Die 'Architecture Challenge 2014' an der 'Angewandten' 'Polymer Folding Scapes' Research Pavilion

摘要

The project offers a continuation of research that explores the potential of polymer concrete applications and wood/concrete composites in the production of full scale structures. A collaboration between the Institute of Architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna and the Hochschule Trier with the support of Rampf Group and Bollinger+Grohmann Engineers. The full scale installation of about 5 × 5 × 7 meters was designed and constructed in a courtyard of the "Angewandte" during the Architecture Challenge 2014 Summer School at the Institute of Architecture. The design process in the workshop was enriched with digital design strategies combining Grasshopper plugins such as the OCTOPUS and KARAMBA platforms. Structural testing of joints in wood/polymer concrete composites revealed a strong tension and bending ability of the cured material. Using this method, stiff connection points between wood members could be achieved without the inlay of metal sheets. A hyperboloid surface was designed in Rhino Grasshopper and optimized using Karamba and multicriteria optimization in Octopus taking into account the architectural site context, structural behavior, assembly and construction limits. The form-work for the concrete nodes was unfolded from the 3D model and laser cut on poly-styrol sheets. The wood members were fit at the joints in the form work and the polymer concrete was cast. After the curing process, a stiff wooden joint consisting of direct adhesion of wood and concrete was achieved. The overall geometry emerged through the precise folding process of the cast nodes. The precise, optimized overall geometry correlate with the very differenti ated aesthetic quality of the cast polymer concrete joints. This intuitive material behavior enriches the digital precision resulting in artifacts of one-time unique aesthetic design results.