Author(s): Rui Juan Yin, Lan Yin Zeng, Valarie Leung & David Correa Zuluagua
In response to the carbon hungry nature of ongoing building maintenance, this research explores the development of climate-adaptive façades driven by passive actuation within smart materials to provide solutions with a low carbon footprint and long-term energy savings. This strategy allows autonomous operation in environments where occupant access is limited or in locations with unpredictable environmental conditions. Plant structures are uniquely positioned to serve as biomimetic role models in relation to weather sensing adaptation and kinematic response as they have historically shown excellent use of acute changes in temperature and humidity as stimulus for critical operation activities such as seed dispersion, water gathering, flower blooming, or prevention of death due to excessive heat gains. In this paper, the Swamp Milkweed is studied as the biological role model for development of an adaptive façade system that harnesses changes in environmental relative humidity as the driver for actuation. The paper presents the key shape- change actuation principles of the Swamp Milkweed which are abstracted into designed climate responsive actuators. The first sets of preliminary experiments use fiberglass and cyanoacrylate as a constraint layer, and birch wood as the expansion layer. These tests are used to understand bilayer interaction, climate-response material calibration, and amplitude of deformation. The next set of tests use a novel approach to fabricate the mechanism by creating a hybrid 3DP and birch wood veneer composite actuator. Birch veneer is laminated onto a functionally differentiated Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) substrate which allowed further control over veneer bending amplitude. Furthermore, an initial architectural design investigation is presented for a multifunctional façade that creates cover when raining while also facilitating ventilation during dry seasons. We hope that this research can contribute towards the development of precise climate-adaptive mechanisms within an expanded scope of advanced façades.
Volume Editors
ISBN
978-1-944214-49-4