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Characteristics of Tornado-Like Vortices Simulated in a Large-Scale Ward-Type Simulator

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Abstract

Tornado-like vortices are simulated in a large-scale Ward-type simulator to further advance the understanding of such flows, and to facilitate future studies of tornado wind loading on structures. Measurements of the velocity fields near the simulator floor and the resulting floor surface pressures are interpreted to reveal the mean and fluctuating characteristics of the flow as well as the characteristics of the static-pressure deficit. We focus on the manner in which the swirl ratio and the radial Reynolds number affect these characteristics. The transition of the tornado-like flow from a single-celled vortex to a dual-celled vortex with increasing swirl ratio and the impact of this transition on the flow field and the surface-pressure deficit are closely examined. The mean characteristics of the surface-pressure deficit caused by tornado-like vortices simulated at a number of swirl ratios compare well with the corresponding characteristics recorded during full-scale tornadoes.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Professor William Gallus in the Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences at Iowa State University for providing the full-scale surface-pressure measurement data used for comparison with our surface measurements. The authors also want to pay tribute to the late Timothy Samaras, who contributed to the recording of the full-scale surface-pressure data. We acknowledge partial support from the National Science Foundation under award number CMMI 1663363.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 79409, USA

    Zhuo Tang, Changda Feng, Liang Wu & Delong Zuo

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 79409, USA

    Darryl L. James

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  1. Zhuo Tang
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  2. Changda Feng
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  3. Liang Wu
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  4. Delong Zuo
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  5. Darryl L. James
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Correspondence to Delong Zuo.

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Tang, Z., Feng, C., Wu, L. et al. Characteristics of Tornado-Like Vortices Simulated in a Large-Scale Ward-Type Simulator. Boundary-Layer Meteorol 166, 327–350 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10546-017-0305-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10546-017-0305-7

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