Modular casted joint technology for roundwood truss structures

Connection design in roundwood with modified bonded-in rods and wood-fiber composite molded connectors

Timber structures and buildings made from sustainable forestry might be the solution to today’s ecological challenges when their renewable materials are locally processed with low energy consumption in production. The current market shows a dominance of rectangular cross-sections in engineered timber solutions. Roundwood, a traditional material in the past, is no longer common due to a lack of applications in modern structures, lost knowledge in handcraft skills and the high costs of digital manufacturing. To overcome restrictions in joint technologies and to increase the usability of roundwood in modern constructions, a new joining technology for modular trusses has been developed and adapted to the preferences of structural roundwood.


Objectives

  • Material-appropriate load transfer in the round wood parallel to grain,
  • Easy assembling and disassembling,
  • Large variety of shapes with simple production processes,
  • High process reliability and service life.

Methods

  • Study of connections and assembly technologies,
  • Further development of previous research work on glued-in rods and cast-in threaded rods in variable climate conditions (CTAConnection),
  • Geometric joint design and connection area,
  • Structural analysis of the joints and aligned members,
  • Parametric design, analysis and construction of a truss structure,
  • Design and manufacturing of the mold,
  • Prototype casting.


Stats

Research team:

Dr. Eng. Tarick Chahade, M. Eng. Philipp Schäfer, Prof. Dr. Kay-Uwe Schober (1)
Dipl.-Ing. Nicole Mehlhase, Michaela Götze, Dipl.-Ing. Jens Garlin (2)
M. Sc. Mike Oppel (3)

(1)  Hochschule Mainz, Forschungsgruppe Holz und Kunststoffe
(2)  Modell- und Formenbau Sachsen-Anhalt GmbH
(3)  Sachverständigen-Ingenieurbüro Oppel


Duration:     October 2019 – June 2022
Budget:        650,000 €
Contact:       Prof. Dr. Kay-Uwe Schober

Parts of the research were funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy according to a decision of the German Federal Parliament. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the funding agency.