Dome development history and classic case appreciation

Dome development history and classic case appreciation of the dome, often referred to as a wide hall over the construction of hemispherical or polygonal curved shape of the roof. In history, the first famous dome structure is the Pantheon in ancient Rome, when the ancient Romans applied the concrete vault technology to construct a dome with a diameter of more than 40 meters, breaking through the architectural concepts at that time, so that the dome technology began to replace the original flat roof, becoming the protagonist of the Western church, palace buildings. However, due to the technical level at that time, the dome of the Pantheon was very heavy, to be loaded by the overall continuous load-bearing wall, it can be said that it is still immature embryonic dome technology. Until the mid-6th century, the central dome of Hagia Sophia used the new technology of the sail arch, which allowed the dome building began to get rid of the load-bearing walls, began to form the extension of the composite space, to achieve the unity of the practical role and religious aesthetics. After this, the ancient masonry dome technology in the Ottoman Empire period reached its peak, but limited to the limitations of the material, the dome scale is also in a bottleneck, it can be said that to build a higher and larger dome is no longer masonry materials can meet.

 

In modern times, with the continuous development of science and technology and the continuous improvement of people’s material requirements, with the assistance of computer technology, the design and analysis of more and more complex structures have also become a reality, and the updating of dome technology is also changing rapidly.

 

Starting from the 1950s, thin-film domes began to be applied in engineering and attracted wide attention. In the seventies, especially since the eighties, it has been used in a large number of applications in the United States, Japan and European countries. There are three main forms of membrane dome: (1) skeleton membrane dome; (2) inflatable membrane dome; and (3) tensioned membrane dome. Due to the inflatable film dome there are some defects (such as in order to prevent damage to the structure due to insufficient air pressure, there is always a need for inflatable equipment to constantly replenish the air according to the changes in indoor pressure and external loads to maintain the required pressure; there is the problem of comfort on the human senses; maintenance in inclement weather is more difficult, etc.), so it has gradually been eliminated, and is only used for some of the more special buildings.

 

Since the 1980s, a new form of dome has been developed: the tensioned dome. One of its more representative forms is the cable dome structure. Geiger, an American engineer, improved this structure so that it consists of continuous tension cables and discontinuous pressurized columns. He found that this kind of structure with the increase of the span, the weight does not increase significantly, is a kind of high efficiency of the tension system, in line with the objective law of nature’s continuous pull and intermittent pressure. The entire structure, with the exception of a few pressure rods, are in tension. At the same time, it is the emergence of the tensile dome structure, which, when used in combination with a membrane, demonstrates higher structural efficiency, that makes this form of structure known as one of the main forms of the tensile membrane dome structure.

 

The new structure of the dome, such as mesh shell dome, tensile dome, suspended dome and air-bearing dome, etc. began to be applied in real buildings, and a variety of new materials, such as lightweight panels, membrane materials and glass, etc. make the dome in the embodiment of the structural aesthetics, but at the same time, it is possible to build a more distinctive and diversified shapes.

 

No.1

Greenwich Millennium Dome

The Millennium Dome, located on the Greenwich Peninsula along the River Thames in East London, is a landmark building constructed by the British government to welcome the 21st century. The completed dome has a circumference of 1km, a diameter of 365 m, and a center height of 50 m. It is suspended by more than 70km of steel cables from 12 100m high steel masts, and uses a lot of canopy curtains. The roof is made of fiberglass material with PTEE coating. This unique membrane structure building creates a flexible and highly dramatic spatial effect center stage in the center of the dome.

 

No.2

U.S. Capitol Dome

The U.S. Capitol Dome is one of the most famous landmarks in the United States. It has a diameter of 96 feet and a height of 288 feet. It actually consists of two domes, with the current dome covering the original one. The current iron dome was designed by American architect Thomas Ustick Walter between 1855 and 1866.In 1851, due to an increase in the population of the U.S. Congress, architect Thomas U. Walter came up with a plan to expand the Capitol and the dome. The original wooden dome was removed in 1856. The current Capitol Dome building began in 1857.

 

No.3

Izumo Gymnasium Dome, Japan

The basic concept of Izumo Dome’s planning and design is to promote the wooden architecture of traditional culture with a contemporary large-scale spatial structure. The spherical dome, with its radiating wooden skeleton (laminated plywood) and delicate folded surfaces covered with a white translucent membrane, was designed to symbolize the traditional folded umbrella of ancient times. Izumo Dome, a spherical dome with a diameter of 143.8 meters and a height of 48.9m meters at the top of the arch. Its greatest structural feature is its comprehensiveness. The materials are steel, wood and film; the structural forms are arch, truss and cable membrane, and the advantages of each part are fully utilized.

 

No.4

Eden Arboretum Dome, UK

The Eden project with its distinctive appearance is located in Cornwall and contains a sequence of eight interconnected domes. The massive, lightweight, clear spanning structure is located within a former quarry and was partly inspired by Buckminster Fuller’s grid dome design. The biomes are covered with three layers of pillow-like ETFE film, which has the largest surface area and smallest perimeter. In terms of spatial structure, each dome is attached to a two-layered hexagonal-triangular-hexagonal spatial frame, the efficiency of which depends on the geometry of the components: the steel tubes and joints are lightweight, relatively small and easy to transport, and the bubble-like skin naturally adapts to the uneven terrain.

 

No.5

Reichstag

After the reunification of Germany, the Reichstag underwent another round of renovation in order to assume the role of the Reichstag again, adding a special glass dome, the lightness of which contrasts with the heaviness of the whole building. The dome is supported by twelve columns, and daylight shines through an inverted cone covered with glass mirrors throughout the halls of the chamber. Inside are two staggered spiral passages, supported by an exposed all-steel structure, through which visitors can reach a 50-meter-high observation platform with a view of Berlin.

 

No.6

Montreal Biosphere

Richard Buckminster Fuller’s transformation of the U.S. Pavilion into a Fuller Sphere at the 1967 Montreal World’s Fair has made the lightweight round dome popular worldwide today. The U.S. Pavilion’s dome is 76 meters straight, with a triangular metal mesh structure rationally assembled into a sphere. Net bridge structure system based on the rod as the basis, according to a certain law to form a grid, according to the shell structural arrangement of the space frame, both the rod system and the nature of the shell. Force transmission characteristics mainly through the shell in two directions of tension, pressure or shear point by point force transmission.

 

Conclusion

With the development of new structural concepts and materials, the dome structure will also gradually break through the boundaries of the traditional structural concepts, and will become more and more close to man and nature, so that people’s lives are more harmonious.