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TWENTY-FIRST INTERNATIONAL
CULTURAL AND
ACADEMIC MEETING OF
ENGINEERING STUDENTS
BOAZ NVERSTY,
ISTANBUL, TURKEY ENGINEERING SOCIETY
May 02-09, 2015
Marius-Cristian BRESCU-IFTIMIE
Mihaela-tefania MILU
Rita-Cristina PITA
TEAM ADVISORS:
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1. Introduction
The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon of maintaining the temperature of
the Earths surface. Through this process part of the solar radiations are retained in
the Earths atmosphere as a result of the presence of greenhouse gasses such as water
vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and chlorofluorocarbons. In
the past decades the concentrations of the greenhouse gasses have increased and
according to The World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the building
sector is accountable for 40% of the world energy use, thus the resulting carbon
emissions are in substantial amounts.
The lowering of energy consumption in new or already existing buildings has gained
a lot of attention in the past few years and notions such as passive building or zero
energy building have been introduced in civil engineering vocabulary. One of the
solutions that is implemented in order to improve the buildings energy performance
is the double-skin faade concept.
A double-skin faade consists of two skins placed in such a way that the air flows in
the intermediate cavity. The main advantages of a double-skin faade are: natural
ventilation, thermal and acoustic insulation [1]. Even though the most common
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material choice for this concept is glass, the following report shows why Ethylene
Tetrafluoroethylene is a viable sustainable alternative.
2. Material description
2.1.
History
ETFE is a relatively new material in the building industry. It was developed by Dr.
Plunkett, Fig. 1, in 1938and it is one of the 7 fluoropolymer generated from the
invention of PTFE (poly tetrafluoroethylene), also known as Teflon. ETFEs
distinctive property of the other six polymers is the capability of being extruded. The
first commercialized film was named Tefzel,[2].
2.2.
Manufacturing process
Unlike many synthetic plastics, ETFE does not derive from petrochemical
substances. The raw material is called chlorodifluoromethane and the Montreal
Treaty on ozone depleting substances includes it in the 2 nd class of substances,
meaning that it does not contribute to global warming. The raw material is turned
into tetrafluoroethylene at 125 Celsius degrees. The TFE is then polymerized with
ethylene and ETFE results (25% ethylene and 75% TFE), Fig.3. After this process
it results a powder which is turned into granules, Fig.2, by heating at 265-285
degrees. The granules can be turned into rods, sheets and films. In building industry,
ETFE films are used especially for cladding. The films can also be transparent,
translucent, printed or colored, [2].
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2.3.
Benefits of ETFE
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2.3.3. Durability and cost effectiveness
ETFE does not degrade or change any of its properties under exposure to
environmental pollution, UV light, harsh chemicals or extreme temperature
variations. For the first time it was used in construction in 1982 when a fluorinated
ethylene propylene film on the roof of Burgers Zoo Hall in Arnhem, Netherlands,
Fig.7, failed and had to be replaced. The structure is still in service and the material
shows no signs of degradation. The estimated life expectancy of foils is more than
50 years [7].
The installation cost of ETFE can be approximately reduced to half the price of
conventional high performance glass [4]. Moreover, due to the lightweight nature of
the material supporting systems and foundations can be designed more efficiently.
By providing ample natural daylight, the indoor lighting demand and the energy
costs are reduced [8].
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Being 100% recyclable, wastes from the manufacturing process and even old ETFE
elements can be remolded into new products. The recycling is aided by the absence
of additives in the manufacturing process and the only thing that is required for
recycling is the melting of the material. An old or damaged piece of ETFE foil can
be simply removed from the structure, heated to melting temperature with new ETFE
granules, Fig. 9, and extruded to create more films. This is a great contribution to
the stainability current [2]
One of the most attractive attribute of ETFE is the self-cleaning property, especially
when considering the costs of cleaning a large greenhouse. Being derived from
Teflon it is anti-adhesive so occasional rainfall is enough to clean it. Even though
the foil can be penetrated by sharp objects, it has considerable tear propagation
resistance [2].
ETFE film has a very unique behavior in the presence of fire. It is classified as selfextinguishing because instead of melting and dripping it shrinks away, thus allowing
smoke and fire to be vented to the exterior [4].
3. Case study
3.1.
Structure description
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3.2.
Numerical Simulations
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Another conclusion can be made considering the period of vibration, which is lower
for the 3rd case. This can be explained by the fact that the stiffness introduced on the
structure for the ETFE material is lowest, meaning that the overall behavior of the
assembly (cladding and structural system) is closer to the flexible behavior of the
frame structural system.
Mass (tones)
5978,35
T(s)
Nmax(kN)
Sigma max
2,779567
3570,57
55,10138889
Glass + ETFE
5867,32
2,755688
3481,15
53,72145062
ETFE
5756,3
2,731626
3391,73
52,34151235
Glass
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Special type of window between heated and unheated spaces (glass-argonglass)
Special window with ETFE membrane between heated and unheated spaces
(ETFE-air-glass)
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All results obtained in Saint-Gobain Isover can be represented in a simple form as
a comparison between extreme values of temperature, Fig. 12 and 13.
15.01
16.19
18.52
-10.01
-11.19
-13.52
0
-5
-10
-15
-20
Ti
Te
35
30
34.36
33.37
32.86
25
20
22.14
21.63
20.64
15
10
5
0
Te
Ti
These two charts show us the difference between temperature of the exterior face of
the element and the temperature of the inside face. The classical solution of window
has a high heat transfer and a lot of energy is lost. This loss can be reduced by
introducing an inert gas, argon in our case, between the two layers of glass, but the
best solution is a window with ETFE membrane.
When the special window with ETFE membrane is used, better results are obtained
and the heat transfer between the two environments is reduced. This fact leads to a
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saving of the energy consumed to maintain an optimal temperature indoor and the
buildings become greener by using this material for large glazing surfaces.
The cushions for this project consist of three layers of ETFE foil and they are
supported by aluminum frames, supported by steel trusses, Fig.14 (c) [2].
(a)
(b)
(c)
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2.816 cushions of 2 m by 4.25 m were used for the entire structure. What is really
interesting is the fact that the same cushion shape occurs at most twice in the entire
structure. This would have been really difficult to achieve with traditional glazing
but the elasticity of the ETFE made it easy to accomplish [2].
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
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References:
1. Koukaroudis Panagiotis-Properties and design guidelines for double-skin faades in
Sweeden, Master Thesis at Chalmers University Of Technology, January 2014
2. Leslie A. Robinson-Structural Opportunities of ETFE(ethylene tetra fluoro ethylene),S.B.,
Civil Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology, June 2004
3. Mihai Grecu-Poly(ethylene-co-tetrafluoroethylene)-based permanent motorway roofs
equipped with night lighting sources and thin film solar cells, Acta Technica Napocensis:
Civil Engineering & Architecture Vol. 54 No. 2 (2011
4. Stephen Tanno- ETFE Foil Cushions As An Alternative To Glass For Atriums And
Rooflights Buro Happold Faade Engineering 41-43 Praed Street, London, W2 1NR
5. Amy Wilson-ETFE: The New Fabric Roof, January 2009, www.rci-online.org
6. Adrien Escoffer, Adelyne Albrecht, Franois Consigny- Nice stadium: Design of a flat
single layer ETFE roof,
7. Linda Charbonneau, Maria Anna Polak, Alexander Penlidis- Mechanical properties of
ETFE foils: Testing and modelling, 2014 Construction and Building Materials 60(2014)
63-72
8. http://www.birdair.com/tensile-architecture/membrane/etfe
9. http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/vector-foiltec/texlon-etfe-roof-system-687671386711.html
10. http://www.environmentalleader.com
11. http://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/ETFE
12. http://www.businesspundit.com/10-accidental-discoveries-that-generated-great-wealth/
13. http://jp1042754017.fm.alibaba.com
14. http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0004686.html
15. https://sstamu.wordpress.com/
16. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Allianz_Arena_in_Rot_rot_506022125_Frottma
ning_Abendhimmel_lock_221_und_113_Polizeifahrzeuge_(1500472142).jpg
17. https://www.allianzglobalbenefits.com/news/news_overview.html
18. http://www.makmax.com.au/projects
19. http://rerdm.hyperbody.nl/index.php/project13:Performance
20. http://www.fotodesignandreasbraun.de/index.php?g=13
21. http://www.edenproject.com/