Tornado-Induced Wind Loads on a Low-Rise Building
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VIEW THE REPLYPublication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 136, Issue 1
Abstract
Current design wind loads for buildings and other structures are based upon model tests in low-speed boundary-layer wind tunnels that generate straight-line winds. Winds resulting from tornadoes that can occur during extreme weather events such as thunderstorms or hurricanes differ greatly from conventionally conceived atmospheric boundary-layer winds. This paper presents transient wind loads on a one-story, gable-roofed building in a laboratory-simulated tornado and compares them with the provisions of building standards. Tornadoes were simulated in smooth, open terrain with vortex core diameters from roughly five to twelve times the plan dimension of the building model (0.46 to 1.06 m). A 1:100 scale model of a building with dimensions of and gable roof angle of 35° was used for this study. Comparisons of peak loads measured in this study showed that tornado-like vortices can generate load coefficients greater than those prescribed by ASCE 7-05 for straight-line wind over open terrain. For lateral forces, these coefficients were found to be as much as 50% larger than the standard provisions. Vertical uplift coefficients were found to be two to three times the provisions most likely due to the effect of a large negative static pressure generated at the core of the vortex.
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Acknowledgments
The writers acknowledge the support of the National Science Foundation (Grant No. NSFCMS 0220006), the work of Bill Rickard and numerous undergraduate students from the ISU Aerospace Engineering Department who contributed to this project. The writers also acknowledge the extensive and insightful comments from the reviewers that helped to improve the paper.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 136 • Issue 1 • January 2010
Pages: 106 - 116
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 29, 2008
Accepted: Jul 31, 2009
Published online: Aug 6, 2009
Published in print: Jan 2010
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