Dynamic response and reliability analysis of saddle membrane structures under wind-driven rain load

The dynamic response and structural reliability of saddle membrane structure under wind-driven rain load are studied by finite element numerical simulation and wind tunnel test. First, the Mechanical APDL module and the Fluent module of the Workbench software are applied to establish the model of saddle membrane structure excited by the wind-driven rain load, which imported into ANSYS AUTODYN to obtain the dynamic response curves. Then, the experimental models are made based on the aeroelastic similarity theory. The dynamic loading tests of the wind-driven rain are carried out on the test models, and the dynamic response data of different feature points on the test models with different working conditions are obtained. Further, the reliability index of the membrane structure is obtained using the Monte Carlo method to solve the dynamic response data of numerical simulation and experiment. In addition, the effects of the combinations of wind and rain load, pretension force and rise-span ratio on dynamic response and reliability of saddle membrane structures are discussed. Finally, A comparison analysis between the experiment and the numerical simulation is carried out, and the results of numerical simulation agree with the experimental results. The research findings of this paper are as follows: the remarkable nonlinear vibration of membrane structure will be induced by wind-driven rain load, which will be decreased by increasing the pretension force and rise-span ratio; the rise-span ratio among different parameters affects reliability of membrane structure most. The research methods and results in this paper can provide a reference for the nonlinear dynamic response study of membrane structures and the design of membrane structures based on the reliability theory. © 2023 Chinese Vibration Engineering Society. All rights reserved.