The structural design of this 6.8 million square foot (approximately 670,000  square meter) residential tower, which was proposed to be the tallest building in the world. This  building was the centerpiece of the world’s largest man-made island, The Palm Island, located  offshore of the Jumeirah Beach coastline in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It rises out of a  lagoon within the central canal of The Palm Island.

In addition to the residential portion of the building, an observation deck was planned at one of  the top floors.

The structural form of Al Burj evolved from the structure of the bamboo plant. The tower’s  footprint is composed of three triangular shapes with curvilinear sides and a hollow circular  interior. The stiff exterior shell with the hollow core results in an extremely efficient structural  system. The sides of the triangular shell are opened up to create three sub-towers. To achieve  cohesive structural behavior between these sub-towers, they are tied together intermittently at six  points using “sky bridges”, or solid floor areas inside the core. These sky bridges also provide  two alternate means of egress for the occupants in the event of an emergency situation.