Numerical simulation of wind-induced forces on bridge deck sections of long-span bridges

✍ Scribed by O.U. Onyemelukwe; M.A.M. Torkamani; H.R. Bosch

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 957 KB
• Volume: 62
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0045-7949
• DOI: 10.1016/s0045-7949(96)00241-6

✦ Synopsis

The procedure entails solving the governing flow equations of motion using the finite-difference method. The two-dimensional, unsteady, incompressible, laminar form of the Navier-Stokes flow equations of motion are solved in a body-fitted curvilinear coordinate system. Numerical solution of the flow equations of motion yield the unsteady values of horizontal, u. and vertical, D, components of the flow velocity vector, V, as well as the flow field pressure distribution. The surface integral of the wall pressure around the body is then evaluated, in order to obtain the desired wind-induced forces on the bridge deck sections. The procedure has been applied to the bridge deck section of a proposed cable-stayecl bridge over the Chesapeake and Delaware canal. The simulated wind forces obtained from using two different grid sizes are presented and discussed. Barring computer memory and computational time constr,aints resulting from use on an IBM-PC with a 486 micro-processor, the force values seem reasonable when compared with the mean values from wind tunnel testing.