The environmental effects of aerodynamic interference between two closely positioned irregular high buildings

Abstract

The close proximity of high buildings in urban areas causes significant interference effects to occur between them. Commonly, it has an adverse effect upon wind conditions in such areas. Taking into account the increasingly dense arrangement of buildings in cities, this problem will most likely become more significant in future years. Aerodynamic interference has been analysed in many research papers; however, it usually focusses only on the influence of particular variables on the phenomenon. This paper provides a more comprehensive approach, taking into account a case study of irregularly shaped tall buildings. Aerodynamic interference is considered in three aspects: mean pressure distribution on external surfaces, aerodynamic global forces and pedestrian wind comfort. Measurement results clearly show that the orientation of the interfering building and its surroundings with respect to wind direction is crucial for the effects of aerodynamic interference. It is also concluded that the close proximity of two buildings causes high values of negative pressure on walls facing a gap. Nevertheless, at the same time, the shielding effect of the interfering building decreases with regard to the global wind action on the analysed building.