The Artemis program is the start of this new era of space exploration, where NASA aims to develop infrastructure that enables sustained scientific research, exploration, and industrial activity on the Moon. The Tall Lunar Tower is one of the concepts designed to provide power generation and communication, position, navigation, and timing architecture that needs to be established during this era. However, the foundation design is underdeveloped and is critical for transferring loads from the structure to the lunar regolith and for providing stability under microgravity and moonquake loading. Additionally, the lunar environment presents unique challenges for the design process, and only limited information is available on geotechnical design parameters and the seismic hazard posed by shallow moonquakes. This thesis provides a preliminary design of a foundation for a Tall Lunar Tower under microgravity and shallow moonquake loading, within the constraints posed by the extraterrestrial lunar environment, and gives insights into soil-structure interaction and uncertainties in lunar foundation design. An extensive literature review was conducted to identify relevant requirements, boundary conditions, evaluation criteria, and uncertainties. To develop concepts, historical and current foundation designs were investigated and evaluated using a multi-criteria analysis, and the chosen concept was verified using the NEN-1997 and NEN-1998 design standards. The design considers the high cost of transporting material and equipment by leveraging the current capacities of lightweight equipment and using locally produced materials that withstand extreme temperatures and radiation. It was concluded that the soil parameters influence the shear strength and deformation behaviour of the lunar regolith, thereby dictating the required foundation size. However, the limited measurements available from different sites introduce uncertainty into soil behaviour, seismic hazard, and the source of shallow moonquake events. A slab foundation can serve as a prototype for a lunar foundation, given its simple construction, the option to use local materials and limited excavation depth. Small seismic excitations can yield large displacements at the top of the tower, and to achieve stability, a large, shallow foundation is necessary. This results in substantial settlements and an increased risk of rotational failure. To reduce the foundation size, anchored post-tensioning tendons or external wires can recenter the tower, or structural parameters can be adjusted to influence the tip displacement. This thesis has considered the state of the art to perform preliminary design calculations, thereby identifying the research gaps for geotechnical engineering on the lunar surface and outlining paths forward to make lunar colonisation a reality. ... Read more

Decision-making in early-stage design often lacks robust methods for evaluating circularity, resulting in outcomes that may not fully realize their potential for efficiency. This research presents the development of a computational tool or “Intelligent Design Assistant” that employs Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) to deliver real-time assessments of life-cycle performance and material usage for modular designs. By utilizing user-defined, simplified early-stage representations, the tool provides actionable insights into both design and environmental performance. A central point of this approach is the adoption of a graph-based framework where each building module is represented as a node, and its interactions with neighboring modules are captured through connecting edges. This framework not only reflects the intrinsic properties of each module, but it also dynamically evaluates how a module’s characteristics evolve based on its spatial and functional relationships. Although the study focuses on laminated veneer lumber (LVL)—selected for its extensive environmental data—the scalable machine learning model is designed to be applicable to a wide range of construction methods and materials. Through experimental validation, the integration of GNNs has been shown to enhance early design decision-making by providing real-time feedback. The model achieves an accuracy of approximately 85% -90% under conditions similar to the training data. This capability enables designers, clients, and other stakeholders to engage in informed discussions about design modifications and circularity measures well before detailed construction planning begins, thereby promoting more sustainable and circular design practices across the industry. ... Read more

The escalating challenges caused by the climate change, notably floods and heatwaves, highlights the urgent need for robust resilience strategies in infrastructure and urban ecosystems. this research identifies critical gaps in existing methodologies and tools for assessing resilience, particularly during extreme events. Key issues include the absence of specialized tool for facade resilience quantification, limited multi-hazard assessment methodologies and a scarcity of quantitative methods in existing literature. In order to fill these gaps, this study formulates a research question: How can we identify the optimal facade combination that is resilient against heatwaves and floods?

A quantitative approach is employed, integrating an interdisciplinary perspective that encompasses structural design, facade design, climate design and hazard engineering. The methodology involves an extensive literature review, computational simulations, machine learning models, sensitivity analysis and resilience matrix for quantification of flood and heatwaves resilient facade system.

This study fills crucial gaps by offering a framework to assess facade resilience against these hazards. It identifies influential facade parameters and primary hazard stressors, crucial for informed decision-making by designers and engineers. The study culminates in a resilience quantification for multi-hazard assessment, empowering stakeholders to design resilient facade systems tailored to specific environmental contexts. The research findings contribute to advancing knowledge in building facade resilience, offering practical guidance for enhancing resilience in the face of evolving environmental challenges. ... Read more

Temporarily on show in Het Nieuwe Instituut’s Gallery 3 is the futuristic Variable Stiffness chaise longue. Developed by TU Delft’s Robotic Building Lab in collaboration with 3D Robot Printing, it can change shape as the user changes their posture, becoming a recliner or a chair. Due to its unique production process, Variable Stiffness is on one of the 10 innovation stamps, produced in a collaboration between TU Delft and PostNL, which also feature in the exhibition. ... Read more

The project focus on a continuous old wall, which separates the site into two, as the “Spolia”. According to the research on both previous and present urban pattern of the neighborhood, the value of the wall is reflected: it is one of the few remnants of the buried river and a defining character in the sites social manifestation. As a result of interactions with the differing segments of wall, it was renovated again and again and the qualities are variant. The wall acts as connection and separation, nature and built environment, protection and orientation, closure and openness. The intention of the master plan is to create a community oriented block, with the wall connect the newly added public facilities and form a linear landscape run through the whole block, thereby inverting the space along the wall from “back” to accessible “front” to serve the residents living in the neighborhood. The architectural program in the master plan is a public building that consists of a library and a sports center. The meaning of a street corner is also taken into consideration due to the site location. The corner building, works as an entrance of the linear “wall” space. Following the alley along the wall from a street corner, a vivid “front”, represents both a spiritual core of history and cohesion of the neighborhood. ... Read more

The theme of the studio, spolia, is a term from archaeology, which is to place remnants in a new environment. The project started research of a historical river in the city—the Senne in Brussels. The river influenced the urban development of the whole city morphologically and typologically. Interventions regarding the river show how local people treat spolia. The site is also located along the trace of Senne. A typical wall was formed because of the covering the Senne. It indicates the history but also segregates and influences current situations. It serves as such an important role that it should not be easily discarded. It is the spolia for this site. There is a big difference between the two sides of the wall--living and working, nature and the built environment, leisure and production. The urban concept is to reuse the wall to activate the neighbourhood, increase housing and public facilities and remove the productive constructions to the suburban area. The urban regards the wall as the main spolia and returns the centre of the block to the public. The wall frames the public facilities and parks of the community garden. The architectural proposal continues the focus on the wall as the spolia and explores how to treat it on the architectural scale. The project deals with three issues: the urban gestures facing different sides, the combination of the elderly and the children and the reuse of the existing wall. Among these, to reuse and reconfigure the wall intertwine the other two and becomes the main spine of my project. In the architectural scale, the content of spolia can be enriched. The wall is not only a line. It has the thickness; it has structure; it has a function. The wall acts as the perimeter of the project and organizes programs. The two user groups share an event hall and the kitchen. They have visual connections but also have their privacy. The façade intends to remain the solidness of the wall and make the new open and light while ties in with the old. So for the new façade, the frame can open up the courtyard by reducing the mass of the wall. The original texture of the old is remained to highlight the old wall. The façade also uses similar bricks of the old wall but uses different bonding to create a subtle difference between new and old. Especially for the entrance, light and translucent material is applied to the cladding to express an opening of the old. The interior use wood floor and plaster wall to release the heaviness of the texture of the bricks. In conclusion, my project lies partly in the urban solution. It articulates and celebrates an existing wall from urban scale down to materialization. In different stages, the content of the wall is enriched and enhanced.

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Exposition ‘Mutations-Créations / Imprimer le monde’, Centre Pompidou in Paris, March 15 - June 19, 2017. ... Read more