Publication: Behaviour of guyed transmission line structures under downburst wind loading

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Title	Behaviour of guyed transmission line structures under downburst wind loading
Authors/Editors*	A. A. Y. Shehata and A. A. El Damatty
Where published*	Journal of Winds and Structures
How published*	Journal
Year*	2007
Volume	10
Number
Pages	249--269
Publisher
Keywords	wind- downburst- finite element
Link
Abstract	Past experience indicates that the majority of failures of electrical transmission tower structures occurred during high intensity wind events, such as downbursts. The wind load distribution associated with these localized events is different than the boundary layer wind profile that is typically used in the design of structures. To the best of the authorsâ knowledge, this study represents the first comprehensive investigation that assesses the effect of varying the downburst parameters on the structural performance of a transmission line structure. The study focuses on a guyed tower structure and is conducted numerically using, as a case study, one of the towers that failed in Manitoba, Canada, during a downburst event in 1996. The study provides an insight about the spatial and time variation of the downburst wind field. It also assesses the variation of the tower membersâ internal forces with the downburst parameters. Finally, the structural behaviour of the tower under critical downburst configurations is described and is compared to that resulting from the boundary layer normal wind load conditions.