Progress Report - Elements Project

The Elements project is coming along nicely. So far, I’ve completed 30 panels and bolted 24 of them together. I started with what is called the p-block (the right-hand side of the table). Technically, this means p-block elements share a similar characteristic: their outermost electrons are in the p orbital. But artistically, the p-block is just more visually interesting, with greater diversity in colors and states. 

The panels are bolted together using 4-inch threaded hex bolts, 1-inch aluminum spacers, and hex nuts. The drilled holes accommodating the bolts is a bit wider than 1/4 inch - this is important as I discovered when the holes were the exact diameter of the bolt, the panels tended to bend inward in a concave fashion. By widening the diameter of the holes, the panels remain flat relative to each other. I’ve also discovered that mass is going to be an issue…

It would appear this project will get out of hand, with the finished product being 5.2 feet in height by 23.9 feet in width.