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Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

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An integrated analysis of membrane structures with

$exible supporting frames
Jin-Jun Li, Siu-Lai Chan
Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom,
Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
Received 5 August 2002; accepted 28 January 2003

Abstract

Tensioned membranes are normally reinforced with pretensioned cables, and both of them are typically
supported by space steel structures. Conventional analysis and design for tensioned membrane structures are
separated by two assemblages, xing the support positions and determining the equilibrium shape of the cable
membrane at rst and checking the adequacy of the steel structure against support reactions. Under this
methodology, the interaction between the cablemembrane and the steel structure is neglected. An integrated
nonlinear nite element (FE) analysis, including cable element, membrane element and beam element in the
FE library, is proposed in this paper for analysis of tensioned membranes supported by steel structures. The
interaction between the support structure and the cablemembrane is examined through numerical study of a
saddle shade pavilion structure. Results of integrated analysis deviate considerably from those obtained in an
isolated analysis, which reveals that an integrated analysis is necessary for structural engineers to determine
whether the e5ects of elastic deformations of supports should be taken into account in the design of tensioned
membrane structures.
? 2003 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Keywords: Tensioned membrane; Cablemembrane; Steel structure; Integrated analysis; Nonlinear FE; Support force;
Shape nding; Loading analysis; Saddle shade pavilion

1. Introduction

In the last two decades a rapid expansion was noted in the amount and in the range of appli-
cations of tensioned membrane structures [1]. This popularity is due to their engineering benets
such as aesthetic shape, low construction cost, fast installation, capability of covering large space,

Corresponding author. Tel.: +852-2766-6047; fax: +852-2334-6389.
E-mail address: ceslchan@polyu.edu.hk (S.-L. Chan).

0168-874X/$ - see front matter ? 2003 Published by Elsevier B.V.

doi:10.1016/S0168-874X(03)00076-3
530 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

natural lighting, and good resistance against re, mildew and rot. In addition, tensioned membrane
structures consume less non-renewable resources and are regarded as an environmentally friendly
and sustainable construction. A list of notable tensioned membrane structures can be found in a
recent publication by Bradshaw et al. [2].
The nature of tensioned membrane structures is such that the structural sti5ness is achieved by
virtue of special geometric shapes with initial prestresses in the membranes and cables. Design
of tensioned membrane structures is more dependent upon computers than most other structural
systems, as they defy the linear analysis routine for concrete, steel, timber or composite structures.
Typical steps for the computer design of tensioned membrane structures comprise shape nding,
loading analysis and cutting pattern generation. Currently, main algorithm for shape nding and
loading analysis in practical use include those by Argyris et al. [3], Schek [4], Tabarrok and Qin
[5], Wakeeld [6], Meek and Xia [7]. Those techniques can be summarized as:

The nonlinear FEM with incremental-iterative strategy is a matrix analysis algorithm for shape
nding and loading analysis of tensioned structures. Basically, the initial equilibrium shape is
found by displacing support points to their target heights from the $at mesh.
The force density approach is an alternative matrix method that solves directly for the geometry
of a general network of prestressed tensile link elements.
Dynamic relaxation with kinetic damping is a vector method for tensile structures. It allows a
static problem to be solved by simulation of a pseudo-dynamic problem and formation of global
structural sti5ness matrix is not needed.

Many tensioned membranes and their cables functioning as reinforcement are supported by steel
or other space structures. According to the conventional design methodology such structures are
divided into two assemblages, the cablemembrane and the support, and their designs are carried out
separately. At rst, the initial and loaded equilibrium shapes of the cablemembrane are determined
by xing all of the support points, based on which the cablemembrane can be designed. The support
structure is checked and designed, using the obtained support reactions of the cablemembrane
as external loads. Under this methodology, the interaction between the cablemembrane and the
support structure does not need consideration and is therefore neglected in the design. Although some
publications indicated such analysis of the cablemembrane with the support structure is available
[1,5], no special investigation has been found on e5ects of the interaction in the analysis and design
of tensioned membrane structures.
In practical cable structures, heavy and rigid supports are always detailed since the sti5ness of
supports in$uences the cable behavior. Only cable nets need analysis if the structures possess rela-
tively rigid supports. However, this results in the over-designed supports which increase the overall
cost of the structure and degrade the structural benets [8]. So, optimized supports with reasonable
$exibility should be designed and the interaction between cables and supports should be exam-
ined carefully. In$uences of $exible supports, or boundary e5ects, were studied in the past for cable
structures. Substructuring concept was employed for this purpose in many researches, where cable and
support structures are analyzed separately and the interactions were considered by iterating cable
forces and support-node displacements. With substructured model, Talvik [9] used dynamic relax-
ation method in cable analysis. Shan et al. [10] described the ADINA application in the shape nding
and loading analysis of framecable structure, and Majowiecki et al. [11] adopted equilibrium and
 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540 531

force methods, respectively, for analysis of edge structure and rope net. To analyze the bicycle wheel
type cable roofs, a procedure based on nonlinear nite element method (FEM) with NewtonRaphson
iteration was proposed [12]. Also, nonlinear nite element (FE) analysis with both cable and beam
elements can be found in the studies on cable supported or guyed structures [1315]. In addition to
above methods, some authors investigated optimization techniques for the analysis of cable structures
with $exible supports [8,16]. Optimization methods are those based on the minimization of the total
potential energy of the complete structural assembly by various gradient descent approaches, which
does not require the formation of the structural global sti5ness matrix and it only requires a small
storage but more iterations.
Cables are a5ected by the $exibility of their supports in tensioned membrane structures. In practical
engineering of tensioned membranes, optimized supports with reasonable $exibility is desired as
well and variation of membrane behavior due to elastic deformations of supports should be checked
carefully. Since no example is found on this topic, numerical study is conducted in this paper. Along
this direction, this paper presents an integrated nonlinear FE analysis for the tensioned membrane
supported by steel structures and examines their interaction through a practical structure.

2. FEM description

The FEM provides the most versatile approach for the analysis of tensioned structures. Integrated
analysis of tensioned membrane structures requires inclusion of three type nite elements, i.e. cable
element, membrane element, and beam element. The detailed formulation of these elements should
be referred as the work by Tabarrok and Qin [5], Tan [17], Levy and Spillers [18] and others.
For completeness, however, the following gives the basic descriptions of the nite elements and the
numerical scheme employed in this study.

2.1. Cable element

The cable element employed is a three-dimensional line element with two end nodes and six
degrees of freedom. Linearly elastic constitutive law is assumed and only tensile stresses are resisted
by this element. Fig. 1 shows a cable element with its end nodes I and J in the global structural
coordinate (X1 ; X2 ; X3 ).
The elongation of the cable element is the unique natural deformation. Analyzing the relationship
of elongation with tension force and incorporating the coordinate transformation, the incremental
elastic sti5ness matrix for the cable element can be written as

T

EA CC CC T
[Ke ]Cable = ; (1)
l0 CC T CC T
where E is the material modulus, A and l0 are, respectively, the sectional area and the original length
of the cable, and C is the direction cosine vector. The components of C are given by
1
Ci = (XJi XIi ); (2)
l0
where the index i takes on value 1, 2, 3 corresponding to the respective global axes.
532 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

X2 u5

u6
J
u2 u4

u3
I
u1
O X3

X1

Fig. 1. Cable element in the global coordinate.

y
1(X11,X12,X13 )

2
3
X2
3(X31,X32,X33)
1
O X3 2(X21,X22,X23)
X1
o x

Fig. 2. Membrane element in local and global coordinate.

The geometric sti5ness furnishes the relationship between the change in the global nodal force
components and the global nodal displacements when the element natural tension is held invariant.
Hence, by examining these nodal tension components before and after imposition of the nodal
displacement, the geometric sti5ness can be expressed as


T I3 CC T (I3 CC T )
[Kg ]Cable = ; (3)
l0 (I3 CC T ) I3 CC T
where T is the cable tension and I3 is a 3 3 unit matrix.

2.2. Membrane element

Owing to the greater geometric nonlinearity of membrane structures, it is preferable to use a

dense mesh of primitive elements rather than a coarse mesh made up of higher order elements
[5]. A triangular facet element of constant strain with three nodes and nine degrees of freedom is
employed in this study and shown in Fig. 2 in its local (x; y) and global (X1 ; X2 ; X3 ) coordinates.
From analytical geometry, it is well known that the lengths of its three sides uniquely dene the
conguration of a triangle. The geometry of the triangular element after deformation therefore can
be dened by the elongation along its three sides. By analyzing the correlation of the nodal force
 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540 533

with side elongation and considering the coordinate transformation, the elemental elastic matrix in
global coordinate (X1 ; X2 ; X3 ) can be expressed as
[Ke ]Membrane = AtTGT TNT DTN TG ; (4)
where A and t are, respectively, the area and thickness of the element, D is the intrinsic constitutive
matrix,

1 v 0
E v 1 0

D= ;
1 v2 1v
0 0
2
where E and v are, respectively, the Youngs modulus and the Poissons ratio of the membrane
material,
TN is the transformation matrix for nodal deformations to strains,
TN = 1 L 1
0d ;

L0d = diag[l023 ; l031 ; l013 ]

l0ij is the initial length of side containing element corner i and j,

a1 b 1 c1

= a2 b 2 c2
;
a3 b 3 c3
ai = cos2 i ; bi = sin2 i ; ci = sin i cos i (i = 1; 2; 3);
where i is the angle of inclination to the local x axis of triangle side (i = 1; 2; 3, see Fig. 2),
TG is the transformation matrix for global displacements to natural stresses,

0 0 0 23 23 23 23 23 23

TG =  31  31  31 0 0 0  31  31  31
;

12 12 12 12 12 12 0 0 0

Xj1 Xi1 Xj2 Xi2 Xj3 Xi3

ij = ; ij = ; ij = ;
l0ij l0ij l0ij
where Xij is the global coordinate for node i in the direction of j (j = 1; 2 or 3) axis.
The geometric sti5ness for the constant strain triangular element can be obtained conveniently by
referring to the derivation of the geometric sti5ness for the cable element. It can be written as

B12 + B31 B12 B31

[Kg ]Membrane =
B 12 B 12 + B 23 B 23
;
(5)
B31 B23 B23 + B31
534 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

where
Pij
Bij = [I3 Cij CijT ];
lij
where Cij is the direction cosines vector for the side containing corner node i and j and is evaluated
as
1
Cij = {(Xj1 Xi1 ) (Xj2 Xi2 ) (Xj3 Xi3 )}T :
l0ij
Pij is the tension force along the triangle side with node i and j.

2.3. Beam element

The beam element for modeling the space supports of tensioned membrane structures is a straight
beam of uniform cross section which is capable of resisting axial force, bending moments about
two principle axes of its cross-section and a twisting moment about its centroidal axis. For tension
structures, the space support, unlike the cablemembrane, undergoes small de$ections due to its
relatively larger rigidity. Accordingly, it is appropriate to adopt linear beam element with small
de$ections. Since the formulation of such beam element is available in many textbooks, its elastic
sti5ness matrix will be omitted here.

2.4. Numerical scheme

NewtonRaphson method is used as the incremental-iterative strategy for solving large de$ection
problem in this paper. The incremental displacements {PU }i at the ith increment can be obtained
from the governing equilibrium equation
[KE + KG ]i1 {PU }i = {PR}i ; (6)
where [KE +KG ]i1 is the tangent sti5ness matrix computed at (i 1)th conguration of the structure,
after updating with the incremental displacements {PU }i1 . Using the basic relationship between
deformation and stresses, the internal resisting forces in this conguration can be found as {P}i1 .
This is subtracted from the external actions {R}i to obtain the unbalance residual force vector {PR}i
at the ith increment as
{PR}i = {R}i {P}i1 : (7)
In general, external actions may be a consequence of prescribed displacements and the material
properties of tensioned elements have various values in the shape nding process. Iteration for
equilibrium can be performed at each increment, thus a new conguration is obtained for each
increment of the prescribed displacements or applied loads. After the incremental displacements are
computed, the co-ordinates of the shape {X }i in the ith conguration are updated as
{X }i = {X }i1 + {PU }i : (8)
The FEM outlined above forms the basis of an integrated analysis of tensioned membrane structures
comprising membrane, cable and support beam elements.
 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540 535

3. Numerical example: a saddle shade pavilion

3.1. Shape 4nding

The above-described nonlinear FEM is adopted as the numerical tool for shape nding as well as
the loading analysis of the tensioned membrane structures. The following steps are included in the
shape nding:

1. Determine the prestress patterns and boundary conditions of the tensioned membrane and cables,
and preliminarily design the supporting structure.
2. Generate the $at mesh within the projected boundary of the structure onto the horizontal plane.
3. Displace the support nodes of the cablemembrane from their $at positions in small increments
to their target positions.
4. Attach the prestressed cablemembrane to its supporting frames in FE model and iterations are
carried out until the integrated equilibrium is achieved.
5. Examine the equilibrated shape on graphic output and the prestress distribution in the membrane
and cables, proceed the design if the results are satisfactory or return to step 1 and modify the
design if not.

A shade pavilion structure with a saddle membrane supported by a space steel frame is studied
as a numerical example. The $at mesh generated for the shape nding is shown in Fig. 3. The
governing node coordinates of the mesh and the material properties are also shown in Fig. 3. Material
properties include tensile sti5ness (Et ), Poisson ratio (v), weight density (w1 ) for membrane material,
and Youngs modulus (E), sectional area (A) and weight density (w2 ) for cable material. The steel
support frame of this shade pavilion is given in Fig. 4 with its isometric view. The nodal coordinates,
member sections and material properties of this space frame are given in Fig. 4. For this steel support
frame, all the members are rigidly connected except that the ties and struts are pinned at both ends.
The value of the membrane prestress in practice generally ranges from 5% to 15% of the maximum
tensile stress of the membrane material so as that the membrane is of structural sti5ness enough to
resist environmental loads. Because the maximum tensile stress by test is 36 kN=m for the material

Fig. 3. Flat mesh and material properties of membrane and cable.

536 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

Fig. 4. Details of steel support frame.

applied, the membrane prestress is determined to be 4 kN=m. The pretensions of the edge cables are
assumed to be 1 kN for the purpose of reinforcement.
A trial shape is obtained through elevating 1 and 3 corner points to a height of 1:216 m while 2
and 4 corner points are xed in the $at mesh (see Fig. 3). Since the prestresses of the membrane and
cable elements are specied ahead and in the whole shape nding process should keep constant, the
stresses due to elastic strains of the membrane are therefore not accumulated when the support points
are displaced to their target positions in shape nding. Actions provided by the space supporting
frame are temporarily not considered in this step.
When the trial shape of tensioned cablemembrane is obtained, attach it with the steel structure at
the supporting points in FE model and carry out a series of numerical iterations until system equi-
librium achieved. The actual material properties of the steel structure are adopted and the prestress
pattern of the cablemembrane is maintained in this process. The initial equilibrium shape found is
illustrated in Fig. 5a.

3.2. Loading analysis

Once the initial equilibrium shape is determined, it is necessary to study its behavior under a
variety of loading conditions to ensure safe and eRcient design, namely to nd the member stresses
and structural de$ections under external loads with respect to the initial shape. Loads needed to be
considered during the structural service period include: (1) dead loads, namely structure self-weight
which is normally negligible; (2) live loads, for instance the weights of persons and devices for
structural maintenance and repair; (3) snow loads; and (4) wind loads. These loads can be normally
 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540 537

(a) (b) (c)

(d) (e)

Fig. 5. Equilibrium shapes in shape nding and loading analysis: (a) initial equilibrium shape; (b) deformed shape under
upward loads; (c) deformed shape under downward loads; (d) deformed shape under X -directional loads; (e) deformed
shape under Y -directional loads.

modeled in the FEM by: concentrated nodal loads and locally or globally distributed surface pres-
sures. Since the tensioned membrane structures behave with geometrical nonlinearity, the principle
of superposition does not apply to these structural systems. Therefore, all critical load combinations
must be analyzed individually.
The typical design wind pressure in Hong Kong district is normally 4:8 kPa. In the numerical
example provided, only the wind loads are checked because wind pressures are the control loads.
So, the vertical pressure of the membrane is determined to be 4:8 kPa directly. The magnitude of the
horizontal x- and y-direction is determined approximately by multiplying the wind pressure with the
538 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540

Table 1
Result comparisons between $exible and xed supports considered

Loading direction Upwards Downwards X -direction Y -direction

Support type Flexible Fixed Flexible Fixed Flexible Fixed Flexible Fixed

Maximum cable tension (kN) 60.3 67.6 65.4 67.6 45.1 66.3 44.2 66.3
Maximum membrane stress (kN/m) 33.6 27.5 29.6 27.5 13.5 11.2 13.1 11.2
Maximum support X 2.2 None 0.6 None 90.3 None 5.8 None
displacement (mm) Y 2.2 None 0.6 None 5.5 None 89.3 None
Z 16.3 None 3.0 None 51.2 None 51.2 None

Note: Flexible refers to the analysis allowing for nite sti5ness of supports.

projection area of the membrane in the corresponding directions. Four loading types are therefore
analyzed for this shade pavilion structure to simulate the actions from di5erent directions. In the ver-
tical loading case, surface pressure of 4:8 kPa is applied upward and downward. In horizontal loading
case, nodal loads of 0:26 kN per node in the cablemembrane are applied in X - and Y -direction,
respectively. The magnied deformations of the integrated structure are respectively shown in
Fig. 5be for these four loading cases.
A comparison between the analysis results of the tensioned membrane structure with and without
the support frame is tabulated in Table 1. It can be seen from Table 1 that the horizontal loads,
both in X - and Y -direction, rather than the vertical upward and downward loading lead to more
deviated results in the tensioned membrane structure when $exibility of structural steel supports is
considered. The fact that the horizontal sti5ness of the space support frame is relatively small is the
cause for the large deviation.
For the X -directional loading case, Fig. 6 illustrates the distribution of cable tensions and mem-
brane principle maximum stresses and Table 2 lists the reaction forces of supports, both of $exible
and xed supports. The change of cable tensions when the $exible supports are considered trends to
be uniform. The maximum tension reduces from 66.3 to 45:1 kN, while the minimum increases from
1.78 to 18:8 kN. Membrane stresses experience less variations when supports become $exible (see
Fig. 6b). The change of support reaction forces is similar to that of cable tensions. The maximum
reaction force reduces from 68.9 to 49:0 kN, while the minimum increases from 6.1 to 13:7 kN,
which can be found in Table 2. In the integrated analysis, the support reaction forces as well as the
cable tensions and membrane stresses are all the internal forces of the structural system. With the
viewpoint of energy, more uniformly distributed internal forces, result in less total potential energy
of the structure. Therefore, the corresponding deformation conguration is more likely to be the true
equilibrium condition. The changes are indicated in Fig. 6, Tables 1 and 2.

4. Conclusion

Tensioned membrane structures are increasingly popular. In reality, the tensioned membrane struc-
tures are supported by $exible space steel structures. To develop a criterion of determining whether
the interaction between the tensioned structures and the space supports should be considered or not
 J.-J. Li, S.-L. Chan / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 40 (2004) 529 540 539

(a ) (b)

Fig. 6. Results of internal force in X -directional loading case: (a) cable tensions (kN); (b) membrane principle maximum
stress (kN/m) (values in parenthesis correspond to results of $exible supports).

Table 2
Reaction force of $exible and xed supports in the X -directional loading case

Force (kN) X Y Z

Support Flexible Fixed Flexible Fixed Flexible Fixed

1 23.8 25.1 21.4 6.1 13.7 10.2

2 46:2 46:5 49.0 68.9 22:2 29:8
3 24.4 25.1 22:2 6:1 15:7 10:2
4 44:9 46:6 48:2 68:9 24.1 29.8

is non-trivial at present. However, a practical tool to consider the inclusion of these interactions
should be available to structural engineers.
This paper presents an integrated analysis of tensioned membrane structures with $exible steel
supports, and examines e5ects of the elastic deformations of supports on the tensioned membrane
and cables through a practical structure. Numerical results demonstrate that the $exibility of space
frame supports should be taken into account.

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