The elastic static property and stability of string cylindrical reticulated mega-structures

Abstract

Based on the concepts of beam string structure and reticulated mega-structure, a new type of string cylindrical reticulated mega-structure is proposed and five cable–strut arrangement schemes are presented. The optimal scheme is obtained by comprehensive comparison in the structural static property and stability. For the structure with the optimal cable–strut arrangement scheme, large-scale parametric analyses are carried out to investigate the variation laws of various indices such as the structural deflection, member internal force, ultimate stability capacity, and their decreasing or increasing rates compared with the results of the structure without cable–strut system. The rational values of various parameters, such as the ratio of rise to span, height of latticed 3D beams, strut length, and the cable pretension, are thus recommended. Additionally, the influence of half-span loading on structural stability is investigated. Results indicate that the structural static property and stability can be effectively improved by adopting the optimal cable–strut arrangement scheme, in which, the cable–strut units are symmetrically set within the full span except the two side large grids of the latticed 3D arches and the cables between the struts of the adjacent units cross each other. Also, the sensitivity of structural stability to the asymmetry of load distribution declines for adoption of the pretensioned cable–strut system.