Large eddy simulation of aerodynamic wind pressure on a tall rectangular building by modified synthetic volume forcing method

Abstract

To accurately predict wind pressures on a tall building by numerical Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) using the Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) turbulent model, it is essential to generate inflow with realistic turbulence characteristics. The Discretizing and Synthesizing Random Flow Generation (DSRFG) method, as one of the synthetic Fourier methods, has received significant attention in the Computational Wind Engineering (CWE) community because of its ability to strictly satisfy the continuity condition and generate turbulent wind with the desired power spectra. In traditional LES, the desired turbulent wind is normally generated and specified at the inlet. However, this treatment often leads to significant attenuation in turbulence energy in the high-frequency band of the fluctuating wind speed spectrum along the flow direction and unrealistic large-amplitude wind pressure fluctuations, resulting in unsatisfactory prediction performance. The Synthetic Volume Forcing (SVF) method effectively overcomes these limitations by introducing turbulence as volume force into the moment Navier-Stokes (N-S) equations. In this study, the DSRFG method is applied to generate a fluctuating wind field in combination with the SVF method to simulate dynamic wind pressures on a tall rectangular building through open-source software OpenFOAM. The turbulence intensity amplification factor (TIAF) is introduced in the SVF method to further improve its simulation accuracy. Comparison of results with wind tunnel test results verifies that the proposed TIAF-SVF numerical method developed in this study achieved sufficient accuracy in predicting wind pressures on tall buildings.