multiple design options from which to choose with a 4. It is a design that can sometimes be
cable-stayed bridge. susceptible to rust or corrosion.
6. The design of the cable-stayed bridge supports itself. 5. The strength advantages typically apply to
short spans
7. Cable-stayed bridges offer the possibility of a symmetrical
design

8. Designers can use four different classes of rigging to create

results

9. Cable-stayed bridges can also use four arrangements for their

support columns
Source:

•   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Membrane_structure 

•   https://sites.google.com/site/pneumaticstructuresgroup4/home 

•   https://sites.google.com/site/pneumaticstructure/technical-description 

•   
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rehan_Jamil2/publication/309242536_Study_and_Adaptability_of_Pneumatic_Structures/links/58071c8c08aeb85ac85
f5e33/Study-and-Adaptability-of-Pneumatic-Structures.pdf
 

• https://youtu.be/P4mOCpPMWd4 

• https://www.slideshare.net/sslele456/membranes-in-light-wight-and-membrane-structures 

• https://issuu.com/detail-magazine/docs/978-3-0346-0726-1-bk-en-polymers_20 

• https://www.architen.com/articles/detailing-of-tensile-membranes/#:~:text=Straight%20edge%3A%20The%20membrane%20would,an%20aluminium%20l
uff%20track%20extrusion
. 

• https://www.tensinet.com/index.php/component/tensinet/?view=project&id=3782 

• https://drive.google.com/file/d/1x8oE5z5vTlzL04cOpj_T6ZMz28ZBXxlf/view 

• http://fgg-web.fgg.uni-lj.si/~/pmoze/ESDEP/master/wg15b/l0900.htm 

• https://www.britannica.com/technology/bridge-engineering/Concrete#ref72034 

• https://www.britannica.com/technology/cable-stayed-bridge 

•
Thank You