Strand Composite Lightweight Slab

FREEFORM STRESS-ORIENTED TIMBER STRAND COMPOSITES FOR LIGHTWEIGHT SLAB APPLICATIONS

Since their introduction in the late 1960s, oriented timber strand composites (OSC) have been widely used in the production of construction goods such as lumber and boards, where the high resource efficiency of strand production has been the main driver for such products. However, OSC have two relevant characteristics whose potential remains largely unexplored: their ability to be formed into complex geometries and their suitability for tailored fibre architectures through CNC-controlled strand orientation. On the one hand, access to doubly curved geometries opens up a whole new repertoire of form-driven structural designs and the use of optimisation techniques (such as shape optimisation) that are currently out of reach for timber structures. On the other hand, given that strand orientation is a key performance factor for OSC, stress-tailored strand orientation allows for significant improvements in the mechanical performance of structural components, especially in those with complex geometries where the stresses follow complex trajectories.

The aim of this project is to investigate and evaluate the potential of freeform stress-oriented timber strand composites for the realisation of high-performance and material efficient structural slab components. The methods and processes developed will be evaluated through the realisation and evaluation of a full-scale slab demonstrator.

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jan Knippers
Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE), University of Stuttgart

RESEARCHER

Jorge Christie (ITKE)

PARTNERS

Prof. Dr. Andreas Michanickl (TH Rosenheim)
Strong by Form (Chile)
Henkel (Switzerland)
Berner Fachhochschule (Switzerland)