Flow over spherical inflated buildings

Abstract The pressure distributions on three domes of different heights ( h/c = 0.5, 0.37 and 0.25 ) have been measured in a boundary-layer wind tunnel in which the wind flow over a sparsely wooded area was simulated. The tests were made in the wall-law region of the boundary layer and the results are therfore first normalized using the undisturbed skin friction τ W . The tensions in inflated membranes of the same geometry were determined using the SAP IV finite-element program assuming that the effects of membrane weight and air friction are unimportant. The principal tensions then indicate where buckling would first take place and what would be the minimum internal pressure to just prevent it. The minimum internal gauge pressure to prevent buckling, which is shown to occur on the upwind side of the building, is 180 ( h/c) τ W . This conclusion is compatible with the recommendations of the National Standards of Canada (1981) [1]. The location, orientation and magnitude of the largest principal tension indicate that rupture of the membrane would first occur near the top of the building.