Numerical simulation of wind effects on super high-rise buildings considering wind veering with height based on CFD

Abstract

In wind resistance research involving super high-rise buildings, most studies have concentrated on increases in the wind velocity with height, but Ekman layer effects, inducing wind veering, have rarely been considered. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to investigate the Ekman layer effects on super high-rise buildings based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Numerical simulations were systematically performed on a 3D square cylinder with an aspect ratio of 9:1 using the large eddy simulation (LES) method. The simulation results for three different incident mean wind profiles, including a logarithmic profile without veering, a profile with an inflection point but without veering, and a profile with an inflection point and veering, were compared to illustrate the differences in the wind loads and flow fields with and without wind veering. The results reveal that the proposed method is capable of simulating the wind veering profiles. The local wind pressure distribution on the building is considerably affected by wind veering, especially at the upper portion of the building surface. The effects of wind veering on the mean aerodynamic forces for super high-rise buildings are mainly in the aspect of Y-axis force, X-axis and torsional moment, and the fluctuations of local wind forces and base moments decrease to various degrees.