Variability of low building wind loads due to surroundings

A myriad of surface obstructions form the basic roughness that generates the Earth's planetary boundary layer. Among these are the class of structures termed low buildings. Ironically, attempts to determine wind loads on low buildings have been hampered by the random nature of these surface elements and researchers have been forced to simplify to deal with the complex problem. As a result, almost all low building research to date has been carried out on simple rectangular block-like buildings in homogeneous surroundings. While the aerodynamic behaviour of wind on isolated low buildings has been well researched, the effect of realistic surroundings has not been examined in detail. Whether the results from these simplified tests lead to the most appropriate design values remains an open question.