School of Civil Engineering

Wind engineering research

Wind Research Laboratory (WiRL) is comprised of atmospheric scientists and engineers that conduct specialised, interdisciplinary research in the following areas:

  • Catastrophe loss modelling
  • Post-storm damage assessments
  • Severe convective thunderstorms (e.g. downbursts and tornadoes)
  • Tropical cyclones
  • Wind engineering
  • Wind tunnel research
  • Bluff body (building) aerodynamics

Current projects

  1. Characterising the hazard, structure, and impacts of severe convective wind storms
  2. Storm Reports
  3. Using realistic disaster scenario analysis to understand natural hazard impacts and emergency management requirements
  1. Numerical simulation of the progressive collapse of transmission line systems
  2. Tropical Cyclone Wind Field Characterisation
  3. Unsteady bluff body aerodynamics

2. Storm Reports

Cyclone Yasi devastation in Tully, QLD
Cyclone Yasi devastation in Tully, QLD

When severe wind events (cyclones, thunderstorms, tornadoes) results in damage to structures, WiRL conducts post-event survey work to learn more about the fundamental nature of the near-surface wind fields that have occurred, and also to understand why/how structures failed. Below are links to survey reports that WiRL has participated in:

Brisbane hailstorm: 27 November 2014

Fernvale supercell: 27 October 2015

Sydney tornado and outflow: 16 December 2015
Tropical Cyclone Debbie: 2017 (CTS Report; WiRL Report)

Funding for storm report survey work comes from a number of sources and is often undertaken in collaboration with researchers from other institutions.