Building (as) performance : a material approach to adaptive architecture

One measure of performance in adaptive architecture is its ability the respond effectively to the environment and evolving program. As architects strive to create designs that respond to external change, more and more literally and actively, they are inevitably faced with the challenge of merging the kinetic with what is inherently an "immovable". Yet traditional mechanic devices allowing freedom of movement to an assembly have proven to be very expensive and often unreliable. This is in part due to their incompatibility with a building's use and lifespan. Thus, they are either implemented permanently at great expense or are confined to the temporary and architecturally limited realm of installations. We can thus witness a trend in architecture moving away from the mechanic and towards the use of material behavior and deformation as a cheaper and more durable architectural solution to responsiveness. Responsive materials such as shape memory alloys (SMA's) and electroactive polymers offer new possibilities for architecture. Furthermore, an understanding of the difference between kinetics in architecture and kinetics in mechanical objects has led to investigations into evolving interplays of rigidity and flexibility within structures. This thesis tries to advance the discourse by investigating the limits of elastic material deformation, and framing a niche where it is possible and fruitful for architecture to use material properties to produce adaptable space.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2009

Author dc:creator

• Dimitrov, Andrey

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• J. Meejin Yoon.

• Architecture.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/54537

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/54537