Comparison of Simulated and Measured Wind Forces on Offshore Tower Structure

For flare towers or other types of slender structures mounted on offshore platforms, evaluation of the forces caused by static and dynamic wind action is of key importance for proper design. The drag coefficient is one of the main parameters to be specified for calculation of these forces. However, for complex lattice towers the drag coefficient is in general difficult to assess. The present paper outlines a procedure for estimation of wind forces and drag coefficients based on numerical simulation of the flow and pressure field around such structures. An example tower is considered for which measurements from wind tunnel tests also are available. The actual tower consists of four columns connected by transverse braces. The computer analysis is performed by the use of the computer code Navsim, which is developed for two-dimensional CFD-analysis.