Modeling of wind-induced pressure fluctuations on roofs of low-rise buildings

A systematic study on the modeling of wind-induced pressures on low buildin g roofs with application to extreme value and fatigue analysis is described in this paper. Extensive wind tunnel measurements form a basis to carry ou t the modeling. Based on the Fourier representation of time series, a gener al approach for simulating Gaussian as well as non-Gaussian wind pressure f luctuations has been presented. Both Fourier amplitude and phase required f or the simulations are modeled individually. A simple stochastic model is p roposed for the generation of Fourier phase of non-Gaussian time series. An empirical model has been suggested for the synthetic generation of normali zed spectra; synthetic spectra are utilized for the generation of Fourier a mplitude part. Towards the generalization of the simulation scheme, the sta ndard spectral shapes associated with various zones of each roof and their parameters are established. The efficiency of this simulation methodology i s illustrated with several examples. Applications of the simulation methodo logy have also been discussed. The established simulation scheme can be use d to generate fluctuating wind pressures on low building roofs in a generic fashion not only for the evaluation of extreme pressures but also for fati gue design purposes.