Characterizing wind conditions in port areas by CFD: A new analytical model for the mean wind speed profile in and above the canopy layer

Undisturbed wind speed and direction measured outside the port or locally measured wind speed and direction at the terminals are often used as representative for mooring and loading/unloading containership. Measurements and standard logarithmic function from codes are commonly used to calculate vertical profiles of the mean wind speed. However, while measurements outside the port are not representative of wind conditions in terminals, measurements carried out at the terminals may provide unreliable statistics if shielded by surrounding obstacles. The applicability of the standard logarithmic law in terminals can be limited by port infrastructures and the surrounding, since it does not account for the internal boundary layer and canopy layer (CL). To overcome these issues, the importance of CFD to predict local mean wind speed and direction is highlighted and a new analytical model accounting for the CL is proposed. A new formulation is derived from literature and Eurocode 1, supported by RANS simulations for the port area validated with field measurements. Vertical profiles of mean wind speed from Eurocode 1 and CFD showed a good agreement, with the former generally more conservative. While adopting stronger wind conditions may be conservative, it is not always the most suitable choice for port operations and wind design, particularly when prevailing wind directions on the area of interest are shielded by the surrounding leading to the development of a CL profile. Overall, the new formulation can enhance accuracy of mean wind speed in complex environments like ports with a frontal area density lower than 0.2.