Writing

An overview of published and self-published work, last updated 04 Sept 2024. Header image: book of proceedings from IASS 2018, hosted at MIT.

Academic publications

Google Scholar | ResearchGate | ORCID | Publications by project are also included within each project page.

Journal articles

Smith, Margaret S.I., Demi Fang, Caitlin Mueller, and Josephine Carstensen. “Reducing embodied carbon with material optimization in structural engineering practice: Perceived barriers and opportunities.” Journal of Building Engineering: 109943. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2024.109943.
Fang, Demi, Nathan Brown, Catherine De Wolf, and Caitlin Mueller. “Reducing Embodied Carbon in Structural Systems: A Review of Early-Stage Design Strategies.” Journal of Building Engineering 76 (October 1, 2023): 107054. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2023.107054.
Fang, Demi L., and Caitlin Mueller. 2021. “Mortise-and-tenon joinery for modern timber construction: Quantifying the embodied carbon of an alternative structural connection.” Architecture, Structures and Construction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44150-021-00018-5.
Fang, Demi L., Rebecca K. Napolitano, Tim L. Michiels, and Sigrid M. Adriaenssens. 2018. “Assessing the Stability of Unreinforced Masonry Arches and Vaults: A Comparison of Analytical and Numerical Strategies.” International Journal of Architectural Heritage, 13 (5): 648-662. https://doi.org/10.1080/15583058.2018.1463413.

Conference articles

Fang, Demi, Peter Wang, Sophia V. Kuhn, Michael A. Kraus, and Caitlin Mueller. “Trans-Typology Design Space Exploration: Using Gradients to Inform Decision-Making in the Design of Spanning Structures.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Zurich, Switzerland, 2024. https://app.iass2024.org/files/IASS_2024_Paper_613.pdf.
Fang, Demi, Sophia V. Kuhn, Walter Kaufmann, Michael A. Kraus, and Caitlin Mueller. 2023. “Quantifying the influence of continuous and discrete design decisions using sensitivities.” In Advances in Architectural Geometry 2023. Stuttgart, Germany. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111162683-031.
Fang, Demi, Juliana Berglund-Brown, Dylan Iwakuni, and Caitlin Mueller. 2023. “Carbon and craft: Learning from the deconstruction, relocation, and reuse of a traditional Japanese house’s timber structure.” In Journal of Physics: Conference Series. Lausanne, Switzerland.
Fang, Demi, and Caitlin Mueller. 2021. “Flow-Informed Topology Design: Evaluating the Conformity of Structural Topologies with Vector Fields.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Surrey, UK.
Devin, Austin F, Masaaki Miki, Demi Fang, Jonathan Baranowski, Jingwen Wang, and William F Baker. 2019. “Superposed Functions as Airy Stress Functions for Form-Finding of Funicular Shell Structures.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Barcelona, Spain.
Fang, Demi, Caitlin Mueller, Jan Brütting, Corentin Fivet, and Julieta Moradei. 2019. “Rotational Stiffness in Timber Joinery Connections: Analytical and Experimental Characterizations of the Nuki Joint.” In Structures and Architecture: Bridging the Gap and Crossing Borders, edited by Paulo J.S. Cruz, 229–36. Lisbon, Portugal: CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781315229126-28.
Fang, Demi, Alpha Arsano, Nathan Brown, Christoph Reinhart, and Caitlin Mueller. 2019. “Design Space Exploration for High-Performance Greenhouse Design.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Barcelona, Spain.
Fang, Demi, Julieta Moradei, Jan Brütting, Aliz Fischer, Daniel K Landez, Benshun Shao, Nick Sherrow-Groves, Corentin Fivet, and Caitlin Mueller. 2019. “Modern Timber Design Approaches for Traditional Japanese Architecture: Analytical, Experimental, and Numerical Approaches for the Nuki Joint.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Barcelona, Spain.
Fang, Demi, and Caitlin Mueller. 2018. “Joinery Connections in Timber Frames: Analytical and Experimental Explorations of Structural Behavior.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Cambridge, MA, USA.
Fang, Demi, Sigrid Adriaenssens, Hannah V. Bands, and Edward M. Segal. 2015. “The Digital Engineering Classroom: Collaborative Structural Design Space and Supplementary Educational Material.” In Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium. Amsterdam.

Dissertation and theses

Fang, Demi. 2024. “System-level design of low-carbon structures.” PhD in Building Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Fang, Demi. 2024. “Informing decision-making in single-objective, mixed-variable design problems.” S.M. in Computational Science and Engineering, Cambridge, MA, USA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Fang, Demi. 2020. “Timber Joinery in Modern Construction: Mechanical Behavior of Wood-Wood Connections.” S.M. in Building Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. https://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/127868.
Fang, Demi. 2017. “Assessing the Stability of Unreinforced Masonry Arches and Vaults: A Comparison of Analytical and Numerical Strategies.” Bachelor’s thesis, Princeton University.