Serviceability‐based damping optimization of randomly wind‐excited high‐rise buildings

Fluid viscous dampers are proved to be effective for reducing the response of high‐rise buildings subjected to wind excitations so as to enhance structural habitability, which serves as a critical performance in serviceability design. High‐rise buildings attached with fluid viscous dampers, however, exhibit nonlinearity and even act as stiff systems in most cases of wind‐induced vibration mitigation. The traditional equivalent linearization methods employed in practices often fail to obtain an accurate solution. Equivalent linearization methods, including the energy‐dissipation equivalent linearization method and the statistical linearization technique, are first studied and validated in this paper by the backward difference formula, which was verified to be of high accuracy through the nonlinear dynamic analysis. The damping optimization for habitability control is then proceeded. Two families of serviceability criteria, the minimization of standard deviation of roof acceleration employed in traditional habitability analysis and the minimization of failure probability of roof acceleration proposed in the present study, are addressed. For the logical treatment of randomness inherent in wind excitations and its influence upon structural reliability, the probability density evolution method is employed. Numerical results reveal that the criterion of minimizing failure probability of roof acceleration has better performance in habitability enhancement.     

Three‐dimensional coupled wind‐induced vibration calculation method for super high‐rise buildings based on high‐frequency force balance technology

High‐frequency force balance test is a major technical means to evaluate the wind effect of super high‐rise buildings. Most super high‐rise buildings have the characteristic that the first two‐order modal frequencies are close, and thus, considerable modal coupling effects (MCEs) may occur under wind load. For a balance model system (BMS), MCEs increase the difficulty of correcting aerodynamic distortion signals. For the wind‐induced vibration analysis of a structural system (PSS), the calculation results of the wind‐induced response and the equivalent static wind load (ESWL) may be significantly affected without considering MCE. Based on the above‐mentioned signal distortion of BMS and the modal coupling problem of PSS, this study proposes a wind‐induced vibration calculation method for the two coupled systems (BMS and PSS). The method uses the second‐order blind identification technique based on complex modal theory and the Bayesian spectral density method considering full aerodynamic characteristics to achieve effective correction of the distortion signal in BMS. In addition, it deduces the calculation method of the wind‐induced response and ESWL considering the three‐dimensional coupled vibration of a super high‐rise building. The wind effect calculation results of a 528‐m super high‐rise building confirm the necessity and effectiveness of the proposed method.     

Approximate method of estimating seismic performance of high‐rise buildings with oil‐dampers

When subjected to long‐period ground motions, many existing high‐rise buildings constructed on plains with soft, deep sediment layers experience severe lateral deflection, caused by the resonance between the long‐period natural frequency of the building and the long‐period ground motions, even if they are far from the epicenter. This was the case for a number of buildings in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka affected by the ground motions produced by the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku earthquake in Japan. Oil‐dampers are commonly used to improve the seismic performance of existing high‐rise buildings subjected to long‐period ground motion. This paper proposes a simple but accurate analytical method of predicting the seismic performance of high‐rise buildings retrofitted with oil‐dampers installed inside and/or outside of the frames. The method extends the authors' previous one‐dimensional theory to a more general method that is applicable to buildings with internal and external oil‐dampers installed in an arbitrary story. The accuracy of the proposed method is demonstrated through numerical calculations using a model of a high‐rise building with and without internal and external oil‐dampers. The proposed method is effective in the preliminary stages of improving the seismic performance of high‐rise buildings.     

Effects of tuned mass damper on correlation of wind‐induced responses and combination coefficients of equivalent static wind loads of high‐rise buildings

Tuned mass dampers (TMDs) are employed to control the wind‐induced responses of tall buildings. In the meantime, TMD may have an impact on the correlation of wind‐induced responses and combination coefficients of equivalent static wind loads (ESWLs). First, the mass matrix and stiffness matrix were extracted in this paper in accordance with the structural analysis model of two high‐rise buildings, and on that basis, the wind‐induced vibration responses analysis model with and without TMD was established. Second, the synchronous multipoint wind tunnel test to measure the pressure was performed for two high‐rise buildings, and the time history of wind‐induced vibration responses with and without TMD was studied. Finally, the impact of TMD on the correlation of wind‐induced responses and combination coefficients of ESWLs was discussed. The results of two examples suggest that after the installation of TMD, the increase of ρ_xy was 2.1% to 35.0% and ρ_yz was 2.8% to 45.6% at all wind directions for Building 1, and the increase of ρ_xy was 3.9% to 17.1% and ρ_yz was 6.8% to 38.3% for Building 2. The combination coefficients of ESWLs of two buildings were 3% to 6% larger than that of the original structure. The conclusion of this paper can be referenced by the wind resistant design of high‐rise buildings with TMD.     

Application of GPS to monitoring of wind‐induced responses of high‐rise buildings

A new monitoring system using GPS is introduced to measure wind‐induced responses of high‐rise buildings. In this paper, wind‐induced responses of a long‐period structure include relative lateral displacements, acceleration records, and torsional displacements at the top of a building. After comparing responses of a test model measured by GPS with responses obtained by the most commonly used laser displacement meters and accelerometers, the wind‐induced responses of a 66‐story high‐rise building subject to the yellow dust storm were measured by the GPS‐based monitoring system. Based on the field measurement, it is concluded that the complete motion history of a high‐rise building can be monitored by GPS. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experimental study of across‐wind aerodynamic damping of super high‐rise buildings with aerodynamically modified square cross‐sections

Across‐wind aerodynamic damping ratios are determined from the wind‐induced acceleration responses of 10 aeroelastic models of square super high‐rise buildings in an urban flow condition (exposure category C in the Chinese code) using the random decrement technique. Moreover, the influences of amplitude‐dependent structural damping ratio on the estimation of aerodynamic damping ratio are discussed. The validity of estimated damping is examined through a comparison with previous research achievements. On the basis of the estimated results, the characteristics of the across‐wind aerodynamic damping ratios of modified square high‐rise buildings are studied. The effects of aerodynamically modified cross‐sections, such as chamfered, slotted and tapered cross‐section, on the across‐wind aerodynamic damping ratio are investigated. The results indicate that modifications of cross‐sections are not always effective in suppressing the aeroelastic effects of super high‐rise buildings. Low corner‐cut ratios (chamfer ratios from 5% to 20% and slot ratios from 5% to 10%) and low taper ratio (1%) significantly decrease the magnitudes of absolute aerodynamic damping ratios. However, large modifications of cross‐sections (slot ratio of 20% and taper ratios from 3% to 5%) increase wind‐induced responses by changing the aerodynamic damping ratios. According to the database, empirical aerodynamic damping function parameters are fitted for high‐rise buildings with aerodynamically modified square cross‐sections. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Wind effect of a twin‐tower super high‐rise building with weak connection

An analysis and estimation method of multibalance synchronous test is established to study the wind effect of a complex super high‐rise building with weak connection. First, the frequency domain method is applied to deduce the calculation process of the wind effect of the multitower structure on the basis of the high frequency force balance (HFFB) technique. Then, the synchronous force test of HFFB is conducted on a twin‐tower super high‐rise building connected by a bridge. The wind‐induced response and loads and the interference effect between the two towers are analyzed based on the wind tunnel test data. The displacement correlation between the towers and the relative displacement of the multitower structure are investigated. Results show that the maximum and minimum relative displacements in the along‐bridge direction are 0.26 m in the along‐wind direction and ?0.26 m in the crosswind direction, respectively. The channeling effect formed by the surrounding buildings is the main cause of the maximum cross‐bridge displacement. The influence of the correlation between the two towers can be ignored for the along‐bridge relative displacement. The results of the HFFB and high‐frequency pressure integral test agree with each other, thereby indicating the reliability and effectiveness of the proposed method.     

Aerodynamic interference effects of a proposed taller high‐rise building on wind pressures on existing tall buildings

When a large super high‐rise building taller than the surrounding tall buildings is built in a dense urban area, the aerodynamic interference effects of the surrounding buildings on the proposed building attract much attention, while the interference effects of the taller high‐rise building on the nearby existing buildings are often ignored. Based on a series of wind tunnel tests, the interference effects of a proposed taller high‐rise building, an adjacent equal‐height partner building, and relatively short background buildings on the target building's local wind pressures are analysed in this paper. Two‐dimensional numerical simulation are carried out to further understand the interference mechanism in some cases. The test results show that the influence of a nearby proposed taller high‐rise building may lead to wind‐induced damage on the interfered shorter buildings' envelopes. The envelope structures of other surrounding buildings facing the side of the proposed building need to be given more attention.     

Resonant behaviour of base‐isolated high‐rise buildings under long‐period ground motions

The resonant behaviour of base‐isolated high‐rise buildings under long‐period ground motions is investigated. The long‐period ground motions are known to be induced by surface waves. While the acceleration amplitude of such long‐period ground motion is small, the velocity amplitude is fairly large. It is expected that high‐rise buildings and base‐isolated buildings with long fundamental natural periods are greatly influenced by these long‐period ground motions. Especially base‐isolated high‐rise buildings with friction‐type bearings may have remarkable mechanical characteristics unfavourable for these long‐period ground motions. The purpose of this paper is to reveal that the long‐period ground motions recorded in Japan have the intensity to make base‐isolated high‐rise buildings in resonance with long‐period components and that careful treatment is inevitable in the structural design of these base‐isolated high‐rise buildings. It is pointed out that the friction‐type bearings are effective in general in avoiding the resonance with ground motions with a narrow‐range frequency characteristic, but are dangerous for ground motions with a wide‐range frequency characteristic in the long period range. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experimental study on wind load characteristics of high‐rise buildings with opening

For investigation of the wind load characteristics on high‐rise buildings with opening, a series of rigid rectangular high‐rise building models with opening were tested by synchronous multi‐pressure sensing system (SMPSS) in a boundary wind tunnel. Influence parameters including different opening heights, opening rates, opening patterns, and terrain categories are studied in detail. Based on the test results, the local wind force coefficients, base moment coefficients, and power spectral densities were discussed. The results indicated that the opening could affect the wind loads acting on high‐rise buildings to different extent. The distinct reduction of wind loads on high‐rise buildings was found at along‐wind direction, which could be evaluated by a proposed simplified expression accordingly. This study aims to provide useful information for the wind‐resistant design of high‐rise buildings with opening.     

Influence of soil‐structure interaction on performance of a super tall building using a new eddy‐current tuned mass damper

Tuned mass dampers (TMDs) can be used as vibration control devices to improve the vibration performance of high‐rise buildings. The Shanghai Tower (SHT) is a 632‐m high landmark building in China, featuring a new eddy‐current TMD. Special protective mechanisms have been adopted to prevent excessively large amplitude of the TMD under extreme wind or earthquake loading scenarios. This paper presents a methodology for simulating behavior of the new eddy‐current TMD that features displacement‐dependent damping behavior. The TMD model was built into the SHT finite element model to perform frequency analysis and detailed response analyses under wind and earthquake loads. Furthermore, soil‐structure interaction (SSI) effects on wind and seismic load responses of the SHT model were investigated, as SSI has a significant impact on the vibration performance of high‐rise buildings. It was found that SSI has more significant effects on acceleration response for wind loads with a short return period than for wind loads with a long return period. Some of the acceleration responses with SSI effects exceed design limits of human comfort for wind loads with shorter return periods. As to the seismic analyses, it was found that SSI slightly reduces the displacement amplitude, the damping force, and the impact force of the TMD.     

Wind‐induced inter‐story drift analysis and equivalent static wind load for multiple targets of tall buildings

In super high‐rise buildings with varying story heights, the wind‐induced inter‐story drifts might violate the specified limit. However, these effects have seldom been concerned in wind‐induced response analysis. The theory and application of equivalent static wind load (ESWL) for wind‐induced inter‐story drifts of super high‐rise buildings were studied in this paper. A spectral decomposition method suitable for multi‐point excitation problems was firstly proposed. The formula of ESWL targeting for largest inter‐story drift was derived. For more reasonable structural design, the ESWL for multiple targets including displacement atop of building and inter‐story drifts at all story levels is put forward, in which the dominant modal inertial forces are adopted as the based load vectors. The presented methods were finally verified by its application for the wind‐induced response analysis for a tallest super tall building in Guangzhou. The researched results showed that the proposed spectral decomposition method not only has the same precision as the complete quadratic combination method but also possesses higher computation efficiency. The ESWL for multiple targets produces the same static responses for all the specified wind‐induced response, so it is much more rational for wind‐resistant structural design. Meanwhile, it is more reasonable to select the wind‐induced responses in the same direction simultaneously as the targeted values for obtaining the required ESWLs; however, the ESWL targeting for the wind‐induced responses in all degrees of freedom would generate more queer and unrealistic ESWLs distribution. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Wind‐induced torsion vibration of the super high‐rise building of Shenzhen Energy Center

The synchronous multipoint scanning system technique in wind tunnel tests and random vibration theory method were used to analyze the wind‐induced torsion vibration of some irregularly shaped super high‐rise buildings in downtowns. The torsion vibration modes and the spectra of torsion wind load were studied, and the proportions of mean wind torsion, inertia torsion and the mass eccentricity torsion caused by horizontal inertia forces are discussed. The following conclusions can be drawn. First, the third and fourth modes have torsion vibration shapes, and their frequencies are in the high‐energy area of the spectra of the torsion wind load; the third and fourth modes are included in the resonant component of the spectra of the top torsion angle of the building, and the third mode is dominant. Second, the torsion stiffness is weak in the high stories of the building, so the inertia torsion is dominant, whereas the torsion stiffness is strong in the low stories; the mean wind torsion is dominant. The proportion of the mass eccentricity torsion moment caused by horizontal inertia forces is small. Finally, the wind‐induced torsion moment at a 90° wind angle is the largest, whereas the torsion eccentricity is 46% of the radius of gyration and is much greater than the mass eccentricity; thus, the wind‐induced torsion should be considered. The wind‐induced torsion vibration of the building is sensitive to wind directions. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluation of coupling–control effect of a sky‐bridge for adjacent tall buildings

In this study, the coupling–control effect of a sky‐bridge for adjacent tall buildings has been investigated. To this end, two building structures of 42‐ and 49‐stories connected by a sky‐bridge and constructed in the Seoul, Korea, were used. Earthquake excitations and wind load data obtained from wind tunnel tests are employed for numerical simulation. Lead rubber bearings and linear motion bearings were used for the connectors between the sky‐bridge and the example buildings. Several types of connector configurations were investigated to find an appropriate configuration for the tall buildings considered. The displacement and acceleration responses of the coupled buildings, and the reactions of the bearings and member forces of the sky‐bridge were evaluated in comparison with the uncoupled buildings. Numerical results demonstrated that the sky‐bridge could effectively increase the damping ratio of the coupled tall buildings, resulting in decreased dynamic responses. In addition, it was shown that the coupling–control effect of the sky‐bridge could be significantly improved by using additional viscous dampers. The connection system and configuration proposed in this study had been applied to the construction of the sky‐bridge for the example structures. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structural design of high‐rise buildings using steel‐framed modules: A case study in Hong Kong

Steel‐framed modular buildings afford certain advantages, such as rapid and high‐quality construction. However, although steel‐framed modules have been adopted in several countries, most of them are limited to low‐to‐medium‐rise structures; modular high‐rise buildings are rare. This study proposes a feasible structural design solution for high‐rise buildings using a steel‐framed modular system. A 31‐story student hostel building in Hong Kong is redesigned as a steel‐framed modular building and used as a case study. The finite element models of the building are formulated, and the structural behaviors under wind and earthquake load scenarios are compared. Moreover, the structural design process used for the 31‐story building is applied to design a hypothetical 40‐story modular building to further examine the proposed design solution. The numerical analysis results indicate that the roof lateral displacements and interstory drift ratios of the redesigned modular building are within the allowable limits of design codes; moreover, the modular connections behave elastically under the most adverse loading scenarios. Accordingly, the proposed solution can be used to design steel‐framed modular buildings of up to 40 stories, while complying with relevant wind and seismic codes.     

Peak factor estimation of non‐Gaussian wind pressure on high‐rise buildings

A vast quantity of measurements of wind‐induced non‐Gaussian effects on buildings call for the burgeoning development of more advanced extrema estimation approaches for non‐Gaussian processes. In this study, a well‐directed method for estimating the peak factor and modeling the extrema distribution for non‐Gaussian processes is proposed. This method is characterized by using two fitted probability distributions of the parent non‐Gaussian process to separately fulfill the estimations of the extrema on long‐tail and short‐tail sides. In this method, the Johnson transformation is adopted to be the probabilistic model for fitting the parent distribution of the non‐Gaussian process due to its superior fitting goodness and universality. For each dataset, two Johnson transformations will be established by two parameter estimation methods to individually estimate the extrema on two sides. Then a Gumbel assumption is applied for conveniently determining the non‐Gaussian peak factor. This method is validated through long‐duration wind pressure records measured on the model surfaces of a high‐rise building in wind tunnel test. The results show that the proposed method is more accurate and robust than many existing ones in estimating peak factors for non‐Gaussian wind pressures.     

Analysis of a high‐rise steel structure with viscous damped outriggers

Damped outriggers for tall buildings draw increasingly attentions to engineers. With a shaking table test, two models of a high‐rise steel column‐tube structure are established, one with outriggers fixed to the core and hinged at the columns, whereas the other's cantilevering outriggers are connected to columns by viscous dampers. According to their dynamic properties, five earthquake waves are selected from the Ground Motion Database of Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center (PEER), and two artificial waves are generated by software SIMQKE_GR. Under various peak ground accelerations (PGAs), nonlinear time‐history analysis is applied to compare structural elastic seismic responses, including accelerations, inter‐story drifts, base shear force, damper's response and additional damping ratios. It is concluded that under minor earthquakes, accelerations, inter‐story drifts and base shear force of structure with damped outriggers are larger than or nearly equal to those of the one with fixed outriggers, and the viscous dampers hardly work. But as PGA increases, the contrary situation happens, and the effect of viscous dampers is enhanced as well. The additional damping ratio reaches around 4% under mega earthquakes. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Integrated multi‐type sensor placement and response reconstruction method for high‐rise buildings under unknown seismic loading

Structural health monitoring system has been implemented on high‐rise buildings to provide real‐time measurement of structural responses for evaluating their serviceability, safety, and sustainability. However, because of the complex structural configuration of a high‐rise building and the limited number of sensors installed in the building, the complete evaluation of structural performance of the building in terms of the information directly recorded by a structural health monitoring system is almost impossible. This is particularly true when seismic‐induced ground motion is unknown. This paper thus proposes an integrated method that enables the optimal placement of multi‐type sensors on a high‐rise building on one hand and the reconstruction of structural responses and excitations using the information from the optimally located sensors on the other hand. The structural responses measured from multi‐type sensors are fused to estimate the full state of the building in the modal coordinates using Kalman filters, from which the structural responses at unmeasured locations and the seismic‐induced ground motion can be reconstructed. The optimal multi‐type sensor placement is simultaneously achieved by minimizing the overall estimation errors of structural responses at the locations of interest to a desired target level. A numerical study using a simplified finite element model of a high‐rise building is performed to illustrate the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed method. The numerical results show that by using 3 types of sensors (inclinometers, Global Positioning System, and accelerometers), the proposed method offers an effective way to design a multi‐type sensor system, and the multi‐type sensors at their optimal locations can produce sufficient information on the response and excitation reconstruction.     

A combined tuned damper and an optimal design method for wind‐induced vibration control for super tall buildings

The wind‐induced vibrations of super tall buildings become excessive due to strong wind loads, super building height and high flexibility. Tuned mass dampers (TMDs) and tuned liquid column dampers (TLCDs) have been widely used to control vibrations for actual super tall buildings for decades. To fully use both the economic advantage of the TLCD system and the high efficiency of the TMD system, an innovative supplemental damping system including both TLCD and TMD and called combined tuned damper (CTD), which can substantially decrease the cost of the damper, was proposed to control the wind‐induced vibrations of tall buildings. The governing equations are generated for the motion of both the primary structure and the CTD and solved to anticipate the dynamic response of the CTD‐structure system. Moreover, an optimal design method of human comfort performance is proposed, in which the life cycle cost of the damper‐structure system is considered as the quantitative index of the performance. The life cycle cost includes the initial cost, the maintenance cost and the failure cost. The failure cost can be calculated using the vibration‐sensation rate model, which is based on the Japanese code AIJES‐V001‐2004. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.