• Wind and Structures
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.1-20
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• 2010

The recommended factored design wind load effects for overhead lattice transmission line towers by codes and standards are evaluated based on the applicable wind load factor, gust response factor and design wind speed. The current factors and design wind speed were developed considering linear elastic responses and selected notional target safety levels. However, information on the nonlinear inelastic responses of such towers under extreme dynamic wind loading, and on the structural capacity curves of the towers in relation to the design capacities, is lacking. The knowledge and assessment of the capacity curve, and its relation to the design strength, is important to evaluate the integrity and reliability of these towers. Such an assessment was performed in the present study, using a nonlinear static pushover (NSP) analysis and incremental dynamic analysis (IDA), both of which are commonly used in earthquake engineering. For the IDA, temporal and spatially varying wind speeds are simulated based on power spectral density and coherence functions. Numerical results show that the structural capacity curves of the tower determined from the NSP analysis depend on the load pattern, and that the curves determined from the nonlinear static pushover analysis are similar to those obtained from IDA.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.625-639
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• 2015

Monopiles have been most widely used for supporting offshore wind turbines (OWTs) in shallow water areas. However, multi-member lattice-type structures such as jackets and tripods are also considered good alternatives to monopile foundations for relatively deep water areas with depth ranging from 25-50 m owing to their technical and economic feasibility. Moreover, jacket structures have been popular in the oil and gas industry for a long time. However, several unsolved technical issues still persist in the utilization of multi-member lattice-type supporting structures for OWTs; these problems include pile-soil-interaction (PSI) effects, realization of dynamically stable designs to avoid resonances, and quick and safe installation in remote areas. In this study, the effects of PSI on the dynamic properties of bottom-fixed OWTs, including monopile-, tripod- and jacket-supported OWTs, were investigated intensively. The tower and substructure were modeled using conventional beam elements with added mass, and pile foundations were modeled with beam and nonlinear spring elements. The effects of PSI on the dynamic properties of the structure were evaluated using Monte Carlo simulation considering the load amplitude, scouring depth, and the uncertainties in soil properties.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.635-649
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• 2006

The static and dynamic responses of guyed telecommunication towers can be determined by using two models, the space truss element model, and the equivalent beam-column element model. The equivalent beam-column analysis is based on the determination of the equivalent shear, torsion, and bending rigidities as well as the equivalent area of the guyed mast. In the literature, two methods are currently available to determine the equivalent properties of lattice structures, namely: the unit load method, and the energy approach. In this study, an equivalent beam-column analysis is introduced based on an equivalent thin plate approach for lattice structures. A finite-element modeling, using suitably modified ABAQUS software, is used to investigate the accuracy of utilizing the different proposed methods in determining the static and dynamic responses of a guyed tower of 364.5-meter high subjected to static and seismic loading conditions. The results from these analyses are compared to those obtained from a finite-element modeling of the actual structure using 3-D truss and beam elements. Good agreement is shown between the different proposed beam-column models, and the model of the actual structure. However, the proposed equivalent thin plate approach is simpler to apply than the other two approaches.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.255-270
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• 2006

Several analytical procedures available in literature, for the evaluation of wind induced fatigue damage of structures, either assume the wide band random stress variations as narrow band random process or use correction factors along with narrow band assumption. This paper compares the correction factors obtained using the Rainflow Cycle (RFC) counting of the measured stress time histories on a lamp mast and a lattice tower, with those evaluated using different frequency domain methods available in literature. A Bi-modal spectral method has been formulated by idealising the single spectral moment method into two modes of background and resonant components, as considered in the gust response factor, for the evaluation of fatigue of slender structures subjected to "along-wind vibrations". A closed form approximation for the effective frequency of the background component has been developed. The simplicity and the accuracy of the new method have been illustrated through a case study by simulating stress time histories at the base of an urban light pole for different mean wind speeds. The correction factors obtained by the Bi-modal spectral method have been compared with those obtained from the simulated stress time histories using RFC counting method. The developed Bi-modal method is observed to be a simple and easy to use alternative to detailed time and frequency domain fatigue analyses without considerable computational and experimental efforts.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.263-275
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• 2023

As a new kind of construction facility for high rise buildings, the integral steel platform scaffold system (ISPS) consisting of the steel skeleton and suspended scaffold faces high wind during the construction procedure. The lattice structure type and existence of core tubes both make it difficult to estimate the wind load and calculate the wind-induced responses. In this study, an aeroelastic model with a geometry scale ratio of 1:25 based on the ISPS for Shanghai Tower, with the representative square profile, is manufactured and then tested in a wind tunnel. The first mode of the prototype ISPS is a torsional one with a frequency of only 0.68 Hz, and the model survives under extreme wind speed up to 50 m/s. The static wind load and wind vibration factors are derived based on the test result and supplementary finite element analysis, offering a reference for the following ISPS design. The spacer at the bottom of the suspended scaffold is suggested to be long enough to touch the core tube in the initial status to prevent the collision. Besides, aerodynamic wind loads and cross-wind loads are suggested to be included in the structural design of the ISPS.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.71-88
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• 2018

At the University of Western Ontario (UWO), numerical tools represented in semi-closed form solution for the conductors and finite element modeling of the lattice tower were developed and utilized significantly to assess the behavior of transmission lines under downburst wind fields. Although these tools were validated against other finite element analyses, it is essential to validate the findings of those tools using experimental data. This paper reports the first aeroelastic test for a multi-span transmission line under simulated downburst. The test has been conducted at the three-dimensional wind testing facility, the WindEEE dome, located at the UWO. The experiment considers various downburst locations with respect to the transmission line system. Responses obtained from the experiment are analyzed in the current study to identify the critical downburst locations causing maximum internal forces in the structure (i.e., potential failure modes), which are compared with the failure modes obtained from the numerical tools. In addition, a quantitative comparison between the measured critical responses obtained from the experiment with critical responses obtained from the numerical tools is also conducted. The study shows a very good agreement between the critical configurations of the downburst obtained from the experiment compared to those predicted previously by different numerical studies. In addition, the structural responses obtained from the experiment and those obtained from the numerical tools are in a good agreement where a maximum difference of 16% is found for the mean responses and 25% for the peak responses.

• KEPCO Journal on Electric Power and Energy
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.257-262
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• 2019

Lattice steel towers for overhead transmission lines have been replaced by tubular steel poles due to the visual impact of large and complex shape of truss type. Demand for tubular steel poles consisting of a single frame member continues to grow because of its advantages such as visual minimization, architectural appeal and minimal site consumptions. However, there are some constraints on the transportation and construction. As the diameter of tower base has been enlarged, it may exceed minimum height limit required to pass the tunnel in case of land transportation. Also, in a narrow place where it is not easy to secure the installation areas such as mountainous places, there might be some areas wherein it must secure a wide working space so that large vehicles and working cranes will be allowed to enter. In this paper, we presented a vertical separated tubular steel pole, which is a new type of support that can be implemented for general purpose such as mountainous areas or narrow areas to improve the issues raised by breaking away from the conventional design and fabrication methods. Technical approaches for overcoming the limit of the cross-sectional size is to separate and modularize the cross-section of the tubular steel pole designed with a size that cannot be carried or assembled, and to lighten it with a weight capable of being transported and assembled in a narrow space or mountainous area. As a result of this research, it will be possible to enter small and medium sized vehicles in locations where it is restricted to transport by large-sized vehicles. In the case of mountainous areas, it will be possible to divide it into a weight capable of being carried by a helicopter and it will be easy to adjust and fabricate it with individual modules. Furthermore, in order to break away from the traditional construction method, we proposed the equipment that can be applied to the assembly of Tubular Steel Pole without using a large crane in locations where there is no accessible road or in locations wherein large cranes cannot enter. In particular, this paper shows the movable assembling equipment and some methods that are specialized for vertical separated tubular steel pole consisting of members with reduced weight. The proposed assembly equipment is a device for assembling the body of the Tubular Steel Poles. It will be installed inside the support and the modules can be lifted by using the support itself.