Effects of a tuned mass damper on wind-induced motions in tall buildings

Abstract

With ever increasing constructability capacities, engineers have found solutions to build taller and taller structures. However, the race for the sky has not only brought up new ways of building, it has also created new problems to face, namely wind-induced motions. In particular, wind loadings are now the source of vibrations in buildings, which have a direct impact on users. While in the past, strength capacities were the main concern, nowadays, human's comfort has become the one of the new primary problems engineers have to face when designing skyscrapers. Several solutions have been developed throughout the years in order to mitigate the response of a building to wind loads, one of which is the Tuned Mass Damper system. This system, which consists of an auxiliary mass added to a structure, significantly reduces motions in high-rise buildings. However, the theory is often based on a harmonic excitation of a building, which is not necessarily the exact representation of wind loads. This paper analyzes the effects of a Tuned Mass Damper on the response of a building to a saw tooth excitation with white noise, which seems to be a better approximation of how wind loads act on tall structures.