Models for the estimation of gust-buffeting response in symmetrical wind-sensitive structures

Abstract

The peak factor is an analytical development for estimating the expected maximum response caused by aerodynamic forces on wind-sensitive structures. It expresses the likelihood of how above the mean is the maximum amplitude of a stationary process in terms of its standard deviation. Such a process represents the structural response of a wind-sensitive structure in conventional applications. The methods and solutions used to approximate it in the along-wind direction have become ordinary to structural engineers. Notwithstanding, the structural response in combined orthogonal directions is often omitted since a criterion for such an estimation is still absent. This communication seeks to contribute to fill the gap in practical criteria for estimating response maxima in symmetric structures. It is done by proposing models to estimate the parameters describing the probability distribution of the maxima from the Euclidean norm of two correlated Gaussian variables. Although the applications to structural engineering are emphasized, the proposed models apply to other problems where the maxima from the norm of two Gaussian variables is relevant.