Internal and external pressure and its non-Gaussian characteristics of long-span thin-walled domes

Abstract

Understanding the characteristics of internal and external pressures on structures is important for structural design. This paper has experimentally observed internal and external pressures on long-span domes and investigated their non-Gaussian characteristics. Wind tunnel tests on internal and external pressure measurements for a single dome and two neighboring domes were performed. The distribution, non-Gaussian characteristics, and non-Gaussian peak factor of the internal and external wind pressure on the single dome were analyzed. After the results were validated, the distribution, non-Gaussian characteristics, and non-Gaussian peak factor of the internal and external wind pressure on the two neighboring domes under different wind attack angles (interference effect) were discussed. The results show that the characteristics of internal pressures on the single dome and the two neighboring domes are different from that of external pressures, and both the internal and external pressure show remarkable non-Gaussian characteristics. According to these characteristics, positive and negative areas of the internal and external pressure on the domes were defined, and the non-Gaussian peak factors were determined. This study has not only advanced our understanding on characteristics of internal and external pressure on long-span domes, but determined non-Gaussian peak factors that are used for structural design.