Typhoon "Davi" left the beautiful Hainan Island in a mess. The white membrane structure buildings, which were usually very prominent against the blue sky, could not escape the clutches of the fierce wind. The membrane structure swimming pool was left with numerous scars. Neither the Boao Forum for Asia establishment conference site nor the Sanya Beauty Crown Culture Exhibition Center escaped this calamity. After the typhoon, these membrane structure buildings successively began repair projects. However, people couldn't help but have doubts about these seemingly light and frail structures: Can membrane structure buildings withstand the impact of typhoons? Is it suitable to develop membrane structure buildings on Hainan Island, which is prone to typhoons?
Membrane structures are also called tensile membrane structures, using architectural fabrics as the main tensile material, combined with supporting components or cables to form a structural system. This structure has become increasingly popular due to its various advantages over traditional architecture.
For ordinary citizens, used to seeing heavy steel and concrete buildings, when they see membrane structure buildings with their rich shapes and soft curves, they often feel refreshed. Wang Weifang, the person in charge of the Sanya "Beauty Crown" Cultural Exhibition Center, said that membrane structures were initially chosen mainly because of their aesthetically pleasing, light, and graceful visual effects, which matched the city positioning of Sanya and the Miss World contest's elegance.
For architects, the inherent advantages of membrane materials also make them favor it. Professor Chen Chaohexi from the Department of Civil Engineering at Hainan University introduced that membrane is a special material made of glass fiber as the body, then covered with a special coating. It's like fabric, very light, can be bent and folded, suitable for large-span and special-shaped buildings. In addition, due to the good light transmission of the membrane, natural light can be maximally utilized during the day, making it very energy-efficient. The membrane surface has no static electricity, so it doesn't attract dust, making it always look clean and new.
Moreover, since the skeleton production and fabric processing of membrane structure buildings are done in factories, it greatly shortens the construction period on-site and reduces the interference between different trades on-site. The Sanya Beauty Crown could be completed within seven months to welcome the 2003 Miss World contest final, largely thanks to the membrane structure.
The seemingly perfect membrane structure building appears to have no disadvantages other than high costs, but an unprecedented strong typhoon has shaken people's confidence in it. Is the typhoon the biggest "enemy" of membrane structure buildings? Looking at the aftermath of the Boao Forum for Asia establishment conference site after the typhoon, people worried for the first time about the fate of membrane structure buildings in Hainan, fearing that they might be more showy than useful.
Under natural conditions, water and wind generally threaten buildings. There are almost no problems with waterproofing for membranes, so wind is indeed the biggest "enemy" of membrane structure buildings. However, membrane manufacturing technology has matured, and regular membranes are usually windproof, with varying wind resistance coefficients depending on their design. From a technical capability perspective, it is entirely possible to manufacture membranes that can withstand strong typhoons.
Since membrane structure buildings are not powerless against typhoons, why did they suffer severe damage in this typhoon? Relevant experts explained that apart from the unusually powerful typhoon, the lack of wind prevention awareness and experience were two important factors.
Hainan has not encountered strong typhoons in recent years, and membrane materials designed for higher wind resistance handled general tropical cyclones effortlessly. Since the problem had never been exposed, relevant parties relaxed their vigilance and failed to timely formulate wind prevention measures, leaving them helpless when "Davi" struck, only able to watch as the membrane was torn apart.
The Sanya "Beauty Crown" Cultural Exhibition Center used imported organic bio-membranes, with a wind resistance rating of level 13, costing over a thousand yuan per square meter, making its total cost 30% higher than general buildings of equal area. During the typhoon "Davi", the main body of the Beauty Crown remained unscathed, and the internal basic facilities were well-preserved; only about one-fifth of the crown-top membrane was torn.
The center's responsible person explained that the crown-top damage was mainly due to fragments from the crown-top light bulbs cutting open the membrane, allowing the strong wind to take advantage of the weakness and increase the tear area. Overall, the membrane performed relatively satisfactorily during this typhoon. "We didn't consider the situation where light bulb fragments would cut the membrane before, causing this loss. In the future, we will add protective covers outside the crown-top light bulbs to prevent similar situations from happening again," stated Wang Weifang, the center's responsible person.
Regarding whether Hainan Island is suitable for constructing membrane structure buildings, Professor Chen Chaohexi added further: "Japan and South Korea are also island and peninsula countries, and they also experience strong typhoons, but many large venues in their countries use membrane structures. As long as wind-resistant membrane materials are used and related preventive measures are taken, Hainan's membrane structures may not be unable to withstand strong typhoons."
Relevant personnel indicated that although membrane structure buildings can technically resist strong typhoons without issue, people's concerns can be temporarily set aside, but developing membrane structure buildings under Hainan's unique geographical conditions still requires careful consideration.
Firstly, the wind resistance rating of membranes varies, and so do their prices. Choosing high-wind-resistance-rated membrane materials is the first step to ensuring safety in Hainan, which is prone to typhoons. However, high wind resistance comes with high prices, so the cost of adopting membrane structure buildings must be considered. Secondly, the different shapes of membrane structure buildings affect their wind resistance capabilities. Membrane structure buildings can rely on steel skeletons for support or be tensioned by cable systems to create various spatial surfaces, so people expect extraordinary shapes of membrane structures to express certain meanings or themes. However, architectural art must depend on science to have vitality, and one cannot blindly pursue novelty and uniqueness. Under the same conditions, the wind resistance of open-type membrane structures is less than that of closed-type membrane structures. Therefore, constructing semi-open membrane structures for shading purposes in coastal areas, parks, and other tourist spots should be approached cautiously.
Experts pointed out that architecture is a silent language and also a cultural sedimentation. The rich information containing cultural connotations and regional characteristics revealed by it cannot be comprehensively summarized by mere membrane structure buildings.