Wind loads on a high slender tower: Numerical and experimental comparison

• Wind loads at the base of a slender tower are experimentally and numerically estimated.
• Wind tunnel tests on a rigid and an aeroelastic model are compared.
• Aerodynamic effects are investigated and aerodynamic damping is calculated.
• The along wind force is compared with the response given by Eurocode.
• Results showed differences among the wind loads obtained numerically and experimentally.

This paper compares the wind loads measured experimentally in wind tunnel tests and those predicted by Eurocode on a high slender tower with a porous external surface forming an intricate three-dimensional spiral. In the experimental tests a rigid and an aeroelastic model of the tower were tested in low and high turbulent flow conditions. The aim of the wind tunnel tests was to evaluate the wind actions at the base of the structure and, comparing the results from the two models, to verify the presence of possible aerodynamic effects, such as force fields due to fluid–structure interaction. The along wind dynamic response of the tower calculated experimentally was then compared with the results obtained numerically using Eurocode, under the hypothesis of negligible aeroelastic effects. It was found that Eurocode may underestimate the effect of certain exposures. Aerodynamic damping was also evaluated.