Some Knowledge about the Architectural Design of Membrane Structure

As a category of public buildings, building membrane structure also has its own unique aspects. The membrane structure is a system that combines membrane material and structural system, which is more common in stadiums and exhibition halls. This article mainly talks about the self-cleaning and dirty topic of the outer surface of the membrane structure.

In the 1990s, China began to gradually design and apply large-scale stadiums in Shanghai and Hangzhou. Membrane structure mainly includes integral tension-type, frame support type, cable support type, and air support type.

At present, the membrane materials for membrane structure are glass fiber (G) and polyester fiber (P) according to the difference of base fabric fiber, coating material, and the antifouling surface layer, and the coating material is polyvinyl chloride (PVC)/ Organic silicon (Si)/polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), antifouling surface layer mainly includes polyvinyl fluoride (PVF)/titanium dioxide (TiO2) and so on. Needless to say, the advantages of the membrane structure: lightweight, high construction efficiency, various curved surfaces, etc., but there are also some shortcomings such as short service life; self-cleaning (dirt resistance) due to the membrane material and local climate Condition influences, drainage slope design and other factors, the outer surface of the membrane structure in many places is very dirty, and regular maintenance costs are high.

Building Membrane Structure

(1) It is not suitable for cities and towns with little rainfall throughout the year. The dust accumulation is difficult to realize the self-cleaning function of rainwater, and the maintenance cost is high.

(2) It is not suitable for use in industrialized cities. Nitrogens and sulfides in the air pollutants are very easy to adhere to the surface of the membrane structure, which is difficult to clean, very dirty, and high maintenance costs.

(3) It is not suitable to be built in a large area in the central area of the city. The outer surface of the membrane structure is basically white with high brightness. It is easy to produce light pollution in the hot summer season and affect the daily life of surrounding residents.

(4) The drainage slope design of the membrane structure is the key. The solid membrane structure of a certain project mentioned above is obviously not ideal for the determination of the drainage slope in the curved surface design. In my opinion, this is the most critical design issue to reasonably determine the surface shape of the membrane.

(5) When selecting membrane materials, priority should be given to the anti-fouling surface layer to improve the dirt resistance of the membrane structure.

We are the permanent architecture materials supplier. If you have any questions about membrane structure design, please feel free to contact us.