The effects of parapet walls on roof pressures measured in full scale
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Abstract
An experiment was set up in the field to acquire wind and roof pressured data behind a parapet wall. The objectives of this study were to obtain reliable data for the external pressures on the buildings surface and internal pressures in the building and to determine how the parapet wall affects the roof pressures. A partial parapet wall was installed around one comer of the Wind Engineering Field Research Laboratory. External roof pressures were measured at nine locations behind the parapet wall during high wind events (wind speeds greater than 20 miles per hour). The external roof pressures were reduced along the edge of the roof with the addition of a parapet wall at both 180 degrees and 270 degrees. The largest negative mean and peak pressure coefficients measured behind the parapet wall were found for cornering winds, with a wind direction of 225 degrees. Comparison of the wind tunnel data with the field data showed that the mean and positive peak pressures were in good agreement; however, the negative peak pressures measured in the wind tunnel underestimated the field data.