Aesthetic, environmental and comfort motivations have recently led to an ever wider use of wood and glass in the construction industry. These two materials are no longer used only for building envelopes and finishing works but are increasingly found also in the structural elements of a building. The course deals with wood and glass materials and systems which are not usually covered in the basic courses of "Strength of Materials" and "Structural Engineering", such as three-dimensional trusses and grid structures, glued laminated timber (GLULAM) structures, cross laminated timber (XLAM) structures, laminated glass panels, Insulated Glazing Units, and glass facades. The course attempts to provide the mechanical basis for the understanding of the structural behavior of the systems in point and of the main design principles and practices relevant to them. The seismic behavior of such type of structures is also discussed with some advances in research and design. In particular, connection joints as the main source of ductility are deepened presenting their main characteristics and their implementation on real structures.

After completion of the course, the student is expected: - to have acquired the technical language specific for the subject - to explain the mechanical properties and technological aspects of wood and glass as materials for the construction industry and illustrate pros and cons in the use of such materials to build structural components - to attain notions relating to the behavior of wood and glass structures in seismic areas - to apply the proper methodologies and tools for the design of single wood and glass structural members - to set out the design of a more complex structure, being able to identify the material and the structural typology most suitable for the different cases that can be encountered in the professional activity

Basic knowledge of mathematics, strength of materials and structural engineering (BSc level).

TIMBER STRUCTURES 1. The wood material and its mechanical properties. Structural glued laminated timber (glulam). Fabrication of glulams. Various types of glulam beams and frames. Connections. Design of glulam members (straight beams, tapered and curved beams, columns) and of simple structural systems. Cross laminated timber (CLT) and CLT building systems. 2. Three-dimensional trusses and grids. Structural types, types of nodes, analysis examples, examples of realized projects. 3. Design of timber structures in seismic zones. Connection joints for ductility improvement. Design of timber connections. 4. Fire performance of timber and design principles under fire conditions. 5. Some notions of computational methods for structural analysis; use of commercial codes to analyze simple structures (trusses, beams, frames, etc.). GLASS STRUCTURES 6. Introduction to structural glass (7.5 hours): examples of structural glass elements; production of glass and types of glass elements (monolitic glass, laminated glass, insulated glazing units); mechanical and physical properties; basis of fracture mechanics; effects of surface treatments; materials for glass composites (polimers, adhesives, sealants). 7. Design criteria and different types of structural elements (6 hours): general design principles (structural hierarchy, structural strength, structural redundancy, durability); actions on glass elements; structural classification of glass elements (out-of-plane loaded elements, in-plane loaded elements); types of connections. 8. Analytical and numerical modelling of glass elements (6 hours): monolitic glass elements; laminated glass elements; insulated glazing units. 9. Structural design and verification of glass elements (13 hours): analysis of the glass element strength; analysis of glass element stability (axial compression stability, lateral-torsional buckling, in-plane shear stability); analysis of connections; analysis of post-breakage behavior.

Teaching is organised in theoretical lectures and application lectures, in which design examples for simple structural elements are presented. Besides, each student is asked to carry out an in-depth study on two topics (one about wood and another about glass) among those dealt with in the course, writing a report that will be presented during the oral exam.

- Piazza M., Tomasi R., Modena R., Strutture in legno. Materiale, calcolo e progetto secondo le nuove normative europee., Editore: Hoepli, Anno edizione: 2005, ISBN: 8820335832 - De Angelis, A., Strutture in legno lamellare. Progettazione e calcolo., Editore: DEI, Anno edizione: 2006, ISBN: 8849658422 - Chilton J., Atlante delle strutture reticolari., Editore: Utet, Anno edizione: 2002, ISBN: 88-0205927-3 - Chilton J., Space Grid Structures, Editore: Architectural Press, Anno edizione: 2000, ISBN: 0750632755 - Thelandersson S., Larsen H.J., Timber Engineering, Editore: Wiley, Anno edizione: 2003, ISBN: 0470844698 - Porteous J., Kermani A., Structural Timber Design to Eurocode 5, Editore: Wiley-Blackwell, Anno edizione: 2013, ISBN: 0470675004 - CNR-DT 210/2013: Istruzioni per la Progettazione, l’Esecuzione ed il Controllo di Costruzioni con Elementi Strutturali di Vetro, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR). - Wurm J., Glass Structures: Design and Construction of Self-supporting Skins. Springer, 2007. - Patterson M., Structural Glass Facades and Enclosures. Wiley, 2011.

Slides; Esercizi;

Modalità di esame: Prova orale obbligatoria; Elaborato progettuale individuale;

Exam: Compulsory oral exam; Individual project;

... At the end of the course there will be an oral exam which lasts 0.5-1 h. It consists in: - answering to questions devoted to ascertain the level of knowledge attained by the student on the theoretical aspects and the use of the technical language, - solving simple exercises conceived to assess the ability of the student to apply theories and methods for the design of wood and glass structural elements, - presenting and critically discussing the reports about the in-depth study on the two selected topics, to prove the student’s ability to tackle more complex design tasks.

Gli studenti e le studentesse con disabilità o con Disturbi Specifici di Apprendimento (DSA), oltre alla segnalazione tramite procedura informatizzata, sono invitati a comunicare anche direttamente al/la docente titolare dell'insegnamento, con un preavviso non inferiore ad una settimana dall'avvio della sessione d'esame, gli strumenti compensativi concordati con l'Unità Special Needs, al fine di permettere al/la docente la declinazione più idonea in riferimento alla specifica tipologia di esame.