Shimizu Mega-City Pyramid
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The Shimizu TRY 2004 Mega-City Pyramid is a proposed project for construction of a massive pyramid over Tokyo Bay in Japan. The structure would be 12 times higher than the Great Pyramid at Giza, and would house 750,000 people. If built, it would be the largest man-made structure in Earth's history. The structure would be 2,004 meters (6,575 feet) high and would answer Tokyo's increasing lack of space. The idea partially stems from the fictional architectural marvel of the Tyrell Corporation, appearing several times in the 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner, as a duo of futuristic pyramidal structures.
The proposed structure is so large that it cannot be built with currently available materials, due to their weight. The design relies on the future availability of super-strong lightweight materials based on carbon nanotubes.
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[edit] Construction
Proposed start of construction has not been announced.
The Shimizu Corporation has been dreaming of these plans for almost a decade now and it could someday become a reality. The Shimizu company has constructed great structures such as the Taiwan High Speed Rail, Pakxe Bridge and Shah Amanat International Airport and now they look at a structure over 2,000 meters high.
[edit] Progress
The progress so far is not based on the structure itself, but on how it will work. As research has been conducted on robotics in Japan the progress so far is at best robots slowly carrying loads a few meters and very unsteadily—still falling every now and then.
Scientists in the US are researching algae, on which the city may be powered. While other renewable sources have been researched and used worldwide, the progress thus far slow. Dr. Toshiaki Fuijimori says that within the next decade hopefully people should begin to hear more on this enormous structure.
[edit] Dimensions
Perimeter of the foundation above ground would be 2,000 metres (2,200 yd). Area of the foundation is 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi). Infrastructure is an area of approximately 25 square kilometres (9.7 sq mi). Gross building area is about 88 square kilometres (34 sq mi) of facilities layers:
- Layers 1 to 4: residential, offices, etc.
- Layers 5 to 8: research, leisure, etc.
The height of each layer is 250.5 m (for 8 layers, the pyramid is 2,004 m tall).
The pyramid structure would be composed of 55 smaller pyramids stacked five high. Each of these smaller pyramids would be about the size of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas.
[edit] Usage
The building would be zoned into residential, commercial and leisure areas. 50 km² would be given over to some 240,000 housing units, enough for 750,000 people. Each building would have its own energy resources (sun and wind). About 24 km² would be assigned to offices and commercial facilities intended to employ 800,000 people. The remaining 14 km² would be used for research and leisure purposes.
[edit] Advantages and Disadvantages
Some advantages include that this city would have more rapid mobility, that the city will be better protected from tsunamis, and that it helps solve the high-prices for land in Tokyo. A major weakness in this project is that if one thrust fails the whole structure and 750,000 people will crash dead to the sea. However it is highly probable that in the future a solution to this problem will be found.
Powering the city using non-renewable resources will be impractical as at least 98% of Tokyo's Oil imports goes to electric power, so they could never handle a mega-city pyramid; a renewable source of power is clearly needed. Unfortunately, getting power from the sea is extremely difficult as a tsunami or tidal wave could wipe out any water turbines. Another proposal is to use algae to power the mega city. Solar power and wind power are also options. Even given many advances, the Mega-City Pyramid seems like an impossible job, but the people at Shimizu are confident they can reach their goal of building the greatest man-made structure in history.
[edit] Materials and construction process
First, the pyramid's foundation would be formed by 36 piers made of special concrete.
Because the seismically active Pacific Ring of Fire cuts right through Japan, the external structure of the pyramid would be an open network of megatrusses, supporting struts made from carbon nanotubes to allow the pyramid to stand against and let through high winds, and survive earthquakes and tsunamis.
The trusses would be coated with photovoltaic film to convert sunlight into electricity and help power the city. the city will also be powered by Ponscom or Algi.
Large robots would assemble the truss structure, and air bladders would be used to elevate trusses above the first layer using a construction system proposed by Italian architect Dante Bini. Spheroid nodes at the connections between trusses would provide structural support and serve as transfer points for travelers.
It is planned to be complete by 2110 and a documentary featured it on Discovery's Science Channel.
[edit] Interior traffic and buildings
Transportation within the city would be provided by accelerating walkways, inclined elevators, and a personal rapid transit system where automated pods would travel within the trusses.
Housing and office space would be provided by twenty four or more 30-story high[1] skyscrapers suspended from above and below, and attached to the pyramid's supporting structure with nanotube cables.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Discovery Channel's Extreme Engineering: City in a Pyramid
- Home Page for Bini Systems' proposed pneumatic construction method
