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A 3D Numerical Investigation into the Effect of Rounded Corner Radii on the Wind Loading of a Square Cylinder Subjected to Supercritical Flow

Tall buildings are often subjected to steady and unsteady forces due to external wind flows. Measurement and mitigation of these forces becomes critical to structural design in engineering applications. Over the last few decades, many approaches such as modification of the external geometry of structures have been investigated to mitigate wind-induced load. One such proven geometric modification involved rounding of sharp corners. In this work, we systematically analyze the effects of rounded corner radii on the flow-induced loading for a square cylinder. We perform 3-Dimensional (3D) simulations at a high Reynolds number of $Re = 1\times 10^5$ which is more likely to be encountered in practical applications. An Improved Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (IDDES) formulation is used with the $k-ω$ Shear Stress Transport (SST) model for near-wall modelling. IDDES is capable of capturing flow accurately at high Reynolds numbers and prevents grid induced separation near the boundary layer. The effects of these corner modifications are analyzed in terms of the resulting mean and fluctuating components of the lift and drag forces compared to a sharp corner case. Plots of the angular distribution of the mean and fluctuating pressure coefficient along the square cylinder's surface illustrate the effects of corner modifications on the different parts of the cylinder. The windward corner's separation angle was observed to decrease with an increase in radius, resulting in a narrower and longer recirculation region. Furthermore, with an increase in radius, a reduction in the fluctuating lift, mean drag, and fluctuating drag coefficients has been observed.