Wind-tunnel study of wind loads on circular cylindrical structures

Wind loads for designing thin circular cylindrical structures, such as oil-storage tanks and silos, have been studied in a turbulent boundary layer, aiming at accumulating information for the revision of the AIJ Recommendation for Storage Tanks and Their Supports (1996). Wind pressure distribution on the roof, in the case of enclosed structures, was measured, the results of which are compared with the specifications of the AIJ Recommendations for Loads on Buildings (2004). The effects of open top on the pressure distributions on the external and internal wall surfaces are also investigated. Furthermore, the characteristics of instantaneous pressure distributions on the external surface are discussed by using a conditional sampling technique and the POD (Proper Orthogonal Decomposition) analysis.