Williamson, D; Orr, J and Fulford, D (2017) Biogas dome construction using pneumatics. Journal of Construction in Developing Countries, 22(2), pp. 35-53. ISSN 1823-6499
Abstract
Fixed spherical dome biogas reactors are popular in Nepal for the production of biogas from waste materials. Current practice uses heaped soil as temporary formwork for an unreinforced concrete dome. This paper explores the structural requirements of biogas domes and presents a potential alternative construction process using air-supported flexible formwork that would be suitable for use in Nepal. A prototype dome was created to assess the feasibility of the formwork system. Load testing of the dome was undertaken to confirm structural performance. The results show that an air supported formwork system would be feasible for use in biogas domes with the formwork fabricated easily on site with only basic materials and fixings.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | biogas; fabric formwork; shell design |
| Index terms: | construction process, prototype, formwork, shell design, waste material, testing, biogas, Nepal, fabric formwork |
| Subjects: | building materials, architectural design, building construction, environmental science, modelling and simulation, professional practice, energy systems, Geography |
| Topics: | Engineering Principles, Construction Technology, Design Practice, Site Management, Geographical Context, Sustainability |
| Descriptive scope: | 2 PC |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here