Innovative Tensile Structures for Protected Crop Facilities

Abstract

Greenhouse structures are complex buildings that must meet different needs, such as the microclimate control inside the greenhouse, the strength of structural elements, as well as the radiometric and mechanical features of roofing materials. The covering system must allow the transmission of solar radiation for crop needs and guarantee resistance performances in relation to external actions, such as wind and snow loads. Starting from the main characteristics of agricultural commercial greenhouses and tensile structures, the proposal concerns with an innovative tensile supporting structure designed for the covering of protected crop facilities. The innovative tensile structural configuration was first studied by means of the selection of the construction materials and the cross sections of the structural components and afterward calculated using the structural analysis software SOFISTIK. The load analysis on the structure was carried out in accordance with the European standards UNI-EN 13031-1: 2004 and the Italian Technical Construction Code of 2018 related to the Eurocodes. The main results concern the comparison with the current structural types of commercial greenhouses: analysis of the steel weight of the structure and improvement of the structural response to external actions of the innovative tensile structure.

Structural design and experimental tests on a model of tensegrity greenhouse prototype

“…The tensegrity greenhouse, thanks to the cables and struts structural geometry of the roof, made it possible to achieve a reduction of the structural steel weight per square meter of 9.6% less than a vaulted roof greenhouse and of 35.2% less than a duopitched greenhouse. Therefore, also a lower structural shading (Fuina et al, 2020) on the ground cultivation area can be obtained.…”

“…duo-pitched roof greenhouses, vaulted roof greenhouses and tunnels. The aim of this research work is to develop with a prototype of a new supporting structure system for greenhouses, in order to obtain large free span in cultivation area, to enhance the behaviour of the structural construction material and to reduce the impact of both the structural weight and the structural shading on the cultivated internal area (Fuina et al, 2020). For this purpose, a structural tensegrity configuration suitable for lightweight cladding system buildings, like greenhouses, is proposed.…”