Analysis of Wind Field Characteristics of Ideal V-Shaped and U-Shaped Canyons

Abstract

As an important part of road transportation, bridge engineering plays a pivotal role in infrastructure construction. The wind field characteristics of the bridge site area have an essential influence on both the construction and operation period of the bridge, especially in mountainous canyon terrain. In this paper, a numerical simulation using computational fluid dynamics software was conducted to examine the intricate wind field characteristics in mountainous regions. The study focused on ideal V-shaped and U-shaped canyons, aiming to investigate the influence of various parameters. These parameters included three distinct heights, seven angles, and seven widths of the canyon. The findings indicate that in both ideal V-shaped and U-shaped canyons, the canyon acceleration effect weakens as the angles or widths of the canyon increase. The wind speed amplification effect gradually disappears when the V-shaped canyon angle exceeds 160° or when the U-shaped canyon has a width-to-height ratio of approximately 5:1. The wind speed amplification effect strengthens as the canyon height increases. The wind speed acceleration effect exhibits a linear relationship with the angle of the V-shaped canyon, while it demonstrates a logarithmic relationship with the width of the U-shaped canyon. Additionally, the wind speed amplification factor follows a logarithmic distribution along the canyon height. The wind field characteristics observed in this study offer valuable insights for future bridge designs in mountainous regions featuring V-shaped and U-shaped canyons.