ZEMCH 2015 - International Conference Proceedings | Page 578

door and indoor parameters: the panels change the geometric characteristics and the thermal
insulating layers in relation to orientation and internal distribution of the building, to best meet
performance requirements. Hence, this new parametric architectural design allows to control all
the factors to be taken in account, offering a greater freedom of form generation in the production process into industry and design world.
The research conducted in the field of tessellation of the façade surface led to the design of a grid
structure composed of hexagonal cells. This geometric shape, widely present in nature, reveals
a great potential for the modulation of the façade surfaces: it allows to obtain a surface tiling
corresponding to the geometric optimization of the space, according to the principle of the closest packing (Gauss 1831). The creation process of natural structures is governed by this principle
representing the requirements of minimum energy, consisting in partitioning a space with the
optimized subdivision and combination of complementary geometries.
Considering the infinite partitioning systems, circle and sphere represent the most economical
geometrical shapes for the optimization of the two-dimensional and three-dimensional space,
but do not correspond to the best closest packing configuration. The closest packing with the
highest density is found in the partitioning of a surface into regular array of repeated identical
hexagons (Conway, Sloane 1993). The most common and “sublime” example of closest packing
appears in the honeycomb produced by bees: “this system, a plan of regular hexagons, permits
to stock the greatest amount of ho ney with the least amount of beeswax”, with the minimum
amount of necessary energy exerted in construction (Pearce 1990).

Figure 1: Examples of hexagonal shapes in nature: structure of the pollen grains, flies eye tissue, reptiles’ skin and honeycomb produced by the bees
Indeed, a hexagonal mesh allows for the modelling of surfaces with a higher degree of deformability and curvature, in order to reach an innovative envelope adaptable to the existing building
geometry. The innumerable formal possibilities offered by the proposed hexagonal texture for
the tessellation of the second skin can also be explored from the analytical point of view, through
the creation of mechanical and thermal digital models.
The computer is used to search the best state within a model and to define the optimized architectural solution in relation to the simulation of the model’s response to strains and performances. The final geometrical pattern of the innovative envelope system is achieved through the
experimentation of different optimization methods, in order to minimize the size of structural
members and to resolve the perfect thinness of the thermal insulation layer (Burry, Burry 2010).
4. 2 Innovative materials
Based on the above-mentioned bio-mimetic approach, the project aims optimizing the exploitation of innovative sustainable materials and technologies to develop a continuous envelope system with high performances, by using a new class of materials (AAM), obtained through the reuse
of industrial ceramic waste. In particular, the innovative solution is characterized by the use of

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ZEMCH 2015 | International Conference | Bari - Lecce, Italy