Application of Infrared Thermography for Pedestrian Wind Evaluation
Publication: Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 123, Issue 10
Abstract
This paper describes a new experimental method using infrared thermography for the evaluation of wind impact at pedestrian level. The developed measurement system consists of a heated plate on which building models stand, an infrared video camera for detecting the surface temperature distributions on the heated plate, and a microcomputer for image processing and presentation. Since the heat loss from the heated plate can be related to air flow speeds by the principle of heat convection, the surface temperature pattern is used as an indicator of the wind impact at the pedestrian level. Results have been derived from thermal images around various buildings both on selected points and over entire affected areas that are quantified by the reduced temperature and the overall impact, respectively. The paper presents details of the experimental setup, operational principles, calibration results, application examples, and further thoughts on this technique. At the current stage, the infrared technique is capable of visualizing surface flow fields through color images, quantifying windy zones in terms of temperature variation, and evaluating the overall wind impact by further calculation.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Adrian, R. J.(1991). “Particle-imaging techniques for experimental fluid mechanics.”Annu. Rev. Fluid Mech., 23, 261–304.
2.
Balageas, D., Boscher, D., Déom, A., and Fournier, J.(1991). “Measurement of convective heat-transfer coefficients in wind tunnels using passive and simulated infrared thermography.”La Recherche Aérospatiale, 4, 51–72.
3.
Bellhouse, B. J., and Schultz, D. L.(1966). “Determination of mean and dynamic skin friction, separation and transition in low-speed flow with a thin-film heated element.”J. Fluid Mech., 24, 379–400.
4.
Beranek, W. J.(1984). “Wind environment around single buildings of rectangular shape and wind environment around building configurations.”HERON, Delft, The Netherlands, 29(1), 1–70.
5.
Ettouney, S. M. (1977). “Notes on courtyard aerodynamics.”Proc., 6th Course: Airflow and Bldg. Des., Univ. of Sheffield, U.K.
6.
Goldstein, R. J., and Franchett, M. E.(1988). “Heat transfer from a flat surface to an oblique impinging jet.”J. Heat Transfer, 110, 84–90.
7.
Livesey, F., Inculet, D., Isyumov, N., and Davenport, A. G. (1989). “A scour technique for the evaluation of pedestrian level winds.”Proc., 6th U.S. Nat. Conf. on Wind Engrg., A. Kareem, ed., Wind Engrg. Res. Council, Inc., Houston, Tex., 1, C5-1–C5-11.
8.
Operation manuals for Thermovision;rm 400 series and CM-SOFT, Version 1.1. (1991). Agema Infrared Systems AB, Sweden.
9.
Stathopoulos, T., and Wu, H. (1992). “Knowledge-based strategies for the assessment of pedestrian-level winds.”Proc., ASCE Struct. Congr. X '92, ASCE, New York, N.Y., 368–371.
10.
Uematsu, Y., and Yamada, M. (1991). “Application of infrared thermography to the evaluation of pedestrian-level winds around buildings.” Proc., First Conf. on Experimental Fluid Mech., F. G. Zhuang, ed., Chinese Aerodynamic Res. Soc., Beijing, China, 505–510.
11.
Wiren, B. G. (1975). “A wind tunnel study of the wind velocity in passages between and through buildings.”Proc., Fourth Int. Conf. on Wind Effects on Bldgs. and Struct., N. J. Cook, ed., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 465–475.
12.
Wu, H., and Stathopoulos, T.(1993a). “Wind-tunnel techniques for the assessment of pedestrian-level winds.”J. Engrg. Mech., ASCE, 119(10), 1920–1936.
13.
Wu, H., and Stathopoulos, T. (1993b). “Infrared-thermography technique for pedestrian wind evaluation.”Proc., Third Asia-Pacific Symp. on Wind Engrg., K. M. Lam and Y. K. Chueng, eds., Univ. of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 967–972.
14.
Yamada, M., Uematsu, Y., and Sasaki, R. (1994). “A visual technique for the evaluation of the pedestrian-level wind environment around buildings by using infrared thermography.”Proc., East Eur. Conf. on Wind Engrg., R. Ciesielski et al. eds., Warsaw, Poland, 223–230.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 123 • Issue 10 • October 1997
Pages: 978 - 985
Copyright
Copyright © 1997 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Oct 1, 1997
Published in print: Oct 1997
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.