Assessment of wind-induced fragility of transmission towersunder quasi-static wind load

Abstract

Overhead power transmission line systems consisting of long-span conductors and high-rise towers are wind-sensitive structures featured with significant structural nonlinearity and fragility under wind hazards. To assess wind-induced structural fragility of a transmission tower, a novel efficient quasi-static approach, which is based on the analytical probability distribution of extreme wind effect in frequency domain and the probabilistic wind-resistant capacity, is developed in the present study. The 90-degree wind direction (perpendicular to conductors), which is always the worst scenario, is considered in this paper. The structural nonlinearity and failure modes are captured using a nonlinear static push-over analysis method, which simulates the failure process of the tower structure with random initial geometric defects. Wind-resistance performance of the tower is quantified based on the principle of energy equivalence. Damage of the tower is classified into three levels including slight damage, severe damage, and collapse. The tower fragility curve, which predicts damage of the tower as a function of wind speed, is presented and discussed.