An experimental analysis of the effect of wind load on the stability of a container crane

Abstract

This study was conducted to analyze the effects of wind loads on the stability of a 50-ton container crane using wind tunnel testing. The experiments were performed in order to furnish designers with data that can be used in the design of a container crane that is wind resistant, assuming an applied wind load of 75 m/s velocity. Data acquisition conditions for this experiment were established in accordance with similarity to a reduced-scale model. The scale of the container crane model, wind speed and time were selected as 1/200, 1/13.3, and 1/15, respectively, and the experiment was conducted using an Eiffel type atmospheric boundary-layer wind tunnel having a 11.52 m2 cross-sectional area. All directional drag and overturning moment coefficients were investigated and uplift forces due to wind load at each supporting point were analyzed.