• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
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• 2011.04a
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• pp.105-110
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• 2011

Catwalk structures are temporary walk ways for erection of main cables in suspension bridge. The aerodynamic characteristics of the catwalk structures are not well studied even though the catwalk structures are sensitive to wind action because of its flexibility. Present study demonstrates technical results obtained from wind tunnel tests of various catwalk structures. To obtain the aerostatic force coefficients of the floor system of catwalk, 1/14 and 1/4 scaled partial rigid models were fabricated and tested at the wind tunnel. In order to investigate the Reynolds number effects, the aerostatic force coefficients were measured at various wind velocities ranged from 5m/s to 30m/s. The test results revealed that the Reynolds number effects on aerostatic coefficients were not significant for the catwalk floor systems. An empirical equation for aerostatic force coefficients of catwalk are proposed based on the measured results.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.187-208
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• 2011

Based on the ANSYS, an approach of full-mode aerodynamic flutter analysis for long-span suspension bridges has been presented in this paper, in which the nonlinearities of structure, aerostatic and aerodynamic force due to the deformation under the static wind loading are fully considered. Aerostatic analysis is conducted to predict the equilibrium position of a bridge structure in the beginning, and then flutter analysis of such a deformed bridge structure is performed. A corresponding computer program is developed and used to predict the critical flutter wind velocity and the corresponding flutter frequency of a long-span suspension bridge with double main span. A time-domain analysis of the bridge is also carried out to verify the frequency-domain computational results and the effectiveness of the approach proposed in this paper. Then, the nonlinear effects on aerodynamic behaviors due to aerostatic action are discussed in detail. Finally, the results are compared with those of traditional suspension bridges with single main span. The results show that the aerostatic action has an important influence on the flutter stability of long-span suspension bridges. As for a suspension bridge with double main spans, the flutter mode is the first anti-symmetrical torsional vibration mode, which is also the first torsional vibration mode in natural mode list. Furthermore, a double main-span suspension bridge is better in structural dynamic and aerodynamic performances than a corresponding single main-span structure with the same bridging capacity.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.649-662
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• 2020

The existence of a dam has potential effects on the surrounding wind environment especially when it is located in mountainous areas. In this situation, the long-span bridge over the reservoir can easily be exposed to non-uniform incoming flows, affecting its wind-resistance performance. This paper presents a study on the aerostatic stability of such a bridge. Wind tunnel tests were first carried out to investigate the wind environment above a mountainous reservoir. The results show that the angle of attack and the wind speed along the bridge axis show obvious non-uniform characteristics, which is related to the inflow direction. When winds come from the south where the river is winding, the angle of attack varies along the span direction significantly. The finite element model for the bridge was established using ANSYS software, and effects of non-uniform wind loads on the aerostatic stability were computed. Non-uniform angle of attack and wind speed are unfavorable to the aerostatic stability of the bridge, especially the former. When the combined action of non-uniform angle of attack and wind speed is considered, the critical wind speed of aerostatic instability is further reduced. Moreover, the aerostatic stability of the bridge is closely related to the dam height.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.163-175
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• 2019

Multispan suspension bridges make a good alternative to single-span ones if the crossed strait or river width exceeds 2-3 km. However, multispan three-tower suspension bridges are found to be very sensitive to the wind load due to the lack of effective longitudinal constraint at their central tower. Moreover, at certain critical wind speed values, the aerostatic instability with sharply deteriorating dynamic characteristics may occur with catastrophic consequences. An attempt of an in-depth study on the aerostatic stability mode and damage mechanism of three-tower suspension bridges is made in this paper based on the assessment of strain energy and dynamic characteristics of three particular three-tower suspension bridges in China under different wind speeds and their further integration into the aerostatic stability analysis. The results obtained on the three bridges under study strongly suggest that their aerostatic instability mode is controlled by the coupled action of the anti-symmetric torsion and vertical bending of the two main-spans' deck, together with the longitudinal bending of the towers, which can be regarded as the first-order torsion vibration mode coupled with the first-order vertical bending vibration mode. The growth rates of the torsional and vertical bending strain energy of the deck after the aerostatic instability are higher than those of the lateral bending. The bending and torsion frequencies decrease rapidly when the wind speed approaches the critical value, while the frequencies of the anti-symmetric vibration modes drop more sharply than those of the symmetric ones. The obtained dependences between the critical wind speed, strain energy, and dynamic characteristics of the bridge components under the aerostatic instability modes are considered instrumental in strength and integrity calculation of three-tower suspension bridges.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.43-58
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• 2024

To ensure the flutter stability of three-tower suspension bridges under skew wind, by using the computational procedure of 3D refined flutter analysis of long-span bridges under skew wind, in which structural nonlinearity, the static wind action(also known as the aerostatic effect) and the full-mode coupling effect etc., are fully considered, the flutter stability of a three-tower suspension bridge-the Taizhou Bridge over the Yangtze River in completion and during the deck erection is numerically investigated under the constant uniform skew wind, and the influences of skew wind and aerostatic effects on the flutter stability of the bridge under the service and construction conditions are assessed. The results show that the flutter critical wind speeds of three-tower suspension bridge under service and construction conditions fluctuate with the increase of wind yaw angle instead of a monotonous cosine rule as the decomposition method proposed, and reach the minimum mostly in the case of skew wind. Both the skew wind and aerostatic effects significantly reduce the flutter stability of three-tower suspension bridge under the service and construction conditions, and the combined skew wind and aerostatic effects further deteriorate the flutter stability. Both the skew wind and aerostatic effects do not change the evolution of flutter stability of the bridge during the deck erection, and compared to the service condition, they lead to a greater decrease of flutter critical wind speed of the bridge during deck erection, and the influence of the combined skew wind and aerostatic effects is more prominent. Therefore, the skew wind and aerostatic effects must be considered accurately in the flutter analysis of three-tower suspension bridges.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.121-133
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• 2007

To gain understanding of the applicability of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) cable in cable-supported bridges, based on the Runyang Bridge and Jinsha Bridge, a suspension bridge using CFRP cables and a cable-stayed bridge using CFRP stay cables are schemed, in which the cable's cross-sectional area is determined by the principle of equivalent axial stiffness. Numerical investigations on the dynamic behavior, aerostatic and aerodynamic stability of the two bridges are conducted by 3D nonlinear analysis, and the effect of different cable materials on the wind resistance is discussed. The results show that as CFRP cables are used in cable-supported bridges, (1) structural natural frequencies are all increased, and particularly great increase of the torsional frequency occurs for suspension bridges; (2) under the static wind action, structural deformation is increased, however its aerostatic stability is basically remained the same as that of the case with steel cables; (3) for suspension bridge, its aerodynamic stability is superior to that of the case with steel cables, but for cable-stayed bridge, it is basically the same as that of the case with steel stay cables. Therefore as far as the wind resistance is considered, the use of CFRP cables in cable-supported bridges is feasible, and the cable's cross-sectional area should be determined by the principle of equivalent axial stiffness.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.39-56
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• 2023

To ensure the wind stability of a long-span suspension bridge during deck erection under skew wind, based on the aerostatic and self-excited aerodynamic force models under skew wind, a computational approach of refined flutter analysis for long-span bridges under skew wind is firstly established, in which the effects of structural nonlinearity, the static wind action and full-mode coupling etc are fully considered, and the corresponding computational procedure is programmed. By taking the Runyang suspension bridge over the Yangtze River as example, the flutter stability of the bridge in completion under skew wind is then analyzed with the aerodynamic parameters of a similar bridge deck measured from the sectional model wind tunnel test under skew wind. Finally, through simulating the girder segments erected symmetrically from the midspan to towers, from the towers to midspan and simultaneously from the towers and midspan to the quarter points, respectively, the evolutions of flutter stability limits during the deck erection under skew wind are investigated numerically, the favorable aerodynamically deck erection sequence is proposed, and the influences of skew wind and static wind effect on the flutter stability of suspension bridge under construction are ascertained.