Wind engineering in the integrated design of princess Elisabeth Antarctic base

The Belgian Antarctic Base Princess Elisabeth is based on an elevated building on top of sloping terrain and connected to an under-snow garage. The integrated design of the base was supported by wind engineering testing that looked into building aerodynamics (pressure taps) and snowdrift management. Wind tunnel modeling using sand erosion technique allowed efficient evaluation of the snow erosion and deposition around different building-block shapes during the conceptual design phase. Parametric testing shows that the positioning of the main building on the ridge has a significant impact on wind loading and snow erosion and deposition. Important reductions in wind loading and snow deposition can be obtained by elevating the building and reducing the windward cantilever. The positioning of the garage roof can further decrease the wind loading by acting as a diffuser in the back of the building. This study shows that, not only for safety and cost reduction but also for the integration of renewable energies, important benefits in the design of a building can be achieved if wind engineering is considered since the conceptual phase of the integrated building design process.