Non-Gaussian along-wind response analysis in time and frequency domains

With special reference to the role of the non-Gaussian nature of the response, the procedures for along-wind frequency-domain analysis of MDOF structures are discussed. Assuming turbulence as a homogeneous Gaussian field, the dynamic response of structural systems is evaluated by using the power spectral density of the wind force in the case of the standard Gaussian analysis and by using both the power spectral density and bi-spectrum in the case of non-Gaussian analysis. The statistics of the response is used to estimate the peak value distribution. A parametric analysis, carried out on a steel lattice broadcasting antenna, and the comparison with suited time domain analyses of the response allowed to evaluate the reliability of the spectral methods.