Project and construction of a didactic wind tunnel for the vibration analysis of buildings experimental models

Resumo

The usual practise in design of structures assumes that wind effects are represented by static loads.
However, the wind presents a dynamic nature, and its effects on buildings can lead to problems associated with
excessive vibrations. Therefore, it is important for Civil Engineering students to be able to investigate and
understand the dynamic phenomena of structures. To facilitate the teaching of these concepts, this research work
presents a practical methodology supported by the construction of a wind tunnel in order to simulate the dynamic
actions of the wind on representative building models. These models are exposed to the wind and the dynamic
response is filmed using a smartphone, and then analysed using appropriate computer programmes for image
processing. Thus, it is possible to evaluate the dynamic structural response of the models (displacements and
accelerations), in the time domain. It is worth noting that, despite the experimental tests showing larger total
displacements in the wind direction, the floating part of the displacement is larger in the transverse direction,
which is due to the occurrence of wind vortices. In conclusion, the authors believe that the development of this
teaching methodology will support both, undergraduate and graduate Civil Engineering students, to better
understand tall buildings dynamic behaviour when subject to wind actions.