Static analysis of the reinforced concrete pavement of the Gatti wool spinning mill of the Pier Luigi Nervi system
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55287/22275398_2026_58_67Keywords:
Pier Luigi Nervi, «poet of reinforced concrete», Gatti factory, architectural and construction bionics, isostatic diagram, stress-strain state, reinforced concrete coffered floors, finite element model.Abstract
Floors can be flat and beamless, flat and supported by column capitals, beamed, or coffered. These solutions are widely discussed in the literature. In addition, there are designs based on natural structural principles. One such solution is the roof of the Gatti wool mill in Rome, designed by the Italian engineer Pier Luigi Nervi. At first glance, one might say that this roof is complex, both in design and construction. The question arises: why did the engineer decide to construct the structure in this manner? Nervi worked during the reign of the National Fascist Party under Baron Mussolini. This regime resulted in an embargo prohibiting Western countries from trading with Italy, leading to a severe shortage and high costs of building materials unavailable in Italy. These materials include steel and wood. Steel is needed for reinforcing reinforced concrete, and wood for removable formwork. Is it possible to construct reinforced concrete using a minimal amount of metal and without wooden formwork? It's possible, using natural principles of force distribution and permanent formwork, as P.L. Nervi concluded.
This article examines the stress-strain state of a finite element model created in the SCAD computing system for the roof structure of the Gatti wool spinning mill. The main roof beams are curved beams supported by column capitals. Their geometry in plan fully corresponds to the isostatic tensile stress diagram acting on the lower surface of the slab without rib reinforcement. The original role of the straight and oval beams was to form the ribs of the permanent formwork caissons made of reinforced cement. In the roof, these elements improve the interaction between the ribs and flanges of the main T-beams and also act as secondary beams. Minor tensile stresses arise in the lower zone of the slab, allowing for cost-effective reinforcement.
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