The "Pneumatic Wedge Method" is a new method for the construction of double-curved concrete surfaces using pneumatic formwork. The advantage of this method is that elaborate structures for molds and scaffolding are no longer needed.
Using the "Pneumatic Wedge Method", the Vienna University of Technology has built a double-curved concrete shell as part of a research project. The deformation process and the final structural conditions have been checked with RFEM.
The project for designing a filter/dryer device, including agitator, required a complete stress and deformation analysis in RFEM. The complex modeling of the structure, which had 1,424 surfaces, 158 solids, and 425 members, represented a special design challenge.
The figure shows deformations due to the self-weight load case.
Calculation according to the second-order and large deformation analysis
Dynamic Analysis