• Title/Summary/Keyword: towers

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Vibration-based damage detection in wind turbine towers using artificial neural networks

  • Nguyen, Cong-Uy;Huynh, Thanh-Canh;Kim, Jeong-Tae
    • Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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    • v.5 no.4
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    • pp.507-519
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    • 2018
  • In this paper, damage assessment in wind-turbine towers using vibration-based artificial neural networks (ANNs) is numerically investigated. At first, a vibration-based ANNs algorithm is designed for damage detection in a wind turbine tower. The ANNs architecture consists of an input, an output, and hidden layers. Modal parameters of the wind turbine tower such as mode shapes and frequencies are utilized as the input and the output layer composes of element stiffness indices. Next, the finite element model of a real wind-turbine tower is established as the test structure. The natural frequencies and mode shapes of the test structure are computed under various damage cases of single and multiple damages to generate training patterns. Finally, the ANNs are trained using the generated training patterns and employed to detect damaged elements and severities in the test structure.

Design-oriented acceleration response spectrum for ground vibrations caused by collapse of large-scale cooling towers in NPPs

  • Lin, Feng;Jiang, Wenming
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.50 no.8
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    • pp.1402-1411
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    • 2018
  • Nuclear-related facilities can be detrimentally affected by ground vibrations due to the collapse of adjacent cooling towers in nuclear power plants. To reduce this hazard risk, a design-oriented acceleration response spectrum (ARS) was proposed to predict the dynamic responses of nuclear-related facilities subjected to ground vibrations. For this purpose, 20 computational cases were performed based on cooling tower-soil numerical models developed in previous studies. This resulted in about 2664 ground vibration records to build a basic database and five complementary databases with consideration of primary factors that influence ground vibrations. Afterwards, these databases were applied to generate the design-oriented ARS using a response spectrum analysis approach. The proposed design-oriented ARS covers a wide range of natural periods up to 6 s and consists of an ascending portion, a plateau, and two connected descending portions. Spectral parameters were formulated based on statistical analysis. The spectrum was verified by comparing the representative acceleration magnitudes obtained from the design-oriented ARS with those from computational cases using cooling tower-soil numerical models with reasonable consistency.

Application of mathematical metamodeling for an automated simulation of the Dong nationality drum tower architectural heritage

  • Deng, Yi;Guo, Shi Han;Cai, Ling
    • Computers and Concrete
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    • v.28 no.6
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    • pp.605-619
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    • 2021
  • Building Information Modeling (BIM) models are a powerful tool for preserving and using architectural history. Manually creating information models for such a significant number and variety of architectural monuments as Dong drum towers is challenging. The building logic based on "actual measurement construction" was investigated using the metamodel idea, and a metamodel-based automated modeling approach for the wood framework of Dong drum towers was presented utilizing programmable algorithms. Metamodels of fundamental frame kinds were also constructed. Case studies were used to verify the automated modeling's correctness, completeness, and efficiency using metamodel. The results suggest that, compared to manual modeling, automated modeling using metamodel may enhance the model's integrity and correctness by 5-10% while also reducing time efficiency by 10-20%. Metamodel and construction logic offer a novel way to investigate data-driven autonomous information-based modeling.

Study of random characteristics of fluctuating wind loads on ultra-large cooling towers in full construction process

  • Ke, S.T.;Xu, L.;Ge, Y.J.
    • Wind and Structures
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    • v.26 no.4
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    • pp.191-204
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    • 2018
  • 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.

Influence of ventilation rate on the aerodynamic interference between two extra-large indirect dry cooling towers by CFD

  • Ke, S.T.;Liang, J.;Zhao, L.;Ge, Y.J.
    • Wind and Structures
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    • v.20 no.3
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    • pp.449-468
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    • 2015
  • Current wind-resistance designs of large-scale indirect dry cooling towers (IDCTs) exclude an important factor: the influence of the ventilation rate for radiator shutter on wind loads on the outer surfaces of the tower shell. More seemingly overlooked aspects are the effects of various ventilation rates on the wind pressure distribution on the tower surfaces of two IDCTs, and the feature of the flow field around them. In order to investigate the effects of the radiator shutter ventilation rates on the aerodynamic interference between IDCTs, this paper established the numerical wind tunnel model based on the Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) technology, and analyzed the influences of various radiator shutter ventilation rates on the aerodynamic loads acting upon a single and two extra-large IDCTs during building, installation, and operation stages. Through the comparison with the results of physical wind tunnel test and different design codes, the results indicated that: the influence of the ventilation rate on the flow field and shape coefficients on the outer surface of a single IDCT is weak, and the curve of mean shape coefficients is close to the reference curve provided by the current design code. In a two-tower combination, the ventilation rate significantly affects the downwind surface of the front tower and the upwind surface of the back tower, and the larger positive pressure shifts down along the upwind surface of the back tower as the ventilation rate increases. The ventilation rate significantly influences the drag force coefficient of the back tower in a two-tower combination, the drag force coefficient increases with the ventilation rate and reaches the maximum in a building status of full ventilation, and the maximum drag coefficient is 11% greater than that with complete closure.

Aerodynamic performance evaluation of different cable-stayed bridges with composite decks

  • Zhou, Rui;Ge, Yaojun;Yang, Yongxin;Du, Yanliang;Zhang, Lihai
    • Steel and Composite Structures
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    • v.34 no.5
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    • pp.699-713
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    • 2020
  • The aerodynamic performance of long-span cable-stayed bridges is much dependent on its geometrical configuration and countermeasure strategies. In present study, the aerodynamic performance of three composite cable-stayed bridges with different tower configurations and passive aerodynamic countermeasure strategies is systematically investigated by conducting a series of wind tunnel tests in conjunction with theoretical analysis. The structural characteristics of three composite bridges were firstly introduced, and then their stationary aerodynamic performance and wind-vibration performance (i.e., flutter performance, VIV performance and buffeting responses) were analyzed, respectively. The results show that the bridge with three symmetric towers (i.e., Bridge I) has the lowest natural frequencies among the three bridges, while the bridge with two symmetric towers (i.e., Bridge II) has the highest natural frequencies. Furthermore, the Bridge II has better stationary aerodynamic performance compared to two other bridges due to its relatively large drag force and lift moment coefficients, and the improvement in stationary aerodynamic performance resulting from the application of different countermeasures is limited. In contrast, it demonstrates that the application of both downward vertical central stabilizers (UDVCS) and horizontal guide plates (HGP) could potentially significantly improve the flutter and vortex-induced vibration (VIV) performance of the bridge with two asymmetric towers (i.e., Bridge III), while the combination of vertical interquartile stabilizers (VIS) and airflow-depressing boards (ADB) has the capacity of improving the VIV performance of Bridge II.

Seismic performance of a fiber-reinforced plastic cable-stayed bridge

  • Hodhod, Osama A.;Khalifa, Magdi A.
    • Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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    • v.5 no.4
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    • pp.399-414
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    • 1997
  • This paper presents an investigation into the seismic response characteristics of a proposed ligh-weight pedestrian cable-stayed bridge made entirely from Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastics(GFRP). The study employs three dimensional finite element models to study and compare the dynamic characteristics and the seismic response of the GFRP bridge to a conventional Steel-Concrete (SC) cable-stayed bridge alternative. The two bridges were subjected to three synthetic earthquakes that differ in the frequency content characteristics. The performance of the GFRP bridge was compared to that of the SC bridge by normalizing the live load and the seismic internal forces with respect to the dead load internal forces. The normalized seismically induced internal forces were compared to the normalized live load internal forces for each design alternative. The study shows that the design alternatives have different dynamic characteristics. The light GFRP alternative has more flexible deck motion in the lateral direction than the heavier SC alternative. While the SC alternative has more vertical deck modes than the GFRP alternative, it has less lateral deck modes than the GFRP alternative in the studied frequency range. The GFRP towers are more flexible in the lateral direction than the SC towers. The GFRP bridge tower attracted less normalized base shear force than the SC bridge towers. However, earthquakes, with peak acceleration of only 0.1 g, and with a variety of frequency content could induce high enough seismic internal forces at the tower bases of the GFRP cable-stayed bridge to govern the structural design of such bridge. Careful seismic analysis, design, and detailing of the tower connections are required to achieve satisfactory seismic performance of GFRP long span bridges.