Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394

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Engineering Structures
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/engstruct

Design and form-finding of compression structures with prestressing tendons T

a,⁎ b c
Manuel Alejandro Fernández-Ruiz , Anastasiia Moskaleva , Luisa María Gil-Martín ,
Antonio Palomaresd, Enrique Hernández-Montesc
a
Department of Industrial and Civil Engineering, University of Cádiz (UCA), Campus Bahía de Algeciras, Avda. Ramón Puyol, s/n, 11201 Algeciras (Cádiz), Spain
b
School of Architecture and Design, Siberian Federal University (SFU), 79 Svobodny pr., 660041 Krasnoyarsk, Russia
c
Department of Structural Mechanics, University of Granada (UGR), Campus Universitario de Fuentenueva s/n, 18072 Granada, Spain
d
Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Granada (UGR), Campus Universitario de Fuentenueva s/n, 18072 Granada, Spain

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Compression-only structures such as domes and vaults can be modelled as pin-jointed networks whose equili-
Compression structures brium configuration is obtained using well-known form-findings methods such as the Force Density Method. As
Form-finding all the members of the network are in compression, its corresponding force density or force:length ratio matrix is
Prestressing tendons non-singular and the final shape is obtained directly from the equilibrium equations.
Force density method
The introduction of prestressing tendons (members in tension) in compression structures allows for the design
Rib vault
of more creative forms, showing an exceptional versatility in the design of new structures. However, because
tension and compression members exist, the force density matrix can be singular or ill-conditioned and the
solution of the equilibrium equations is not quite as simple as in the case of compression-only structures. In this
work, a procedure for the design of compression structures with prestressing tendons along with several ex-
amples are presented.

1. Introduction equilibrium configuration can be obtained irrespective of the geometry

Traditional vaults and domes have been built for centuries using
masonry materials which are strong in compression but weak in ten-
sion. These so-called compression-only structures (because they carry
their loads mainly in compression) can be modelled as pin-jointed
networks composed of members in compression connected at nodes
[1,2]. The Force Density Method (FDM) [3,4] is a well-known proce-
dure used to solve the form-finding problem of pin-jointed networks.
The non-linear equilibrium equations of the form-finding problem are
linearized introducing the concept of force:length ratio or force density.
The force:length ratio q is defined as the ratio between the axial force
and the length of each member of the network and it is considered to be
an input in the problem. Other form-finding methods can be seen in [5].
The mapping of the network is necessary to start the form-finding
process in the FDM. The mapping method called Topological Mapping
(TM) proposed by Hernández-Montes et al. [6] is a powerful tool to
define the connectivity between the nodes of a general mesh [1,2].
Using TM, a mesh of triangles can be defined based on some topological
rules regardless of the final shape of the structure. The great advantage
of the combination of TM and FDM (so-called TM-FDM) is that the
of the structure [7].
The dominant load on vaults and domes is their self-weight. The
introduction of the self-weight as external forces in TM-FDM leads to a
loss of the linearity of the form-finding problem because the self-weight
depends on the final equilibrium form. In order to overcome this issue,
an iterative procedure based on TM-FDM was proposed by Carbonell-
Márquez et al. [1] for compression structures; they also checked that
shell structures can be designed using the advantages of TM-FDM form-
finding techniques. This iterative procedure was extended by Fer-
nández-Ruiz et al. [2] to compression-only structures with inner ribs;
these being the groups of branches of the mesh that are assigned with a
higher value of the force:length ratio (which means that they carry a
higher load level). In both iterative procedures, compression-only
structures are computed as the inverse of a tension structure (which has
all its members in tension) by geometrical inversion with respect to the
horizontal plane, like the physical models used by Antonio Gaudí [8,9].
Cable-strut structures are pin-jointed systems composed by both
tensioned and compressed members (cables and struts, respectively)
connected at nodes. As in the case of tension structures, the self-weight
is usually ignored [10]. Special cases of cable-strut structures are

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: manuelalejandro.fernandez@uca.es (M.A. Fernández-Ruiz), amoskaleva@sfu-kras.ru (A. Moskaleva), mlgil@ugr.es (L.M. Gil-Martín),
anpalom@ugr.es (A. Palomares), emontes@ugr.es (E. Hernández-Montes).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2019.109394
Received 27 December 2018; Received in revised form 20 June 2019; Accepted 9 July 2019
0141-0296/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al.
Tension structures Cable – strut structures
Positive force:length ratio Positive and negative
Compression structures
No self-weight; Supports force:length ratios
with tension members
No self-weight ; Supports
Positive and negative
(except tensegrity)
force:length ratios
Self-weight; Supports
Prestressing tendon
(a)
(d)
Compression structures
Negative force:length ratio
Self-weight; Supports
(e)
(c)
(b) (f)
Fig. 1. Examples of (a) tension structure, (b) compression structure, (c) com-
pression structure with a prestressing tendon, (d) cable dome (adapted from
[18]), (e) cable-stiffened arch (adapted from [17]) and (f) tensegrity. In (d), (e)
and (f) black and grey lines correspond with tension and compression members
respectively.
tensegrity structures [11–13] (Fig. 1f), cable domes [14,15] (Fig. 1d),
cable nets [16] (Fig. 1a) and cable-stiffened arches [17] (Fig. 1e). The
structural rigidity of cable-strut structures comes from the prestress of
its cables and struts [18] and for this reason, the calculation of the
prestress state is a key step in the form-finding problem of any cable-
strut structure. There is a high number of form-finding methods of
tensegrity structures in the literature [19–21]. A review of form-finding
methods of tensegrity structures can be seen in Tibert and Pellegrino
[22]. Tran and Lee [23] proposed a form-finding method for cable-strut
structures and Kawaguchi et al. [24] for cable domes.
Compression structures with prestressing tendons are a new type of
structure composed by a compression-only structure and tension
members connected between two points of the compression structure or
between a point of the compression structure and an external fixed
point (Fig. 1c). The introduction of tension members opens up new
creative opportunities in the design of compression structures, offering
endless design possibilities. Compression structures with prestressing
tendons fall outside the types of structures mentioned above. They
cannot be treated as tension-only or compression-only structures be-
cause they have both tension and compression members. In addition,
they also cannot be treated as cable-strut structures because their
member’s self-weight cannot be ignored. For these reasons, compres-
sion structures with prestressing tendons cannot be designed using the
existing form-finding methods such as [2,22,23].
In this work, compression structures with prestressing tendons are
presented. Prestressing tendons are modelled as additional cables
without self-weight. A form-finding procedure based on TM-FDM for
the design of this type of structures is presented. Several examples are
developed to show the goodness of the proposed method.
2. Equilibrium of pin-jointed networks using FDM
In this Section, the same terminology found in [3] is used, where a
deep explanation of the FDM can be found. The total number of nodes
ns is equal to the sum of the number of free nodes n plus the number of
fixed nodes nf (ns = n + nf). Free nodes are free to move in the space
until the equilibrium of the structure is achieved and fixed nodes act as
supports. In a network with m members, the connectivity matrix Cs is a
m × ns matrix such as if a branch j links nodes i(j) and k(j) (with i < k),
Cs is defined as follows:
2
Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394
⎧ + 1 if r = i(j )
CS(j,r ) = - 1 if r = k (j )
⎨
⎩ 0 otherwise (1)
In Eq. (1), r denotes the rth column of the jth row in Cs. Matrix Cs
can be defined using TM [6]. As in [3] and without loss of generality,
the fixed nodes are taken at the end of the sequence. Doing this, Cs can
be partitioned into two matrixes as Cs = [C, Cf], where C [m × n] and
Cf [m × nf] describe the connectivity of free and fixed nodes, respec-
tively. The coordinates of free (x, y, z) and fixed nodes (xf, yf, zf) con-
stitute the nodal coordinate vectors x = [x1, …, xn]T, y = [y1, …, yn]T
and z = [z1, …, zn]T for free nodes and xf = [x1, …, xnf]T, yf = [y1, …,
ynf]T and zf = [z1, …, znf]T for fixed nodes in the x-, y- and z- directions
respectively. Let denote Px = [p1x, …, pnx]T, Py = [p1y, …, pny]T and
Pz = [p1z, …, pnz]T the vectors that contain the external loads applied at
the free nodes and l = [l1, …, lm]T and s = [s1, …, sm]T the vectors that
contain the length li and the internal force si of each branch of the mesh,
respectively. The force:length ratio of each branch of the mesh is de-
fined as qi = si/li. In the FDM, a positive value of q means that the
member is in tension (cable) and a negative value means a member in
compression (strut). In all the former expressions [⋅]T represents the
transpose operation.
The equilibrium equations of a general pin-jointed network are the
following [3]:
CTQCx + CTQC f xf = Px ⎫
CTQCy + CTQC f yf = Py
⎬
CTQCz + CTQC f zf = Pz ⎭ (2)
where Q is the diagonal matrix of the vector q that contains the for-
ce:length ratios of each branch of the mesh (q = [q1, …, qm]T). For
simplicity, the force density or force:length ratio matrixes D = CTQC
[n × n] and Df = CTQCf [n × nf] are defined and Eq.(2) can be re-
written as:
D x = Px − Df x f ⎫
D y = Py − Df yf
⎬
D z = Pz − Df z f ⎭ (3)
3. Compression structures with prestressing tendons: A new type
of compression structures
Many compression structures are part of our material heritage and
can still be seen today, such as the 6th century CE arch of Taq-i Kisra in
Iraq [25]. The durability of this type of structure (e.g. millennial
structures) is higher than current reinforced concrete structures, which
have an approximate working life of 100 years. The maintenance, de-
molition and renovation of current reinforced concrete structures will
entail a huge energetic cost in the future, in comparison with com-
pression structures which require a minimum maintenance during their
very large working life. In addition, it is important to note that whilst
our society is simultaneously concerned with the conservation of its
heritage, it is not creating any for the future [26].
Compression structures with prestressing tendons are an evolution
of the traditional compression structures and can be part of our future
material heritage. This new type of structure has contemporary and
innovative designs without forgetting the characteristic features of
masonry works. The prestressing tendons allow substantial design
freedom and a wide variety of final shapes. The critical points of the
structure, which may be the prestressing tendons, have the advantage
that they are few in number and are localized with easy access for
maintenance or even replacement.
The stress control of prestressing tendons is essential: due to the
combination of tension and compression members there may be some
designs that lead to structures that are very sensitive to the stresses of
prestressing tendons (i.e. a small change in the stress provokes a high
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al.
change in the whole geometry of the structure or even its collapse).
For this reason, it is very important to check this type of structure’s
sensitivity to small changes of prestressing tendons stresses. This can be
done studying the conditioning of the corresponding matrix D (see
Section 4).
Fig. 1 shows some examples of all the types of structures mentioned
in this work. The compression structures with prestressing tendons
studied in this paper (Fig. 1c) will be treated as an intermediate case
between compression-only (Fig. 1b) and cable-strut structures
(Fig. 1d–f). Generally, in cable-strut structures the number of tension
members is frequently much higher than the number of members in
compression. In addition, its self-weight is usually ignored. On the
contrary, in the case of compression structures with prestressing ten-
dons, the number of prestressing tendons is significantly lower than the
number of compression members and the self-weight of the compres-
sion structure cannot be ignored. Moreover, since they have some
members in tension, neither can they be treated as compression struc-
tures.
4. Requirement on rank and conditioning of the force:length ratio
matrix D
In Eq. (3) the unknown coordinates x, y and z of the free nodes can
be computed once the coordinates of the fixed nodes xf, yf and zf, the
external loads, the force density vector q and the connectivity between
the nodes (matrix Cs) are known. Force:length ratio matrixes D = CTQC
and Df = CTQCf are assumed to be known.
The introduction of force:length ratios with different signs in a pin-
jointed network has a significant influence on the form-finding pro-
blem. In tension-only structures all the members have all the for-
ce:length ratios of the same sign (positive) and D is a positive definite
matrix (and consequently, non-singular, see Fig. 2) [3,19]. The same
occurs with compression-only structures, but in that case, D is a nega-
tive definite matrix that is also non-singular (see Fig. 2). Therefore, a
unique solution of Eq. (3) can be easily obtained using the inverse of D
(D−1). On the contrary, in the case of cable-strut structures matrix D
can be singular in certain cases due to the presence of force:length ra-
tios with different signs. Hence, D cannot be inverted and the solution
(coordinates of free nodes at equilibrium) of the form-finding problem
is not as simple as in the previous non-singular cases (see Fig. 2).
Tensegrity structures are a special type of cable-strut structures where
there are no fixed nodes and no external loads are considered. Due to
this, their corresponding matrix D is always singular and special con-
siderations have to be taken into account during their form-finding
Tension
structures
D is always
non-singular
Compresssion
structures
Cable-strut
structures
D can be
singular
Tensegrity
structures
Compresssion
structures with D is always
prestressing singular
tendons
Fig. 2. Classification based on the force:length ratio matrix D.
3
Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394
process (see Fig. 2).
In a simple approach, the rank-nullity theorem of linear algebra
states that the rank plus the nullity is the number of columns in a given
matrix. Because the nullity of a matrix corresponds with the dimension
of its null space, the eigenvalue 0 must not be part of the eigenvalues of
the square matrix D in order to have a full rank matrix (and conse-
quently be non-singular).
Matrix D is a symmetric real matrix (D = CTQC) and, according to
the spectral theorem, orthogonally diagonalizable: λ = δ−1Dδ. The
eigenvalues of D (λ1, λ2, λ3, …, λn) are collected in the diagonal matrix
λ and δ is an orthogonal matrix (that is δ−1 = δT) where its columns
are an orthonormal base of eigenvectors of D. The kernel of D is the
eigenspace of eigenvalue 0 and its dimension (nullity) coincides with
the multiplicity of 0 as eigenvalue of D. It is known that the solutions of
the characteristic polynomial p(λ) = λn + an−1λn−1 + … + a1λ + a0
are the eigenvalues of D and therefore matrix D is non-singular if a0 ≠ 0
(the nullity is 0 so D is a full-rank matrix), this is the Condition (1).
In the case of compression structures with prestressing tendons, if
the force:length ratios of the nt cables (q1, …, qnt) are supposed un-
knowns and the force:length of the struts are supposed knowns, matrix
D is computed and the corresponding characteristic polynomial p(λ)
can be calculated. Then, enforcing that the term a0 is equal to zero, that
is a0 (q1, …, qnt) = 0 an equation in the force:length ratios q1, …, qnt is
obtained. The solutions of this equation are the force:length ratios that
lead to a singular force density matrix and, therefore, they should be
avoided.
The determination of the analytical equation a0 (q1, …, qnt) = 0 can
imply a high computational cost depending on the dimensions of D and
on the number of cables. It is moreover likely that the number of pos-
sible values of q1, …, qnt that lead to a0 = 0 is considerably smaller than
the number of values that lead to a0 ≠ 0, due to the small number of
prestressing tendons in comparison with the number of compression
members in the structures studied in this work. This is why the analy-
tical solution of a0 (q1, …, qnt) = 0 is not recommended; it is rather
preferred that the designer introduces some values of (q1, …, qnt) as
inputs of the problem and afterwards checks if the corresponding ma-
trix D is non-singular.
Another aspect to take into account is the conditioning of matrix D.
Matrix D is said to be ill-conditioned if a small relative change in D
leads to a large relative change in D−1 [27]. For practical purposes, if D
is an ill-conditioned matrix, any small modification of the Force:length
ratio coefficients could cause significant variations on the solution of
the problem, i.e. the position of the free nodes. To account for the
above, authors include a criterion to detect ill-conditioned matrixes
based on the condition number.
The condition number k = ||D||⋅||D−1|| of a matrix is a measure of
the degree of ill-conditioning of a matrix; in this work ||⋅|| indicates the
second matrix norm (2-norm). The 2-norm of D is shown in Eq.(4),
where λmax coincides with the largest eigenvalue of D * D (where D* is
the conjugate transpose of D) [27]. The 2-norm of the inverse of D (if D
is non-singular) is shown in Eq.(5), where λmin coincides with the
smallest eigenvalue of D*D. If matrix D is a real matrix then D* = DT
[27].
||D|| = λ max (4)
1
||D−1|| =
λ min (5)
Using Eqs. (4) and (5) the condition number of matrix D can be
written as:
λmax
k = ||D|| ||D−1|| =
λmin (6)
If the condition number k of D is small relative to 1, it can be said
that D is well-conditioned; on the contrary, if k is high relative to 1, D is
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al.
Fig. 3. Design procedure of a compression structure with tension members based on TM-FDM.
an ill-conditioned matrix [27]. It is necessary to establish a criterion to
avoid ill-conditioned matrixes, and the absolute value of k by itself does
not give enough information whether D is a well- or ill-conditioned
matrix. So, for compression structures with prestressing tendons, it is
necessary to define a criterion based on the behaviour of the structure.
In this paper, authors propose that such criterion consists on the defi-
nition of an upper limit value of k (klim), such that if k ≤ klim it can be
said that matrix D is well-conditioned. The proposed criterion will be
addressed in the next Section.
Taking into account all the aforementioned conditions, it is accepted
that matrix D of the compression structure with prestressing tendons
should be (1) non-singular and (2) well-conditioned (in that order).
5. Form-finding procedure and computation of klim
5.1. Form-finding
The flowchart presented in Fig. 3 summarizes the procedure fol-
lowed in this paper for the design of a compression structure (with or
without compression inner ribs) with prestressing tendons.
The proposed procedure consists of three steps: definition of the
inputs (Step 1), analysis of the rank and conditioning of the force:length
ratio matrix D (Step 2) and iterative form-finding based on TM-FDM
(Step 3).
5.1.1. Step 1: Definition of the inputs
The inputs of the method are the following:
i) Topology of the mesh: inputs related with the definition of the mesh
4
Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394
(Cs) in TM [6]. The designer must introduce a topological sequence
based on the three basic types of relationships presented in [6]. A
complete explanation of these inputs can be seen in [2,6].
ii) Geometry: number of fixed nodes nf and their coordinates (xf, yf and
zf) and define the self-weight of both, the compression structure (γ)
and the inner ribs (λ) (if they exist). The value of the self-weight γ is
expressed in force by units of area and λ in force by units of length.
Fixed nodes acts as supports of the compression structure.
iii) Force:length ratio pattern or q-pattern: the force:length ratio pat-
tern is the distribution and assignment of q values to all the bran-
ches of the mesh (including inner ribs) [2]. This definition is a key
aspect in the design of the compression structure. The definition of
the q-pattern is related with how the vaults transmit the load to the
supports (load path). In principle, any values of force:length ratio
for inner ribs and the rest of branches of the structures are possible
and the corresponding final equilibrium configuration would be
obtained. However, if the chosen q-pattern are such that it has not
physical sense, no equilibrium configuration will be obtained in
Step 3. A guide for the definition of the q-pattern for compression
structures with inner ribs can be seen in [2].
iv) Prestressing tendons: these members are treated as cables in tension
and they are defined by pairs of nodes (nodes at their ends) and by
their corresponding force:length ratio (positive). The input values
of q1, …, qnt are supposed to be a-priori known, as a first try we can
enforce some relations between them (for instance, the same q for
all the cables).
Each prestressing tendon is modelled as a tension member joining
two nodes of the mesh or a node of the mesh with an external fixed
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al. Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394

node. Prestressing tendons or cables do not exist in the mesh generated

by TM, so they need to be defined after the creation of the mesh.
Consequently, matrix Cs needs to be modified adding at the end a
number of rows equal to the total number of cables according to Eq. (1).
In the same way, the force:length ratios corresponding to each cable
have to be introduced at the end of vector q. It is recommended to
introduce small values of q1, …, qnt for the prestressing tendons at the
beginning of the form-finding procedure (for instance, qc/10, where qc
is the maximum value of q of members in compression) and pro-
portionally increase the values of q1, …, qnt until obtaining the desired
shape.

5.1.2. Step 2: Analysis of the rank and conditioning of D

Once the force:length ratios are established, matrix D = CTQC can
be computed. If D is a non-singular matrix, condition (1) is fulfilled and
the method continues to the next step (see Fig. 3). On the contrary, if D
is a singular matrix the designer has two options. The first one is to
change the values of q of the compression members and/or of the
tendons until a non-singular force density matrix is obtained (the ei-
genvalues of D can be used as guide for the designer during this pro-
cess). The second option is to consider q1, …, qnt as unknowns in the
form-finding problem (preserving the relations between them defined
by the designer in the input) and carry out a symbolical analysis to
solve the equation a0 (q1, …, qnt) = 0. Then the designer has to choose
values qnt satisfying a0 ≠ 0 which are re-entered as inputs in a new
form-finding problem. Regarding the second option, as it was said in
Section 4, it is interesting to remark that the usual situation is that
matrix D is non-singular due to the reduced number of cables in com-
parison with the number of members in compression of the mesh.
However that may be, it can still happen.
Now the condition number k of matrix D can be computed using Eq.
(6), and the reference value klim is defined, as it is going to be explained
below. If k ≤ klim then matrix D can be considered as well-conditioned
and the iterative TM-FDM proposed in [2] is used to obtain the final
equilibrium shape of the structure. On the contrary, if k > klim then the
values of the force:length ratios of tension and compression members
have to be modified and re-entered as new inputs of the form-finding Fig. 4. Procedure for the computation of klim.
problem iteratively until k ≤ klim. During this process, the value of k can
be used as guide for the designer and iterations are done until a q- solution of the general equation Ax = b as a function of the condition
pattern that leads to k ≤ klim is finally obtained. number. Nonetheless, this criterion is not strictly accurate for every
At this point, a general criterion for the computation of klim is situation and it does not assure the possibility of attaining a higher
needed. degree of accuracy.
In this work, klim has been defined as the condition number for Although a criterion to avoid ill-conditioned matrixes is required,
which a relative change of 1% in the force:length ratios of the pre- there is not a unique way to set it. Such a criterion should not only be
stressing tendons lead to a relative change in any of the coordinates x, y mathematically defined, but it also has to be practicable. It also it also
or z that is less than 1%, and very close to 1%. must allow discriminate situations, so as to discard ill-conditioned
On the basis of this criterion, klim for a given structure is computed matrixes but allowing the obtaining of different equilibrium config-
in the following way (see the flowchart in Fig. 4): once the initial q- urations. The criterion based on klim presented in this work has been
pattern of the form-finding method is defined, small values of q1, …, qnt considered by the authors because it has been found very intuitive,
are chosen for the cables (for instance qc/10) and the corresponding practicable, easy to visualize and with good performance in the worked
equilibrium configuration is computed. The assignation of small values examples.
of force:length ratio for the cables as inputs is because the relative It is interesting to observe that (1) the value of klim of each structure
change in the module of any coordinate of the corresponding equili- is not unique but depends on the q-pattern entered as input by the
brium shape will be lower than 1%. Then both the equilibrium con- designer and that (2) the definition of klim implies the computation of
figurations and the relative change in the coordinates x, y or z corre- the maximum values of the force:length ratios of each cable.
sponding to a relative change of + 1% in the force:length ratios of the
cables is computed (see Fig. 4). In Fig. 4 || || indicates the module of the
vector. If the relative change in all the modules of the coordinates is 5.1.3. Step 3: Iterative form-finding based on TM-FDM
lower than 1%, the values of q1, …, qnt are increased proportionally and Finally, the iterative form-finding procedure based on TM-FDM
the process is repeated until the relative change in any of the coordinate proposed in [1,2] is used for the computation of the final equilibrium
vectors x, y or z is higher than 1% (iteration i). The value of k corre- form. It is important to note that the iterative form-finding may not
sponding to the prior iteration (iteration i-1) is called klim. have a solution due to the non-convergence of the problem. This may be
Authors have not found any criteria in the literature for the de- due to the q-pattern chosen and/or its magnitude [1,2]. Therefore, the
termination of an acceptable value of the condition number related iterative TM-FDM procedure has to be limited to a maximum number of
with the form-finding problem of pin-jointed meshes. In [27], a “rule of iterations in order to avoid infinite loops [1,2], see Fig. 3.
thumb” is proposed for the computation of the significant digits of the

5
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al. Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394

Fig. 5. Pin-jointed network and its corresponding connectivity matrix Cs and force:length ratio vector q. Black nodes indicate fixed nodes (coordinates in m) and grey
lines correspond to cables.

10 right-handed coordinate system is employed (see x and y axes in Fig. 5).

k In this example γ = 4.71 kN/m2 corresponding to the self-weight of
8 a concrete vault (20 cm thickness approx.) is assumed. For the sake of
simplicity, a value of q = q1 for all the elements in compression are
6 considered. Two cables with q = q2 are introduced between nodes 2 – 4
and 3 – 5. Consequently, both matrix CS and vector q need to be
4
modified. Two additional rows are introduced at the end of matrix CS:
[0, 1, 0, −1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0] and [0, 0, 1, 0, −1, 0, 0, 0, 0] (see CS in
2
Fig. 5); the force:length ratios corresponding to the two cables (q2) are
0 also introduced at the end of vector q (see Fig. 5).
0 2 4 6 8 10 Once the force density matrix D is computed as CTQC (see Eq.(7)),
q2 (kN/m) the characteristic polynomial p(λ) of D is computed (see Eq.(8)).

Fig. 6. Condition number (computed using Eq. (6) together with Eqs. (10) and ⎛ 8q1 - q1 - q1 - q1 - q1 ⎞
(11)) of the compression structure with prestressing tendons shown in Fig. 5 as ⎜ - q1 3q1 + q2 0 - q2 0 ⎟
function of q2. D = ⎜ - q1 0 3q1 + q2 0 - q2 ⎟
⎜ - q1 - q2 0 3q1 + q2 0 ⎟
⎜ -q 0 - q2 0 3q1 + q2 ⎟⎠
⎝ 1 (7)

p (λ ) = 540q15 + 720q14q2 + 240q13q22 − 837q14λ − 876q13q2 λ

Fig. 7. Relative percentage change of the ||x||, ||y|| and ||z|| due to a relative
change of 1% in q2 for the structure shown in Fig. 5.
5.2. Detailed example
The design of a simple dome with prestressing tendons is presented
below. The pin-jointed network shown in Fig. 5 has 9 nodes (4 fixed and
5 free) and 16 compression members. Its corresponding connectivity
matrix and the coordinates of the fixed nodes are given in Fig. 5. A
− 212q12q22λ
+ 504q13λ2 + 380q12q2 λ2 + 56q1 q22λ2 − 146q12λ3 − 68q1 q2 λ3 − 4q22λ3
+ 20q1 λ4
+ 4q2 λ4 − λ5
(8)
The characteristic polynomial is collected in the form p
(λ) = a0 + a1λ + … + an−1λn−1 + anλn. It is easy to see that in Eq. (8)
the term a0 is the following:
a0 = 540q15 + 720q14q2 + 240q13q22 (9)
Matrix D is non-singular if a0 ≠ 0, which implies that q2 ≠ −1.5q1
(Condition (1) in Section 4). The following step is the study of the
condition number of D. For the sake of simplicity and without loss of
generality q1 = −1 kN/m has been assumed. The analytical expressions
of both ||D|| and ||D−1|| (2-norms of D and D−1 computed according
Eqs. (4) and (5), respectively) as a function of q2 are shown in Eqs. (10)

6
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al. Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394

q2 = 0 kN/m q2 = 0.25 kN/m q2 = 0.5 kN/m q2 = 0.59 kN/m

zmax = 0.219 m zmax = 0.271 m zmax = 0.361 m zmax = 0.414 m
k = 3.79 k = 3.79 k = 4.35 k = klim = 4.78
(a) (b) (c) (d)
Fig. 8. Different points of view of final equilibrium configurations of compression structures with prestressing tendons. (a) q2 = 0 kN/m; (b) q2 = 0.25 kN/m; (c)
q2 = 0.5 kN/m; (d) q2 = 0.59 kN/m.

(7, 16, 0)

(0, 12, 0) (14, 12, 0)

q = -5 kN/m
q = -35 kN/m
q = -80 kN/m (ribs)
q = qt kN/m (cables)
Fixed node
Extreme node of a cable

(0, 4, 0) (14, 4, 0)

(7, 0, 0)
Fig. 9. Mesh and q-pattern corresponding to the “flower dome”. Coordinates of the fixed nodes in m.

1
∥ D ∥ = Max ⎡ (11 + 41 ), Abs[−3 + 2q2] ⎤
⎣2 ⎦ (10)

Fig. 10. Relative percentage change of the ||x||, ||y|| or ||z|| due to a relative
change of 1% in qt for the structure shown in Fig. 9.
and (11) respectively. In Eqs. (10) and (11) Max[] indicates the nu-
merically largest value of the expressions in brackets and Abs[] the
absolute value.
1 1
∥ D −1∥ = Max ⎡ (11 + 41 ), ⎤
⎢ 40 Abs[−3 + 2q2 ] ⎥ (11)
⎣ ⎦
Considering Eqs. (10) and (11), in Fig. 6 the condition number
k = ||D||⋅||D−1|| has been represented as a function of q2. As can be
seen in Fig. 6, for the value of force:length ratio for which the matrix D
is singular, q2 = 1.5 kN/m, the condition number presents an asymp-
tote. This means that matrix D is not well-conditioned in the vicinity of
this value of q2, so it has to be avoided in the design of the structure.
Now klim is computed according to the algorithm in Fig. 4. Different
equilibrium configurations are computed with q2 ranging between 0
and 10 kN/m, together with the configurations corresponding to a re-
lative change of +1% in the force:length ratios of the tendons of the
structure as it is indicated in Fig. 4. For each configuration, the con-
dition number k and the relative percentage change in the coordinates
x, y or z are computed (see Fig. 4). By doing so, k and the relative
percentage change can be plotted against q2 (see Fig. 7). In the studied
example klim = 4.78 and q2 = 0.59 kN/m (see the arrows in Fig. 7). In

7
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al. Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394

qt = 0 qt = 2.5 kN/m qt = 5 kN/m

zmax = 2.81 m zmax = 3.48 m zmax = 4.86 m
k = 2900.1 k = 2919.6 k = 3070.5
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 11. Equilibrium shapes of “flower dome” with different values of qt for prestressing tendons and with k ≤ klim.

(0, 20, 0) (20, 20, 0)

q = -9 kN/m
q = -14 kN/m
q = -80 kN/m
q = -150 kN/m (ribs)
q = qt kN/m (cables)
q = 1.5 qt kN/m (cables)
Fixed node
Extreme node of a cable

(0, 0, 0) (20, 0, 0)
Fig. 12. Mesh and q-pattern corresponding to the “bettle dome”. Coordinates of fixed nodes in m.

ratio of the cables, the more the maximum height of the resulting final
shape is. It is interesting to remark that for all the configurations re-
presented in Fig. 8, equilibrium conditions at all nodes are fulfilled.
The equilibrium configurations obtained for values of
q2 > 0.59 kN/m are discarded because they do not fulfil conditions (1)
and/or (2).

6. Examples

In order to illustrate the procedure presented in this work a cata-

Fig. 13. Relative percentage change of the ||x||, ||y|| or ||z|| due to a relative
change of 1% in qt for the structure shown in Fig. 12.
Fig. 7, due to the symmetry of the studied structure ||x|| ≈ ||y||, being
in this case the limit condition number governed by ||z||.
Fig. 8 shows some equilibrium configurations corresponding to
q1 = −1 kN/m and for different values of q2. The extreme case q2 = 0
leads to a compression-only structure (see Fig. 8a) with a maximum
height of 0.219 m. The other three cases correspond to compression
structures with prestressing tendons with q2 = 0.25 kN/m,
q2 = 0.5 kN/m and q2 = 0.59 kN/m respectively (note that in these
cases k ≤ klim). As it can be seen in Fig. 8, the bigger the force:length
logue with different compression structures with prestressing tendons
have been developed [28]. Two examples of that catalogue are pre-
sented in this Section. The equilibrium shapes were calculated fol-
lowing the flow-chart shown in Fig. 3. In both cases the self-weight of
the structure is γ = 4.71 kN/m2 and the self-weight of the compression
ribs is λ = 1.41 kN/m (corresponding to concrete ribs with 20 × 30 cm
section approx.). The force:length ratio pattern (value and assignation
of force:length ratios for all the members) was defined following the
suggestions proposed in [2].
6.1. Example 1
This q-pattern is inspired by a geometric form found in nature: a
flower (see Fig. 9). This structure so-called “flower dome” is a

8
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al.
qt = 0
zmax = 4.29 m
k = 1003.3
(a)
Fig. 14. Equilibrium shapes of “beetle dome” with different values of qt for prestressing tendons and with k ≤ klim.
compression-only structure (or a shell) with inner ribs (dashed black
lines in Fig. 9) and six cables (double black lines in Fig. 9). All the ribs
have the same force:length ratio (−80 kN/m). It is assumed that all
cables have a force:length ratio equal to qt. The topological sequence of
the mesh according to TM [6] is ACACACACC.
The value of klim corresponding to the q-pattern shown in Fig. 9 is
3081.4 (see Fig. 10) for which qt = 5.08 kN/m (computed following the
procedure explained in Fig. 4).
Several values of qt have been considered: 0, 2.5 and 5 kN/m cor-
responding to the equilibrium shapes represented in Fig. 11a–c, re-
spectively. In the three reported cases D fulfils Conditions (1) and (2).
As can be seen in Fig. 11, the prestressing tendons are located below the
shell. As in the example in Section 5.2, the higher the value of qt, the
bigger the height of the equilibrium configuration of the “flower dome”
is (see the values of zmax in Fig. 11).
6.2. Example 2
The q-pattern of this example is also inspired by nature: a beetle.
The structure (so called “beetle dome”) has inner ribs (dashed black
lines in Fig. 12) and prestressing tendons (double black and grey lines in
Fig. 12). In this case two groups of cables having a different value of
force:length ratio are considered (see the values of qt in Fig. 12). The
topological sequence of the mesh according to TM [6] is ACACACA.
The value of klim for the q-pattern shown in Fig. 12 is 1226.1 which
corresponds to qt = 1.79 kN/m (see Fig. 13).
In this case two values of qt have been considered: 0 and 1.79 kN/m.
The corresponding equilibrium shapes are represented in Fig. 14a and
b, respectively. It can be noted that the final equilibrium configuration
shown in Fig. 14b would be physically impossible without the in-
troduction of these prestressing tendons.
7. Conclusions
Compression structures such as domes and vaults can be modelled
as pin-jointed networks. The Force Density Method, based on the con-
cept of force:length ratio, can be used to solve the form-finding problem
of these types of networks. Compression structures with prestressing
9
Engineering Structures 197 (2019) 109394
qt = 1.79 kN/m
zmax = 8.98 m
k = 1226.1
(b)
tendons (considered as tension members or cables) are presented in this
work. These types of structures are treated as an intermediate case
between compression-only and cable-strut structures. The introduction
of tension members in shell or compression structures leads to new and
creative equilibrium configurations that are impossible to obtain
without the cables. Nevertheless, the difficulty in solving the form-
finding problem increases. In compression structures (in which all the
members have negative values of q) the force:length ratio matrix is non-
singular and so the equilibrium configuration is easily obtained. On the
other hand, in the case of cable-strut structures (where compression,
negative q, and tension, positive q, members exist) the force density
matrix can be singular or ill-conditioned depending on the q-pattern
considered.
In this work a compact procedure for the form-finding or equili-
brium configurations of compression structures with prestressing ten-
dons has been proposed. It has been proven that this procedure is ap-
plicable to shells with or without inner ribs. The most relevant
conclusion of this work is that matrix D of the compression structure
with prestressing tendons needs to fulfil the following two conditions:
be non-singular and well-conditioned (in that order).
The non-singular condition of the force density matrix can be ana-
lytically studied treating the force:length ratios of the cables as un-
knowns and analyzing the solutions of the characteristic polynomial of
matrix D (eigenvalues). Some relations between the force:length ratio
of the tension members can be enforced in order to ease the problem.
Regarding the second condition, it will be fulfilled if the condition
number of the structure k is lower than a certain value, klim. A criterion
for the estimation of klim has been proposed in this work based on a
relative change of 1% of both, force:length ratios of the cables and the
module of the vectors of coordinates x, y and z for a given q:pattern.
The introduction of prestressing tendons in shells leads to a sig-
nificant increase of the number of possible equilibrium shapes. Creative
final shapes can be obtained using an appropriate combination of cables
location and q-pattern. The proposed method is a new, easy and pro-
grammable form-finding tool that allows the designer to introduce
tension members in shells with or without ribs. Several examples are
presented showing the potentials of the proposed method.
M.A. Fernández-Ruiz, et al.
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