Wind tunnel test and field measurement study of wind effects on a 600-m-high super-tall building

Ping An Finance Center with a height of 600 m and 118 storeys, located in Shenzhen, is currently the second tallest building in China. This paper presents a comprehensive study of wind effects on the supertall building through wind tunnel testing and field measurement. The wind-induced loads and pressures on the skyscraper were measured by high-frequency force balance technique and synchronous multipressure sensing system, respectively. In the wind tunnel study, a whole range of characteristic properties, including mean and r.m.s force coefficients, power spectral densities, coherences, correlations, and phase-plane trajectories, wind-induced displacement, and acceleration responses were presented and discussed. In addition, a field measurement study of the dynamic responses of Ping An Finance Center was conducted during a tropical cyclone, which aimed to verify the design assumptions and further the understanding of the dynamic properties and performance of the 600-m-high supertall building, including natural frequencies, damping ratios, and wind-induced structural responses. Then, the serviceability of the skyscraper is assessed on the basis of the experimental results and field measurements. The outcomes of this combined model test and field measurement study are expected to be useful for the wind-resistant design of future supertall buildings.