Ice Shells for Temporary Event Architecture

unive$ity of Technology. vienna, Austda Johann Kollegger, Prof, clemens Preisinger, Eng., Michael Kaulfus, Eng., vienna

Summary

A new method for the erection of double curved

shells is presented. The conprocedure was developed by using a flat plate made of ice and a soft struction styrofoam component between segments which enables the plate to be deformed into a double curved shell with post-tensioning.An ice dome with a span of about 5 m and a height of 0,9 m was successfully constructed. This paper also presents the experiments with various shapes of shells and the requirements for ice shells.

Japanese ice structures [3] for the storage of vegetables and sake during winter are examples of small span ice shells

with double curvature. Small ice shells were also built by Isler [a] bV hanging
textile membranes from supports, spraying the membranes with water and removing the supporting struts after the freezing of the water. Larger ice shells with spans up to 30 m were constructed by Kokawa [3]. Kokawa's ice domes

were built on Pneumatic formwork which was covered bY snow with the aid of snow ploughs and then sprayed with water. It is reported in [3] that the

shell thickness was larger on top of the dome and smaller on the sides because

snow and watet are of course much more difficult to place when the angle
normal to the shell surface and the axis of revolution, which is zero at the top and about 50" at the supports, becomes

larger.

In order to simplify the con-

struction of ice shells a method was developed where the fteezing of the water takes place on the ground.

Forming a Double Curved Shelt

Normally the attempt to form a double curved shell from a flat plate will not
Fig. 1: Completed ice shell in laborator!
(Photo:Pez Heiduk)

be successful. This can easily be demon-

Introduction
Temporary ice structures can be used for various purposes such as e.g. cultural events, presentation and promotion of sales products or they may serve as a tourist attraction. Considering the low

icicles. However, considering the strength

strength of ice as well as its creep behaviour, double curved shells have turned out to be the best suited shapes for ice structures. A new method for the erection of double curved shells has been invented. A flat plate of ice is first produced which is then post-tensioned into the shaPe of a double
curved shell.

properties, ice is a rather weak material compared to conventional construction materials like concrete or wood. In compression tests on ice cylinders a module of elasticity around 1000 N/mm' and a compressive strength of about 1 N/mm2 was obtained [1]. Therefore, ice as a construction material is either used as a decorative mate-

strated with a sheet of paper that can be given a form with single curvature, but trying to force the sheet of paper

into a shape with double curvature

is

impossible. The procedure of forcing a

flai plate into a double curvature shell t"qrir"s large strains in the middle plane of the flat shape. Large strains of the order of 10% cannot be achieved
with conventional construction materials'

However.

if an orthotropic

material

was available which would permit large

rial on a supporting structure or it

is

applied in structures with very low stress states due to self weight and wind forces.

One example for the use of ice on a supporting structure is the Scandinavian hotel in Jukkasjiirvi [2] where ice
are

strains at lorv stresses in one direction and which had much better strength properties in the perpendicular direction. the transformation of a flat plate into a double curved shell could be ac-

Ice as Construction Material

Ice is a beautiful material' Most people will associate ice with pictures of frozen lakes and water falls, ice crystals and

blocks from the Tornedlv River placed on an arch of corrugated steel

sheaths. Only double curved shell struc-

complished. KeePing this in mind a conslruction procedure [5] was developed in r,vhich a flat plate was made by using a strong material (e.g. ice or concrete ) and a soft component (e.g' styro-

tures qualify for the second option to use ice as a construction material for very low permissible stresses.Igloos and

foam) which could then be deformed into a double curved shell.

214

TemporarY Structures

Structural Engineering International 412004

a)

Detail D

method is only applicable if large strains

in the ring direction can occur during

the forming process. The detail of Fig. 2d, (showing a part of the flat plate) indi-

cates the different properties in the ring and meridian directions. In the meridian direction struts consisted of ice, while in the ring direction the stiffness properties are governed by the elastic-plastic behaviour of the styro-

styiofoam
segment

unbonded tendon
tr
E

foam segments. During the shaPing process the styrofoam segments were compressed from 57 mm to I7 mm at the circumference. The shape of the styrofoam segments was determined
by hand calculations in such a way that during the forming process a reduction of the segment width to 30"/o of the original width would produce the intended shape of a dome with 0,9 m sag.

.:: ,:.

b)

c)

f-

a,8 m

During the transformation of the plate into the shell the radius of curvature
was decreasing from an infinite radius for the plate to a radius of 3,75 m for the final shape. This radius of curvarrng

.ir-.-V.-.-i.

llt
i
I

d)

direction

ture had to be equivalent to the thickness of the shell divided by the sum of
the absolute values of the strains at the top and bottom surface. For a given

flTlrm
meridian

direction

Fig. 2: (a) Plan view of ice plate, (b) section of ice plate, (c) section of ice shell, (d) detail D showing forces

thickness of 40 mm and a radius of 3.75 m the sum of these strains had to be around I%. Since the ultimate tensile strength of ice is smaller than the
compressive strength, cracking occurred during the shaping process.By carefully observrng Fig.1 the cracks in the ice can be seen as well as the fibre glass mesh which was used as reinforcement

Fig. 3: Transforming an ice plate into an ice shell

Construction of Ice Shell

in order to obtain many distributed

cracks with small crack widths. The photographs in Fig.3 demonstrate the shaping process from flat plate to ice shell with double curvature. In the laboratory experiment the centre of the plate was lifted by about 15 mm with

A room in the laboratory of the Institute for Structural Engineering was isolated and equipped with a cooling unit in order to build ice shells (Fig. 1). The simple shape of a dome with a
span of about 5 m and a height of 0,9 m

readily calculated from equilibrium equations and hoop stresses in the ring direction are governed by the yield level of the styrofoam material. The largest stresses occur during the buckling process. After the completion of the shaping process the meridian stresses are only in the in the range of 0,1 N/mm2. The shaPing Process can
es can be

was chosen for the construction of the first shells. A flat ice plate with 32 styrofoam segments was produced (Fig. 2). The circle in the plan was approximated by a polygonal line with 31 straight

the aid of an air jack Placed underneath the plate. Then the tendon was stressed simultaneously at both anchorages up to a force of 50 kN. At this
force level a buckling of the plate into a neighbouring stable equilibrium position occurred. During the buckling of the plate the in-plane stresses of the plate were reduced from 0,5 N/mmt to much smaller values and the tendon force dropped to 15 kN. The centre sag after buckling was about 0,25 m. Further stressing of the tendon resulted in a reduction of the circumference and a
rise of the centre of the shell.When the final sag of 0,9 m was reached the tendon was locked at the anchorages.
Stresses in the shell during the shaping process remain small. Meridian stress-

therefore be considered ing of the shell.

as a

proof load-

Practical Re quirements
To enable the freezing of water a constant temperature below -2" C is a re-

parts and a concrete anchor block for the post-tensioning tendons. Along the

circumference a scaffolding had to be provided in order to form the bound-

quirement both in the laboratory and in nature. In the northern hemisphere

ary of the ice shell with a thickness of 40 mm (Flg. 2b). Along the edge of
the ice plate an unbonded tendon was placed and two stressing anchorages were provided at the anchor block. Fig. 2c shows a section through the ice shell which was obtained by stressing of the tendon. During the transformation from flat plate to shell the diameter was reduced from 5,2 m to 4,8 m. As indicated above, this construction
Structural Engineering International 412004

this temperature requirement will only be met during the winter months November to March and it will stJongly depend on altitude and location. In

Europe, Scandinavian countries and alpine areas are best suited for building ice shells. Short periods of warm weather will not harm the ice shell due to the long winter nights and also due to the possibility to increase the thickness of the ice during cold periods. AnTemporarvStructures
175

other option would be the integration of a cooling system consisting of copper tubes and a cooling agent near the middle surface of the shell. A reasonably plane surface is a precondition for the production of the ice plate. Considering a shell with a diameter of 20 m and a thickness of 20 cm, the ice weighs 2 kN/m'and the shell has a weight in excess of 600 kN. The load per meter at the circumference during the shaping process would be about 10 kN/m.Therefore, at the circumference the subsurface must be capable of carrying this
load with acceptable deformations. Suitable subsurfaces would be, for example, a concrete foundation plate, park-

ing places or pressed snow with scaffolding plates. The construction of ice domes with a span of 30 m has been reported [3] using pneumatic scaffolding. Numerical simulations using nonlinear finite element programs taking into account geometric nonlinearities, as well
as

cracking and creep-effects, have shown

that ice shells with a span of 30 m can be built with the new construction procedure starting from a flat plate with a thickness of 0,3 m. Construction of
even larger shells may well be feasible. However, in the next step the numerical simulations for ice shells with diameters of 10 m and l-5 m, which are cur-

Fig. 5: Ice shell with fibre optic cables

of the shell will gently illuminate the

surrounding area. Installing bright lights inside will make the ice shell a very visible and striking structure at night. Another option would be the installation of fibre glass cables in transparent tubes close to the middle surface of the ice plate. These bundles of fibre optic ca-

Conclusion
The new construction procedure offers a variety of possibilities for the design and use of an ice shell. The main appli-

rently under preparation on an ice skating rink, will be compared to the results obtained usins the measurements on site.

bles have small defects along their length and by connecting them to an
outside projector the light is made visible along the whole length of the cable (Fig. 5).As the projector is placed outside, the ice is hardly subjected to heat radiation while the cables are illuminated. The light cannot travel through the styrofoam segments. Interesting colour sequences and patterns can be created in the ice.
Shapes und Sections

Ice Shells in Event Architecture

Light snd Colour

cation will be the creation of a temporary structure for a certain event, e.g. an ice shell housing a bar in a skiing resort in the mountains. These unique structures which will be designed especially for a particular event, might serve as roof structures for sport and music events or they might be used for the

&

Ice is a translucent material. A variety of possibilities exists to enhance the appearance and attractiveness of an ice shell. For instance the interior of the shell could be illuminated during the night (Fig. a) with the effect that the light will be reflected at the cracks and the glow coming through the walls

presentation and promotion of sales products. The construction of the first larger ice shells for the coming winter is already being prepared. And when winter gives way to spring more than 99Y" of the shell will become once
again

* water.

In the final position the ice dome is a

very stable structure. Without reducing the safety of the structure, large portions of the shell can be cut out in order to provide entrances and exits or just to obtain a different appearance of the shell. Experiments with various

References
[1] KAULFUS, M. Verfahren zur Herstellung von zweifach rtiumlich gekriimmten Schalen aus Els. Master's Thesis. Vienna Universitv of Technology,2004. [2] SCHWARZ, C., DREXLER, T. Temporiire mit v o r ge s p annten S chalen aus Eis - Glasfasergewebeverbund. Master's Thesis, Vienna University of Technolo gy, 2004.
Ev entarchitektur

shapes

of

shells were carried out.

Fig.4: Ice shell illuminated

(Photo: Pez Hejduk)

from

within

Twenty-nine of the 32 segments could be removed without risking the collapse of the ice structure. Removing only a few sections of the ice for entrances will create a sheltered room for the visitor whereas removing many segments will have the effect of obtaining an ice sculpture.

[3] KOKAWA, I., ITOH, O. and WATANABE, K. Ice Shell - Review and Recent Application. Journal of IASS, Volume 41,2000. [4]

RAMM, E., SCHUNCK, E. Heinz Isler

J.,

Schalen. Karl Kriimer Verlag, Stuttgart, 1986.

zLU Herstellung von zweifach riiumlich

[5] KOLLEGER,

PREISINGER, C. Verfahren
ge-

kriimmten Schalen. Austrian Patent Office. 2004.

276

Temporary Structures

Structural Engineering International 412004