This article presents a study of the largest-ever (height = 220 m) cooling tower using the large eddy simulation (LES) method. Information about fluid fields around the tower and 3D aerodynamic time history in full construction process were obtained, and the wind pressure distribution along the entire tower predicted by the developed model was compared with standard curves and measured curves to validate the effectiveness of the simulating method. Based on that, average wind pressure distribution and characteristics of fluid fields in the construction process of ultra-large cooling tower were investigated. The characteristics of fluid fields in full construction process and their working principles were investigated based on wind speeds and vorticities under different construction conditions. Then, time domain characteristics of ultra-large cooling towers in full construction process, including fluctuating wind loads, extreme wind loads, lift and drag coefficients, and relationship of measuring points, were studied and fitting formula of extreme wind load as a function of height was developed based on the nonlinear least square method. Additionally, the frequency domain characteristics of wind loads on the constructing tower, including wind pressure power spectrum at typical measuring points, lift and drag power spectrum, circumferential correlations between typical measuring points, and vertical correlations of lift coefficient and drag coefficient, were analyzed. The results revealed that the random characteristics of fluctuating wind loads, as well as corresponding extreme wind pressure and power spectra curves, varied significantly and in real time with the height of the constructing tower. This study provides references for design of wind loads during construction period of ultra-large cooling towers.

In this paper, the thermo-mechanical buckling characteristics of functionally graded (FG) size-dependent Timoshenko nanobeams subjected to an in-plane thermal loading are investigated by presenting a Navier type solution for the first time. Material properties of FG nanobeam are supposed to vary continuously along the thickness according to the power-law form and the material properties are assumed to be temperature-dependent. The small scale effect is taken into consideration based on nonlocal elasticity theory of Eringen. The nonlocal governing equations are derived based on Timoshenko beam theory through Hamilton's principle and they are solved applying analytical solution. According to the numerical results, it is revealed that the proposed modeling can provide accurate critical buckling temperature results of the FG nanobeams as compared to some cases in the literature. The detailed mathematical derivations are presented and numerical investigations are performed while the emphasis is placed on investigating the effect of the several parameters such as material distribution profile, small scale effects and aspect ratio on the critical buckling temperature of the FG nanobeams in detail. It is explicitly shown that the thermal buckling of a FG nanobeams is significantly influenced by these effects. Numerical results are presented to serve as benchmarks for future analyses of FG nanobeams.

The appearance of a rivulet at the upper surface of a stay cable is responsible for rain-wind-induced vibration (RWIV) of cables of cable-stayed bridges. However, the formation mechanism of the upper rivulet and its aerodynamic effects on the stay cable has not been fully understood. Large eddy simulation (LES) method is used to investigate flow around and aerodynamics of a circular cylinder with an upper rivulet at a Reynolds number of 140,000. Results show that the mean lift coefficients of the circular cylinder experience three distinct stages, zero-lift stage, positive-lift stage and negative-lift stage as the rivulet located at various positions. Both pressure-induced and friction-induced aerodynamic forces on the upper rivulet are helpful for its appearance on the upside of the stay cable. The friction-induced aerodynamic forces, which have not been considered in the previous theoretical models, may not be neglected in modeling the RWIV. In positive-lift stage, the shear layer separated from the upper rivulet can reattach on the surface of the cylinder and form separation bubbles, which result in a high non-zero mean lift of the cylinder and potentially induces the occurrence of RWIV. The separation bubbles are intrinsically unsteady flow phenomena. A serial of small eddies first appears in the laminar shear layer separated from the upper rivulet, which then coalesces and reattaches on the side surface of the cylinder and eventually sheds into the wake.

The objective of the investigation is the analysis of wind-tunnel experimental errors, associated with the measurement of aeroelastic coefficients of bridge decks (Scanlan flutter derivatives). A two-degree-of-freedom experimental apparatus is used for the measurement of flutter derivatives. A section model of a closed-box bridge deck is considered in this investigation. Identification is based on free-vibration aeroelastic tests and the Iterative Least Squares method. Experimental error investigation is carried out by repeating the measurements and acquisitions thirty times for each wind tunnel speed and configuration of the model. This operational procedure is proposed for analyzing the experimental variability of flutter derivatives. Several statistical quantities are examined; these quantities include the standard deviation and the empirical probability density function of the flutter derivatives at each wind speed. Moreover, the critical flutter speed of the setup is evaluated according to standard flutter theory by accounting for experimental variability. Since the probability distribution of flutter derivatives and critical flutter speed does not seem to obey a standard theoretical model, polynomial chaos expansion is proposed and used to represent the experimental variability.

In this paper, the aerodynamic performance of two new cable surfaces with concave fillets (strakes) is examined and compared to plain, dimpled and helically filleted surfaces. To this end, an extensive wind-tunnel campaign was undertaken. Different samples with different concave fillet heights for both new surfaces were tested and compared to traditional surfaces in terms of aerodynamic forces (i.e. drag and lift reduction) and rain-rivulet suppression. Furthermore, flow visualization tests were performed to investigate the flow separation mechanism induced by the presence of the concave fillet and its relation to the aerodynamic forces. Both new cable surfaces outperformed the traditional surfaces in terms of rain-rivulet suppression thanks to the ability of the concave shape of the fillet to act as a ramp for the incoming rain-rivulet. Furthermore, both new surfaces with the lowest tested fillet height were found to have drag coefficients in the supercritical Reynolds range that compare favorably to existing cable surfaces, with an early suppression of vortex shedding.