Pendulum impact tests on pedestals
Table of contents
Project data
| Titel | Title Pendelschlagversuche an Postamenten | Pendulum impact tests on pedestals Auftraggeber | Client Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden Zeitraum | Period 03.2010 Planer/Statiker | Planer/Structural Engineer Dr.-Ing. Rainer Kless, Ingenieurbüro Kless Müller GmbH Fachberatung | Specialist Advice Prof. em. Dr.-Ing. Peter Ruge Leiter | Project Manager Dr.-Ing. Torsten Hampel Durchführung | Project Executors Tino Jänke, Mike Patricny, Bernd Wehner, Heiko Wachtel |
Report in the yearbook 2010
Pendulum impact tests on postaments
After renovation and reconstruction, the new Albertinum has been presenting art from the Romantic period to the present in the Galerie Neue Meister and the Sculpture Collection since June 20, 2010. For the postaments of the sculpture collection, it should be proven that they cannot be knocked over in case of an involuntary jostling by people. A conceivable scenario would be if, for example, a visitor were to suffer a fainting spell.
The proof of stability was to be provided by a pendulum impact test based on the standard for testing flat glass. The boundary conditions of the test, such as the drop height and the drop weight, were determined in close cooperation with the structural engineer Dr. Kless and the expert consultant Prof. Ruge. Glass is stressed by an elastic impact with a tire-buffered weight, but the impact of a human being against a sculpture base is only inadequately represented by this. Instead, the drop weight was replaced by a 50 kg sandbag, which allowed a plastic impact to be simulated.
The mass of the pendulum (i.e., the sandbag) was determined to the nearest gram using a calibrated balance. During the experiment, the acceleration of the postament was recorded with an accelerometer. From this, it was possible to conclude how much energy was introduced into the postament at each point in time by the impact. In addition, the tilt angle was recorded with an inclinometer that provided 5000 readings per second. This allows us to determine when the pedestal reaches a critical tilt angle before it falls over. In parallel with these two measurements, the tests were documented with a high-speed camera at 600 frames per second.
A total of 20 tests were performed on one pedestal. The repeated tilting movement had resulted in minor damage only in the contact area, but this did not restrict the serviceability of the component and was completely repairable. This is a very good result considering that this stress, which was simulated 20 times, will probably occur only once during the service life of the post. In addition, based on the tests, it was possible to make design changes so that the postaments now installed in the Albertinum can quite safely withstand a plastic impact.