Downburst versus boundary layer induced wind loads for tall buildings

Jongdae Kim,Horia Hangan,T.C. Eric Ho 한국풍공학회 2007 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.10 No.5

Downbursts are transient phenomena that produce wind profiles that are distinctly different from synoptic boundary layers. Wind field data from Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations of isolated downburst-like impinging jets, are used to investigate structural loads of tall buildings due to these high intensity winds. The base shear forces and base moments of tall buildings of heights between 120 and 250 m produced by downburst winds of various scales are compared with the forces from the equivalent boundary layer gust winds, with matched 10-metre wind velocity. The wind profiles are mainly functions of the size of the downburst and the radial distance from the centre of the storm. Wind forces due to various downburst profiles are investigated by placing the building at different locations relative to the storm center as well as varying the size of the downburst. Overall it is found that downbursts larger than approx. 2,000 m in diameter might produce governing design wind loads above those from corresponding boundary layer winds for tall buildings.

Pressure distribution and aerodynamic forces on stationary box bridge sections

Ricciardelli, Francesco,Hangan, Horia Techno-Press 2001 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.4 No.5

Simultaneous pressure and force measurements have been conducted on a stationary box deck section model for two configurations (namely without and with New Jersey traffic barriers) at various angles of incidence. The mean and fluctuating aerodynamic coefficients and pressure coefficients were derived, together with their spectra and with the coherence functions between the pressures and the total aerodynamic forces. The mean aerodynamic coefficients derived from force measurements are first compared with those derived from the integration of the pressures on the deck surface. Correlation between forces and local pressures are determined in order to gain insight on the wind excitation mechanism. The influence of the angle of incidence on the pressure distribution and on the fluctuating forces is also analysed. It is evidenced how particular deck section areas are more responsible for the aerodynamic excitation of the deck.

Downburst versus boundary layer induced wind loads for tall buildings

Kim, Jongdae,Hangan, Horia,Eric Ho, T.C. Techno-Press 2007 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.10 No.5

Downbursts are transient phenomena that produce wind profiles that are distinctly different from synoptic boundary layers. Wind field data from Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations of isolated downburst-like impinging jets, are used to investigate structural loads of tall buildings due to these high intensity winds. The base shear forces and base moments of tall buildings of heights between 120 and 250 m produced by downburst winds of various scales are compared with the forces from the equivalent boundary layer gust winds, with matched 10-metre wind velocity. The wind profiles are mainly functions of the size of the downburst and the radial distance from the centre of the storm. Wind forces due to various downburst profiles are investigated by placing the building at different locations relative to the storm center as well as varying the size of the downburst. Overall it is found that downbursts larger than approx. 2,000 m in diameter might produce governing design wind loads above those from corresponding boundary layer winds for tall buildings.

Experimental study of the loads induced by a large-scale tornado simulation on a HAWT model

Juan P. Lopez,Horia Hangan,Ashraf El Damatty 한국풍공학회 2021 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.33 No.6

As wind turbine rotors increase, the overall loads and dynamic response become an important issue. This problem is augmented by the exposure of wind turbines to severe atmospheric events with unconventional flows such as tornadoes, which need specific designs not included in standards and codes at present. An experimental study was conducted to analyze the loads induced by a tornado-like vortex (TLV) on horizontal-axis wind turbines (HAWT). A large-scale tornado simulation developed in The Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Dome at Western University in Canada, the so-called Mode B Tornado, was employed as the TLV flow acting on a rigid wind turbine model under two rotor operational conditions (idling and parked) for five radial distances. It was observed that the overall forces and moments depend on the location and orientation of the wind turbine system with respect to the tornado vortex centre, as TLV are three-dimensional flows with velocity gradients in the radial, vertical, and tangential direction. The mean bending moment at the tower base was the most important in terms of magnitude and variation in relation to the position of the HAWT with respect to the core radius of the tornado, and it was highly dependent on the rotor Tip Speed Ratio (TSR).

Comparison of aerodynamic loading of a high-rise building subjected to boundary layer and tornadic winds

Arash Ashrafi,Jubayer Chowdhury,Horia Hangan 한국풍공학회 2022 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.34 No.5

Tornado-induced damages to high-rise buildings and low-rise buildings are quite different in nature. Tornado losses to high-rise buildings are generally associated with building envelope failures while tornado-induced damages to low-rise buildings are usually associated with structural or large component failures such as complete collapses, or roofs being torn off. While studies of tornado-induced structural damages tend to focus mainly on low-rise residential buildings, transmission towers, or nuclear power plants, the current rapid expansion of city centers and development of large-scale building complexes increases the risk of tornadoes impacting tall buildings. It is, therefore, important to determine how tornado-induced load affects tall buildings compared with those based on synoptic boundary layer winds. The present study applies an experimentally simulated tornado wind field to the Commonwealth Advisory Aeronautical Research Council (CAARC) building and estimates and compares its pressure coefficient effects against the Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL) flow field. Simulations are performed at the Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Dome which is capable of generating both ABL and tornadic winds. A model of the CAARC building at a scale of 1:200 for both ABL and tornado flows was built and equipped with pressure taps. Mean and peak surface pressures for TLV flow are reported and compared with the ABL induced wind for different time-averaging. By following a compatible definition of the pressure coefficients for TLV and ABL fields, the resulting TLV pressure field presents a similar trend to the ABL case. Also, the results show that, for the high-rise building model, the mean and 3-sec peak pressures are larger for the ABL case compared to the TLV case. These results provide a way forward for the code implementation of tornado-induced pressures on high-rise buildings.

Aerodynamic loading of a typical low-rise building for an experimental stationary and non-Gaussian impinging jet

Chowdhury Jubayer,Djordje Romanic,Horia Hangan 한국풍공학회 2019 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.28 No.5

Non-synoptic winds have distinctive statistical properties compared to synoptic winds and can produce different wind loads on buildings and structures. The current study uses the new capabilities of the WindEEE Dome at Western University to replicate a stationary non-Gaussian wind event recorded at the Port of La Spezia in Italy. These stationary non-Gaussian wind events are also known as intermediate wind events as they differ from non-stationary non-Gaussian events (e.g., downbursts) as well as stationary Gaussian events (e.g., atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) flows). In the present study, the wind loads on a typical low-rise building are investigated for an intermediate wind event reproduced using a continuous radial impinging jet (IJ) at the WindEEE Dome. For the same building model, differences in wind loads between ABL and IJ are also examined. Wind loads on different surface zones on the building, as defined in the ASCE code for design loads, are also calculated and compared with the code.

Surface pressure measurements in translating tornado-like vortices

Aya Kassab,Chowdhury Jubayer,Arash Ashrafi,Horia Hangan 한국풍공학회 2021 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.33 No.6

High spatial and temporal surface pressure measurements were carried out in the state-of-the-art tornado simulator, the Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Dome, to explore the characteristics of stationary and translating tornado-like vortices (TLV) for a wide range of swirl ratios (S=0.21 to 1.03). The translational speed of the TLV and the surface roughness were varied to examine their effects on tornado ground pressures, wandering, and vortex structure. It was found that wandering is more pronounced at low swirl ratios and has a substantial effect on the peak pressure magnitude for stationary TLV (error percentage ≤ 35%). A new method for removing wandering was proposed which is applicable for a wide range of swirl ratios. For translating TLV, the near-surface part lagged behind the top of the vortex, resulting in a tilt of the tornado vertical axis at higher translating speeds. Also, a veering motion of the tornado base towards the left of the direction of the translation was observed. Wandering was less pronounced for higher translation speeds. Increasing the surface roughness caused an analogous effect as lowering the swirl ratio.

Dynamic characteristics of transmission line conductors and behaviour under turbulent downburst loading

Darwish, Mohamed M.,El Damatty, Ashraf A.,Hangan, Horia Techno-Press 2010 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.13 No.4

During the past decade, many electrical transmission tower structures have failed during downburst events. This study is a part of a research program aimed to understand the behaviour of transmission lines under such localized wind events. The present study focuses on the assessment of the dynamic behaviour of the line conductors under downburst loading. A non-linear numerical model, accounting for large deformations and the effect of pretension loading, is developed and used to predict the natural frequencies and mode shapes of conductors at various loading stages. A turbulence signal is extracted from a set of full-scale data. It is added to the mean component of the downburst wind field previously evaluated from a CFD analysis. Dynamic analysis is performed using various downburst configurations. The study reveals that the response is affected by the background component, while the resonant component turns to be negligible due large aerodynamic damping of the conductors.

Dynamic characteristics of transmission line conductors and behaviour under turbulent downburst loading

Mohamed M. Darwish,Ashraf A. El Damatty,Horia Hangan 한국풍공학회 2010 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.13 No.4

During the past decade, many electrical transmission tower structures have failed during downburst events. This study is a part of a research program aimed to understand the behaviour of transmission lines under such localized wind events. The present study focuses on the assessment of the dynamic behaviour of the line conductors under downburst loading. A non-linear numerical model, accounting for large deformations and the effect of pretension loading, is developed and used to predict the natural frequencies and mode shapes of conductors at various loading stages. A turbulence signal is extracted from a set of full-scale data. It is added to the mean component of the downburst wind field previously evaluated from a CFD analysis. Dynamic analysis is performed using various downburst configurations. The study reveals that the response is affected by the background component, while the resonant component turns to be negligible due large aerodynamic damping of the conductors.

Aeroelastic testing of a self-supported transmission tower under laboratory simulated tornado-like vortices

Nima Ezami,Ashraf El Damatty,Ahmed Hamada,Horia Hangan 한국풍공학회 2022 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.34 No.2

The current study investigates the dynamic effects in the tornado-structure response of an aeroelastic self-supported lattice transmission tower model tested under laboratory simulated tornado-like vortices. The aeroelastic model is designed for a geometric scale of 1:65 and tested under scaled down tornadoes in the Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Research Institute. The simulated tornadoes have a similar length scale of 1:65 compared to the full-scale. An extensive experimental parametric study is conducted by offsetting the stationary tornado center with respect to the aeroelastic model. Such aeroelastic testing of a transmission tower under laboratory tornadoes is not reported in the literature. A multiaxial load cell is mounted underneath the base plate to measure the base shear forces and overturning moments applied to the model in three perpendicular directions. A three-axis accelerometer is mounted at the level of the second cross-arm to measure response accelerations to evaluate the natural frequencies through a free-vibration test. Radial, tangential, and axial velocity components of the tornado wind field are measured using cobra probes. Sensitivity analyses are conducted to assess the variation of the structural dynamic response associated with the location of the tornado relative to the lattice transmission tower. Three different layouts representing the change in the orientation of the tower model relative to the components of the tornado-induced loads are considered. The structural responses of the aeroelastic model in terms of base shear forces, overturning moments, and lateral accelerations are measured. The results are utilized to understand the dynamic response of self-supported transmission towers to the tornado-induced loads.