Advances in methodologies to assess wind actions in plastic-covered greenhouses

ABSTRACT

The technology provided by greenhouses is essential for protecting crops sensitive to bioclimatic adversities and for improving agricultural production indexes. However, the need to know the exact interaction between the flexible coating and the structure under wind action has motivated new studies. The objective was to perform an in-depth review of the scientific and technological advances regarding methodologies to obtain parameters related to wind actions that are essential for the structural safety of greenhouses. This study showed the relevance of experimental methods; however, the limitations of the study are diverse, as field experiments require the construction and modifications of a prototype, which demand time and financial resources. Experiments in wind tunnels with models on a reduced scale have contributed significantly, as it allows to control the wind flow; however, in plastic-covered greenhouses, discrepancies occur due to the impossibility to represent the aeroelasticity of the construction. Modeling via computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has proven to be a solution for extrapolating limitations in experimental methods by facilitating changes in the construction model and wind flow. In addition to pure turbulence models, studies on hybrid turbulence models (Scale-Resolving Simulation) must be deepened to obtain greater accuracy of pressure coefficients. The complexity of the subject and the need for new contributions to plastic-covered greenhouse projects are a reality, which outlines a promising horizon for research development in the rural construction sector.

protected cultivation; wind tunnel; finite element method; computational fluid dynamic; fluid-structure interaction