Baháʼí Temple of South America, Chile

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Steel and Concrete Structure

Josef Gartner GmbH, a German customer of Dlubal Software, was given the job of planning, design, and construction of the entire structure above the foundation.

Structure

The shape of the temple resembles a nine‑petaled blossom of a lotus flower. The building has a diameter of about 34 m (111.5 ft) and a height of 30 m (98.4 ft). The substructure consists of a two-story concrete structure and a flat footing.

As the site is placed in a Chilean region with a high seismic risk, it was necessary to uncouple the structure horizontally from the ground with regard to vibrations. That is why a total of ten friction pendulum bearings were arranged between the concrete columns and the second intermediate ceiling.

The steel supporting structure is a kind of space frame with an upper and lower chord layer consisting of rectangular cross‑sections as well as round pipe diagonals serving as connecting elements.

The nine petals, which are identical in construction, close with their leaf apices at the maximum point, forming a light dome (oculus). The structural skeleton is formed, as with real plant petals, by an interior framework, consisting of round pipes with thicker section walls of d = 323.9 mm (12.7 in).

First, the building was modeled using the Rhinoceros design software. Then, the complete 3D model was transferred to RFEM and RSTAB and optimized in close cooperation with the architect.

Finally, Gartner calculated the steel structure in RFEM and RSTAB considering the impact of earthquakes.