Form Finding Lab – Princeton University

Welcome

By 2050, 70% of the world population will live in cities. Today already 50% live in an urban environment and produce more than 75% of all C0₂ emissions. Finding intelligent and efficient ways to provide for more people with fewer resources will make cities more resilient to manmade and natural disasters and reduce their impact on the environment. Our long-term research goal is to transform the engineering design framework for a future-oriented built urban environment. Our research program addresses the following two core questions: What is the relationship between form and efficiency in civil structures?; and With increasing pressure on the preservation of natural resources, how can design theories and tools match untested sculptural ideas to material-efficient, constructible structures?

Please feel free to get in touch if you are interested in pursuing collaboration.

Prof. S. Adriaenssens
Associate Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Princeton University

OUTREACH: RESILIENCY AND BUILDINGS

Yesterday, 22nd of May, we had the pleasure of holding workshops for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders at the Riverside Elementary School Science Day on how buildings can be designed to resist earthquakes.

PRESENTATION: FORM FOLLOWS FORCE – WHY AND HOW DOES IT MATTER?

The Cherry Blossoms are blooming at eth University of Washington, Seattle and I am giving a public lecture in the School of Architecture, Gould Hall on April 3rd. Drop by if you are around!

PUBLICATION: Hygroscapes: Innovative Shape Shifting Facades

Our design and scholarship carried out with collaborators from the American University of Cairo and Roma Tre University is published today as a chapter "Hygroscapes: Innovative Shape Shifting Facades" in the new book 'Digital Wood Design: Innovative techniques of representation in Architectural Design'

PRESENTATION: Form Finding of Shells for Extreme Loading and Environmental Stress

I thoroughly enjoyed presenting our most recent work on rigid and semi-flexible shells with civil applications at Rutgers University on February 13th.

FUNDING: Intellectual Property Accelerator Fund

We are delighted to have been awarded Intellectual Property Accelerator Funding to pursue the development of our bio-InspiRed adaptive Shading Device (IRiS)

PRESENTATION: BIOMIMETIC MORPHING SHAPES

Our work on biomimetic morphing shapes drew attention at the Hygroscapes Workshop 3, held at Roma Tre University, Rome (Jan 2019)

FUNDING: HARNESSING LARGE DEFORMATIONS IN INTERLACED ELASTIC NETWORKS

We have just been awarded SEAS Project X Innovation funding, support for bold thinking and unconventional ideas.

PUBLICATION: Form finding of corrugated shell structures for seismic design and validation using non-linear pushover analysis

Corrugations in shell can be tailored to optimize the shell's behavior under earthquake loading. T. Michiels, S. Adriaenssens, M. Dejong, "Form finding of corrugated shell structures for seismic design and validation using non-linear pushover analysis", Engineering Structures https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2018.12.043

FUNDING: NOISE POLLUTION, BARRIERS, HEALTH, EQUITY AND THE CITY

Together with Prof. Boyer at the School of Architecture, we will start tackling noise pollution in urban areas through a Princeton Environmental Institute grant.

PUBLICATION: A multi-physics approach for modeling hygroscopic behavior in wood low-tech architectural adaptive systems

This paper presents some of the scholarship we carry out with Rome Tre University and the American University of Cairo S. Abdelmohsen, S. Adriaenssens, R. El-Dabaa, S. Gabriele, L. Olivieri, L. Teresi, L., “Programmable matter: A multi-physics modeling approach for low-tech architectural adaptive systems using hygroscopic properties of wood,” Computer-Aided Design, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ca

FUNDING: Planning Grant: Engineering Research Center for Naturally Inspired Resilient, Sustainable and Adaptable Infrastructure

We are delighted to have been awarded this ERC Planning Grant by the National Science Foundation.

2018 IASS: CREATIVITY IN STRUCTURAL DESIGN

We are co-organizing the IASS 2018: Creativity in Structural Design symposium at MIT (16- 20th July) . We are presenting, discussing, chairing sessions and networking about our work about adaptive structures, net and membrane structures and shells. If you are around, come and say hi!

IABSE HENDERSON COLLOQUIUM: How to design the next generation of adaptive structures?

We were invited to the IABSE Henderson colloquium at Christ Church College, Cambridge, UK to discuss as to the how and why of adaptive infrastructure (July 2 - 4th 2018). The future of cities lies there.

PUBLICATION: Modeling underwater cable structures subject to breaking waves

Our work on cables and nets subjected to wavebreak loading is here A. Niewiarowski, S. Adriaenssens, R.M.O. Pauletti, K. Addi, L. Deike, ‘Modeling underwater cable structures subject to breaking waves ‘, Ocean Engineering, vol. 64, 15, pp. 199-211.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2018.06.013

PUBLICATION: Seeking congruency in digital optimisation and constructability in fabric formed ice shells utilising bending active frames

L. Coar, M. Cox, S. Adriaenssens, ‘Seeking congruency in digital optimization and constructability in fabric formed ice shells utilizing bending active frames’, International Journal of Rapid Manufacturing, vol. 7, 2-3, pp. 186-202.

CONGRATS TO OUR GRADUATE STUDENTS ANDREW AND TIM!

Avete atque valete. Andrew Rock and Tim Michiels were hooded and graduated on June 4th and 5th. They will go on to do great things.