Buildings with ETFE foils: A review on material properties, architectural performance and structural behavior

Buildings with ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) foils have attracted considerable attention due to excellent material properties, good architectural performance and structural behavior in comparison with glass structures. Generally, analyzing overall performance of ETFE structures is an interdisciplinary subject in terms of active control, environmental performance and sustainability. To identify typical and essential features of ETFE structures, this paper reviews and compares available theoretical, experimental and numerical studies on material properties of ETFE foils, architectural performance and structural behavior of ETFE structures. The achievements and gaps of the use of ETFE foils as building materials for public buildings are summarized and concluded. Moreover, reasonable recommendations on performance enhancement of ETFE buildings are made for future study.