What analytical method is used to ascertain the forced vibration of a structure by wind gusts?

• A. Dynamic Response Analysis
• B. Damping Analysis
• C. Gust Response Analysis
• D. Flutter Analysis

Answer: (C)

Wind gusts impose time-varying aerodynamic loads that excite the structure’s sustained vibrations. Gust Response Analysis specifically models this situation by using a gust time history (a specified gust profile) together with the structure’s dynamic properties to predict the resulting forced vibrations, including displacements, accelerations, and internal forces. This approach directly targets how the structure responds to gust-induced excitations, which is essential for assessing serviceability and safety under realistic wind events.

Damping analysis focuses on how energy dissipates in the system, not on the forced response to a gust; dynamic response analysis is a broad tool for any dynamic loading but does not specialize in gust-shaped loads; flutter analysis investigates aeroelastic instability that can occur at high wind speeds due to coupling between aerodynamics and structural motion, which is a different phenomenon from the ordinary gust-induced vibration being assessed here.