On the reduction of the wind-load on buildings by using cantilever parapets

The high wind loads on building roofs are normally associated with very intense vortex formed close to the windward roof eaves, which cause intense suction loads on the roof elements. The effect of cantilever parapets on the wind-load on buildings’ roofs has been studied. A cantilever parapet consists of a short and flat plate located along the edge of the roof and just over it (slightly detached from the roof surface and parallel to it). The analysis has been performed by wind tunnel testing of different model geometries, including flat and curved roofs of low-rise buildings and covers of stadium-grandstands. Models were rigid, so that no aero-elastic phenomena were accounted for. The different model surfaces under study were equipped with pressure taps on the roofs, and the time averaged pressure signal at each tap measured at 100 Hz sampling rate, the cases studied being stationary. Experimental results reveal that the air stream formed between the parapet and the building blows away the conical vortices from the roof surface, reducing the suction created on them by the win