Structuralassessmentofaguyedmastthroughmeasurementofnatural

frequencies
GhadaSaudi

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doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2013.09.049
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Highlights
Iperformedvibrationtestingonafullscaleguyedmast.
Iidentifiedthenaturalfrequencies.
Modalanalysiswasconductedusingfiniteelementanalysis.
Themodelwassuccessfullyupdatedviavibrationtestingresults.
Reliablestructuralassessmentofthemastmemberswasperformed.

Abstract
The structural investigation of 90 m. guyed communication tower was conducted using experimental and numerical
analyses. Being unused for more than one decade, the structural evaluation was needed for recent loading
configuration.Aspartoftheinvestigationplan,avibrationbasedfiniteelementmodelwasbuilttopredictthemeasured
naturalfrequenciesofthemast.Thestructuralintegrityofthetowerwasstudiedunderexpecteddeadandwindloading
throughnonlinearanalysis.TheprovisionsofANSI/TIA222Gstandardswereemployedtoapplyloadingsandperform
memberschecks.Thefieldinspectionandvibrationmeasurementsofthenaturalfrequenciesprovidedrealproperties
ofthefullscalemast.Thisimprovedtheaccuracyoftheproduced3Dfiniteelementmodeloftheexistingguyedmast.
Thesignificantparametersincalibratingthemodelweretheinertialpropertiesofthemastmembersandthemodulusof
elasticityofpretensionedguycables.Successfulstructuralrehabilitationstrategywasfinallydevelopedbasedonthe
analysisresults.Thispaperpresentsanexceptionalstudyfortheexperimentalidentificationofthedynamicproperties
ofafullscaleguyedmastintermsofitsnaturalfrequencies.Thedynamicbehavioroftheguyedmastwasconceived
through the spectral analysis of the measured ambient response and the finite element model calibration. The final
reliablefiniteelementmodelenhancedaneffectivestructuralassessment.

Keywords
GuyedmastFullscaletestingStructuralassessmentNaturalfrequencyFiniteelementmodelModel
updatingDynamicbehaviorVibrationmeasurements

1.Introduction
These days, almost all communication is wireless in nature. Telecom towers form one of the most fundamental

componentsofanytelecomnetworkwhichisusedextensivelyforwirelesscommunication.Guyedmastsaretelecom
towersthathaveguywires,whicharetensionedcablesusedtostabilizethetower.Theguyedmastisrecognizedasa
slenderstructurethathashighlynonlineargeometricalbehavior[1]and[2].Thisnonlinearityisduetotheincreasein
axialstiffnessofguycableswithincreasingtensionandthedecreaseinthebendingstiffnessofthemastduetothe
increase of compression forces [3]. Structural analysis of guyed masts mostly relies on the analytical methods in
regardtothecomplexityofapplyingfullscaletesting.Simplifiedmodelingtechniqueswereadoptedtoperformwind
response analysis [4] and [5]. Finite element models were developed to perform dynamic analysis. Both frequency
domainandtimedomainmethodswereappliedtoguyedmastssubjectedtoturbulentwinds[6]and[7].Theresponse
duetoguyrupturewaspredictedusinganalyticalstudies[8]and[9].Analyticalinvestigationshavebeenconductedon
existing towers to study the vibration behavior under ice loading [10] and also for seismic loading [11],
[12],[13]and[14].Itwasclearlyemphasizedthatcarefulvalidationofanalyticalmodelswithfullscaletestresultsis
stilllacking.However,fewstudiescarriedoutexperimentalinvestigationsfromtestsappliedtoscaledmodelsinwind
tunnels[15]and[16].
Finiteelementmethodallowstheapplicationofvariousanalysestoinvestigatetheperformanceofexistingstructures
underdifferentloadingconditions.Experiencehas,however,shownthatfiniteelementmodelsoftenfailtopredictthe
actualpropertiesofstructuresasthefundamentalnaturalfrequencies[17].Vibrationmeasurementsonfullscalemasts
canenhancetheaccuracyofafiniteelementmodelthroughcalibrationwithitsmeasuredproperties.Suchtechnique
has been extensively applied to large civil structures as bridges, dams, high rise buildings, and large
grandstands[18],[19],[20],[21]and[22].Inthispaper,theidentificationofnaturalfrequenciesthroughmeasuringthe
ambient response of a full scale guyed mast was performed. A detailed 3D finite element model was then built to
simulatethemeasureddynamicproperties.Structuralparametersweretunedtoproducetheglobalmodesinterpreting
theexperimentallyidentifiedpeaksinthespectralanalysis.Themodalbehaviorwasinvestigatedintherange015Hz.
Thefundamentalnaturalfrequencyofthemastwasidentifiedat1.25Hz.Themastshowntoexhibitverycloseflexural
modesinthemainhorizontalorthogonaldirections.Themostsignificantparametersinthetuningprocesswerethe
inertialpropertiesofthesteelmembersofthemast,andthemodulusofelasticityoftheguycables.Itwasdeducedthat
themembersofthemastareinconditionstateofLevelIIIrustaccordingtoANSI/EIA/TIA222Gstandard.Also,the
existingcableswerefoundtobewireropeswithfibercoretype,whicharenotnormallyusedaspermanentstructural
elementsofmasts[23].Theconditionofthefoundationsissatisfactoryasindicatedthroughthefieldvisualinspection.
The nonlinear analysis was performed under dead and wind loads. The structural capacity of all members was
calculated. The most critical members were found to be the main legs of the mast as their structural capacity is
deficienttocarrytheproposedantennaloads.Accordingtothementionedstandard,anultimatestrengthaspectwas
adoptedtoapplyloadsandcheckmembers.Thefinalrehabilitationplansuggestedthereinforcementofthemainlegs
andthereplacementoftheguycablesbygalvanizedsteelguys.Inaddition,allthemembersshouldbegrinnedto
remove rust and be coated by a cold galvanizing compound before reinforcement work. The applied technique was
foundefficientandsuccessfulinmodelingandinvestigatingthestructuraladequacyoftheguyedmast.Itisbelievedto
becosteffectivesolutionforowners,wheretherealisticmodelingoftheexistingstructureprovidesreliabledecisions
forstrengtheningorfuturemodifications.

2.Theguyedstructure
Theguyedmastwasconstructedin1982.ThestructurecomponentsareshowninFig.1.Thegeometricalproperties
weretakenfromtheoriginaldesigndrawings(Fig.2).The90mhighsteelmastissquareinplanofsize90cm90cm
forthefullheightfromgroundlevelandwasbuiltupusingfoursteelanglesofsizeL90909mmasverticals.These
legmembersareinterconnectedbyboltedconnections.SteelanglesofsizeL60606mmconstitutestheinclined
bracingat200cmspacingonallfaces.WeldedsteelanglesofsizeL30303mmat30cmspacingononefacewith
2verticalsofsizeL50505mmareusedasaladder.Themastissupportedbyguys(0.75in.diameter)atlevel

21mand(1in.diameter)atthreelevels41,61,and82mlevelsfromground.Eachlevelisheldbythreeguyswith
intervalof120inplanbetweenthem.Theguysarelocatedatfourdifferentlevelsandalignedinasingleverticalplane
areanchoredtotworeactionblocks.Thetwolowerguysareanchoredtoareactionblockat20mdistancefromthe
centerofthemast.Thereactionblockat40mdistancefromthecenterofthemastanchorsthetwohigherguys.The
mastissupportedonareinforcedconcretefoundationwithafixedarrangementasshowninFig.1.

Fig.1.
Thecomponentsoftheguyedmast.
Figureoptions

Fig.2.
Geometricalpropertiesoftheguyedmast.
Figureoptions

3.Insituvibrationmeasurement
Theambientdynamicresponsewasmeasuredusing5uniaxialpiezoelectricaccelerometers(4PCBModel393B04and
1B&kModel4378)withhighsensitivity.ActualsensitivityofeachaccelerometerwasdeterminedusingCalibration
ExciterType4294fromBrel&Kjr.ThemeasurementsystemconsistsofPULSEanalyzerType3560/BfromBrel
&Kjr,anotebookwithLANinterface,PULSEsoftwareandIDAbaseddataacquisitionfrontendhardwarewith5input
channels.ThetestgridconsistsofeightlocationsatthemainlegsoftheshaftasillustratedinTable1.Tworeference
accelerometersandthreerovingsensorswereusedtomeasure16DOFatthetestpoints.Availablesignalcablesof
20mlengthandsafetyoftheclimbingtechnicianlimitedtheaccessibilitytoheights10.0mand19.0mforthisdynamic
test.Horizontalaccelerationwasrecordedinorthogonalaxes(XandY)attheshaftofthemastasshowninTable1.
Fivedatasetupsweremadetoidentifythenaturalfrequenciesofthemastunderthesurroundingwindconditions.Inall
casesthesamplingfrequencyonsitewas512Hzandtotaldurationof960sforeachsetup.Thiswasconsideredlong

enoughwithrespecttotheBrinckercriterion(1000periods)[24](seeFig.3).
Table1.
Towertestgridpointsandaccelerometersorientations.
Testgridpoints
Height19.0m
Setup
no.
1
2
3
4
5

1
CH1YCH2
X
CH1YCH2
X
CH1YCH2
X
CH1YCH2
X
CH1YCH2
X

Height10.0m
2

4
CH3YCH4
X

CH3YCH4
X

3
CH5
X
CH5
Y

CH3YCH4
X

CH5
Y
CH5
X
CH5
Y

CH3YCH4
X

CH3YCH4
X

Tableoptions

Fig.3.
PartoftheguyedmastandinsitumeasurementsforsetupNo.1.
Figureoptions

4.Signalprocessing
ThesignalprocessingwasperformedusingARTeMISextractor[25].Thespectraldensitymatricesareestimatedat
discreteequallyspacedfrequencylinesinarangebetweenzero(DC)frequencyandtheNyquistfrequency.Thisisa

radix2numberduetotheuseofthefastFouriertransform(FFT).ThewindowfunctionisHanningwindowbydefault
andtheoverlapbetweentwodatasegmentsis66.67%.Theoverlapisintroducedinordertocompensateforthelossof
informationduetotaperingofthedatasegmentswhenthedatasegmentsaremultipliedbythewindowfunction.Inthe
caseoftheguyedtower,thefrequencylineswere2048inordertohaveenoughaveragestominimizethenoiseonthe
estimatedspectraldensities.Thefrequencyresolutionwas0.125Hz.Thisfrequencyresolutionwasexpectedtobe
adequatetoresolveanycloselyspacednaturalfrequencies.Theusedsignalprocessingalgorithmsareexplainedas
follows:

4.1.FastFouriertransform(FFT)
The fast Fourier transform (FFT) is simply a fast (computationally efficient) way to calculate the discrete Fourier
transform(DFT),TheDFTofadiscretetimesignalx(nT)is
(1)

Turn

on

wherethesamplingperiodTisimpliedinx[n],X[k]isthekthharmonic(k=0N1),x[n]isthenthinputsample
(n=0N1)andNistheframelength,andWNisshorthandforexp(i2/N).Foraradix2FFT,Nmustbea
powerorbaseof2[26].

4.2.Crosspowerspectrum
Crosspowerspectrumbetweentwosignalsy(t)andx(t),istheproductoftheFouriertransformofthefirstsignalwith
thecomplexconjugateoftheFouriertransformofthesecondsignal:
G y x (f) =Y (f) X( f)

(2)

wherebothY(f)andX(f)areFouriertransformsobtainedfromthefunctionsy(t)andx(t),and*denotesthecomplex
conjugation.

4.3.Autopowerspectrum
AutopowerspectrumisaspectrumobtainedbymultiplyingX(f)byitsownconjugateX*(f).Gxx(f)isrealandpositiveat
allfrequencies.

4.4.Coherence
Itiscomputedastheratioofthemagnitudesquaredofthecrosspowerspectrumdividedbytheproductoftheinputand
outputautopowerspectrumsasfollows:
(3)

Thecoherencefunctionisrealvaluedhavingvaluesbetweenzeroandone.ForoutputonlymeasurementsCoherence
Function is a very useful function since it is expected that the coherence will take high values at resonance
frequencies,whereastrongvibrationpatternexistandahighsignaltonoiseratioisfound.

5.Identificationofnaturalfrequencies

Themeasurementdatawererecordedintherangeof0256Hz,howeveronlythefrequencybandfrom0to15Hzwas
considered in the analysis. Typical coherence functions between spectra at the levels 10 and 19 m
forXandYdirectionsareshowninFig.4.Goodcorrelationissignificantbetweenspectraatthisspecifiedrange.The
resonantpeaksofthespectrainthelowerfrequencyrangerepresenttheglobalmodesofthewholetower,whichareof
mainconcernforthepurposeofmodelcalibration.Theidentificationofnaturalfrequencieswasperformedusingpeak
pickingmethod.Itisbasedonthefactthatthefrequencyresponsefunctiongoesthroughanextremevaluearoundthe
naturalfrequency.Inthecontextofoutputonlyresponsevibrationmeasurements,thefrequencyresponsefunctionis
replacedbytheautospectraandcrossspectraoftheoutputonlydata[27].Themethodleadstoreliableestimates
providedthatthebasicassumptionsoflowdampingandwellseparatedmodesaresatisfied.

Fig.4.
Resultsofsignalprocessing.
Figureoptions

Inspection of all average spectral estimates of ASD and CSD allowed to identify the values of natural frequencies
successfullyasshowninFig.4.ThespectraofaccelerationinXdirectionshowedtheresonantfrequencies(spectral
peaks)at1.25,2.1,3.7,5.75,7.5,and11.2Hz.ThepredominantpeaksinYdirectionatboth10and19mlevelsare
observedsocloselytothepeaksintheXdirection.However,alowpeakat2.75HzasshowninCSDinYdirectionwas
alsoconsideredintheanalysis.Itisevidentthatdynamicbehaviorofthetowerischaracterizedbysimilarbending
modesinthemainorthogonaldirections,butwithdifferentamplitudes.TheFiniteelementmodelwasthenrequiredto
interprettheidentifiedpeaksintermsofthemodeshapesofthewholetower.

6.Finiteelementmodel
A3Dfiniteelement(FE)modelwasdevelopedusingthecomputerprogramMStowerversion6.0.Thisprogramcanbe
usedforlinearandnonlinearanalysis,staticanddynamicanalysisofcommunicationandtransmissiontowers[28].In
thisstudytheprogramwasfirstlyusedtocalculatethefundamentalfrequenciesandthecorrespondingmodeshapesof
theguyedmast,basedonitspropertiesfromstructuraldesigndrawings.SecondanupdatedFEmodelwasobtained
throughmodificationsinthesepropertiesbasedonthefieldsurveyandvibrationmeasurements.Finallydetailednon
linearanalyseswereappliedunderdifferentwindloadingconditionsaccordingtoTIA/EIA222Gprovisions[29].
The FE model includes 832 members modeled as threedimensional beamcolumns and 12 tensiononly cable
members.Guysareinputassinglemembers(notsegments)asnoinsulatorsarepositionedalongitslength.Forthe
initialFEmodel,itwasassumedthatthemembersaremadefromST37steelwithtensileyieldstrengthof2400kg/cm2.
The modulus of elasticity and the unit weight of the steel materials used are 2.05E05 N/m m2 and
7850kg/m3respectively.ThePoissonsratiowastakenas0.3.Thepropertiesoftheguymembersarebasedonthe
original structural drawings. The guys are BS type cables with initial tension of 54.27 kN for the upper three guy
membersofeachassembly,and30.25kNforthelowestguys.Basedonthemanufacturersspecificationsforthese
guytypes,themodulusofelasticitywastakenas165.5E03N/mm2withdiameters1in.and0.75in.respectively.The
grade of guy cables was assumed as 1770 which is used for general engineering purposes. The connection at the
foundationwasconsideredfixedforthemastandtheguyanchors.Themodalanalysiswasperformedunderselfweight
andinitialprestressingforces.Theinitialtensionwasdeterminedfromthedrawingsandwasrepresentedinthemodel.
Inadditiontheladderwasincludedinthemodelwhereitsmasspermeterlengthwasconsideredintheanalysis.

7.Modalanalysisandtheoreticalmodelvalidation
Modal analysis can provide the dynamic properties of a structure using a numerical model of the structure. For an
existing structure, the accuracy of such a numerical estimate of the dynamic properties can be validated through
comparisonofthesepropertieswiththoseobtainedfromtestingoftheactualstructure.Thisprocessiscalledmodel
updating, where the testing of the existing structure was performed using ambient vibration measurements. This
technique has proven to be successful for many large civil structures as illustrated in published
researches[18],[19],[20],[21]and[22].
The analysis estimated the natural frequencies and their corresponding mode shapes for the full scale mast. The
modesconsideredinmodelupdatingwereonlythoseidentifiedintherange015Hz.TheinitialFEmodelproduced
naturalfrequencieshigherthanthemeasuredproperties.Thisindicatedthattheexistingguyedmastpossessesless
stiffnessthanitsoriginaldesign,wheretheexistingmastisabarestructurecarryingnoantennasasitwasfirstlybuilt.
Detailed manual sensitivity analysis was performed to determine the key structural parameters to tune the global
modesofthewholemast.Thisanalysisanditsresultsareillustratedin[30].Themodificationsofthemastproperties
weremadetothemodulusofelasticityofthecablesandEIpropertiesofthemastmembers.Sectionalareaandinitial
tensionwerealsoreducedintheguycablesforthefinalupdatedFEmodel.Thecomparisonbetweentheresultsofthe
experimental,theinitialandupdatedFEmodelsareshowninTable2.ThefinalmodificationsintheinitialFEmodel

producedquitegoodagreementwiththeexperimentalresults.ThisshowntobeacceptableandthefinalupdatedFE
modelisconsideredtoactuallyrepresenttheexistingguyedmast.
Table2.
Resultsofexperimentalandanalyticalmodalidentificationandmodificationofstructureparameters.

Mode
1stbending
2ndbending
1stTorsion
4thbending
5thbending
2ndtorsion
Higherbending

Naturalfrequency(Hz)
Experimental InitialFEmodel
1.25
1.69
2.10
2.29
2.75
2.78
3.70
4.79
5.75
6.25
7.50
7.60
11.2
11.82

FEmodel(Updated)
1.25
2.10
2.75
XX3.73,YY3.8
XX5.7,YY5.8
7.50
11.4

Modifications
EImast12%
Ecables84%
Initialtensioncables25.8%
Sectionareaofcables43.5%

Tableoptions

Thefieldsurveyrevealedthattheinstalledguysarenotfullysteelguys.Uncoveredpartsoftheguysattheanchors
showedawireguywithsilkropecore.Thisinterpretsthereductioninthemodulusofelasticityofallguycables,where
Eisreducedby84%andthisagreeswellwiththepropertiesofsteelropeswithfibercores.Thevisualfieldinspection
alsoindicatedthatthemasthasclearsignsofrustatallthemembers.ItwasdefinedasrustlevelIIIaccordingtoTIA
222G 2006. This condition is expected as the mast is located in a coastal city and been unused for more than a
decade.Thusnoregularmaintenancewasapplied,astherearenocommunicationservicestobeprovidedbythemast.
Accordingly, a reduction of EI for the mast members reflects the corrosion condition of the mast. In addition, the
reductionincrosssectionalareaoftheguycablesaredoneduetotheclearcorrosioninthemasmentionedinthefield
inspectionreport.Thereductionininitialtensionisjustifiedduetothetypeoftheexistingguycableswithfibercoreand
the long time of absent maintenance. However, the most influential parameters in updating the FE model are the
modulusofelasticityofthecablesandtheEIpropertiesoftheshaftmembers.Thefinalresultsofthemodalanalysis
areshowninFig.5.

Fig.5.
ResultsofFEmodalanalysisandmodelupdating.
Figureoptions

8.Structuralassessment
8.1.Nonlinearanalysis

The structural analysis was carried out to apply loadings and check the capacity of members using MStower. The
provisionsofTIA222Gwereemployedtoobtainthefinalresultsforstructuralassessment.TIA222Gisalimitstates
code. The stresses in members at the strength limit state are checked. Analysis of guyed masts requires the
catenaryscableoptionandnonlinearanalysis.Itisasecondorderelasticanalysis,whichtakesintoaccountthenon
linear actions arising from the displacement of loads (the Peffect), the change in flexural stiffness of members
subjectedtoaxialforces(thePeffect).ThestructuralanalysisoftheguyedmastinMStowerincludedallthesenon
linearactions[28].Thestructuraladequacywasinvestigatedforinstallingfourlargemicrowaveantennas(Fig.6).Non
linear analysis was applied to analyze the guyed mast under expected dead and wind loading based on Section
2.3.2[29]forfactoredstrengthlimitstateloadcombinations.Thisproduced39loadingcasesincludingtheweightofthe
side steel ladder and the feed lines attached to the antennas to be mounted. The analysis was performed for wind
blowingfrom12differentdirections.ThedesignwindspeedatSinaiPeninsula(locationoftheguyedmast)isbasedon
36 m/s, 3s gusts at 10 m above grade for a 50year return. MStower computes the solidity of each face from the
projectedareaofmembersandthoselinearancillariesthatarewithinthefacezone.Thesolidityofthemostwindward
facesisthenusedincomputingtheEPA(equivalentprojectedareaofanobjectmultipliedbyaforcecoefficient(also
calledadragfactor)usedinthedeterminationofwindloads[25].

Fig.6.
Antennasandenvelopeoftheminimumandmaximumaxialforces.
Figureoptions

8.2.Analysisresults
Theguyedmastwascheckedforhavingsufficientstrengthandstabilitysuchthatthedesignstrength,Rn,definedin
Section 4 equals or exceeds the required strength, iQi, defined in Section 2[26] as expressed by the following
relationship:

(4)

Rn i Q i
where,
Designstrength,Rn:theproductofnominalstrengthandaresistancefactor.
Requiredstrength,iQi:thesumoftheloadeffectsduetoappliedfactoredloadsandloadcombinations.

Loadfactor,i:afactorthataccountsfordeviationsoftheactualloadfromthenominalload,foruncertaintiesin
theanalysisthattransformstheloadintoloadeffects,andfortheprobabilitythatmorethanoneextremeloadwill
occursimultaneously.
Nominalstrength,Rn:thecapacityofastructureormembertoresisttheeffectsofloads.
Resistance factor, : a factor that accounts for the manner and consequences of failure and for unavoidable
deviationsfromacalculatednominalstrength.
ThedesignstrengthsarecalculatedfromtherulesofSection4.5forcompressionmembers,Section4.6fortension
members,andSection4.8forcombinedaxialandbending[29].
The structural analysis was first performed to check the members of the initial FE model to carry the new antenna
loadingalongwiththedifferentcasesofthewindloading.Theanalysisresultsindicatedthatthemostcriticalmembers
werethemainleganglesofthemastfromlevel0.00tolevel21.0m,wherethestressratioexceededtheallowable
limits according to ANSI/EIA/TIA222G. The detailed structural analysis was carried out to study the structural
capacityofthefinalupdatedmodel.Theresultingenvelopeofmaximumandminimumaxialforcesforthestructural
membersofthemastisshowninFig.6.
Table3showsthesummaryoftheresultsforthisstructuralanalysis.Themostoverstressedmemberswerefoundto
bethemainlegswherethestressratioreached2.11forthelegsofthelowerpaneluptill21.0mhigh.Bracingand
horizontal members have stress ratio within acceptable limits were considered adequate to resist the internal loads
inducedinthembytheproposedloading.Alllevelsofguywirewereseentobesufficienttoresisttheappliedloads
whilestillmaintainingtheminimumfactorofsafetyagainstultimatebreakingstrength.Themaximumstressratioof
ultimatetorequiredstrengthinanyoftheguymembersis0.577,whichislessthan1.0asprescribedbyTIA222G.
Theguyanchorsandbasefoundationwerefoundtobesatisfactorytoresistthereactionsimpartedbytheproposed
loadingandantennastobeinstalled.However,alltheguywiresarerecommendedtobereplacedastheirtypeisnot
conformabletotheengineeringtypesofstructuralguywiresformaststructures.Thefieldsurveyrevealedthatthe
existingmastmembershaveLevelIIIrustwithinitialpittingofsteelaccordingtoANSI/EIA/TIA222Gstandard.This
demandsgrindingofrustedspotsandcoatingwithZRCacoldgalvanizingcompound.Reinforcementofthemainlegs
isrequiredtobringthemasttotheappliedstandardforcarryingthenewdesignloads.
Table3.
Summaryofstructuralanalysisandloadcarryingcapacityofmainmembers.
Elevation
(m)
8290
6182
4161
2141

Member
LEG
BRC
LEG
BRC
LEG
BRC
LEG
BRC

Section
EA80X80X8
EA50X50X5
EA80X80X8
EA50X50X5
EA80X80X8
EA60X60X6
EA90X90X8
EA60X60X6

Requiredstrength
iQ
74
15
225
27
221
31
320
26

Designstrength
Rn
199
39
199
39
199
76
246
76

Max.stressratioiQ/
Rn
0.372
0.395
1.131a
0.70
1.110
0.401
1.299a
0.345

Evaluation
Pass
Pass
Fail
Pass
Fail
Pass
Fail
Pass

021
21
41
61
82
a

LEG
BRC
GUY
GUY
GUY
GUY

EA90X90X8
EA60X60X6
0.75in.
1in.
1in.
1in.

520
36
27
66
102
146

246
76
91
262
262
262

2.110a
0.469
0.295
0.253
0.557
0.388

Fail
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

Overstressedmembers.

Tableoptions

Finallyamodalanalysiswasperformedtostudytheresultingchangeinthenaturalfrequenciesduetotheaddedmass
of the large antennas. The first fundamental frequency decreased from 1.25 Hz to 1.08 Hz. It is obvious that the
reinforcementwillleadtoincreasingthenaturalfrequencyhoweveritisimportanttonotethattheinstalledantennas
havedirectimpactonthefinaldynamicpropertiesofthewholemast.Approaching1Hzforthefundamentalfrequency
mayleadtoconsideringresonantdynamicresponseduetowindloads.Thisariseswhenthenaturalfrequenciesarelow
enoughtobeexcitedbytheturbulenceinthenaturalwind[31].Thesehighlyflexiblestructures,whicharevulnerableto
windinducedoscillations,arethenrequiredtobeexaminedfordynamiceffectsofwindduringdesignstage.

9.Conclusions

Inthisstudy,anefficientassessmentprocedureforanexistingguyedmastispresented.Modelidentificationof
themastwasobtainedbyusingmeasurementdatafromtheambientdynamictests.Calibratedmodelofthemast
wasgeneratedbasedontestresultsandthismodelisusedforstructuralassessmentandevaluationoftheguyed
masttocarrylargemicrowaveantenna.

Thevibrationmeasurementsofafullscalemastarebitchallenging.Theneedofaqualifiedclimberloadedwith
many long cables and right mounting of accelerometers according to test plan are key issues in acquiring the
requireddata.Forthe90mtallguyedmast,measurementsatheightsof10and19menabledtheidentificationof
the natural frequencies successfully. Correlation between experimental and numerical results provided the full
modalanalysisoftheexistingmast.

The global modes of the mast were identified in the frequency range 015 Hz. The dynamic behavior is
characterizedbycoupledmodesinthemainorthogonalaxes.Thisisevidentinthemeasuredspectra,wherethe
spectralpeaksoftheresonantfrequenciesaresimilarforbothdirections.TheFEmodelresultsalsoconfirmed
thisbehavior.

There were no structural history record for the mast however the visual inspection and the experimental
measurementsenhancedtheidentificationofthemainparametersofthestructuralmembersofthestructure.The
modificationsappliedtotheFEmodelreflectedtherealconditionoftheguyedmastwherethecorrosionsigns
were represented by reduction in cross sectional area. The elastic modulus of the guy cables was reduced to
modelthesteelropeoffibercore.Inclusionofhigherordermodesinthecalibrationprocessisimportanttoobtaina
wellcorrelatedmodel.

ThefinalupdatedFEmodelreliablyrepresentsthefullscalemastandthestructuralassessmentwasefficiently
performed. The model of the structure was used to apply different cases of loading to carry 4 new microwave
antennas according to TIA/EIA222G provisions. The critical members were determined and possible retrofit
scenarioswereevaluated.

Theadditionoflargeantennasleadstoreductioninthefundamentalfrequencyofthemast.Thisissueshouldbe
consideredinthedesignanalysis.Significantdynamicamplificationofdisplacementsandforcesinthestructure
duetointeractionwithturbulentwindscanresultatverylowfrequencyforsuchflexiblemasts.

Theresultsarepromisingandthetechniqueadoptedcanbeconsideredacosteffectiveandreliablesolutionfor
thestructuralassessmentofguyedmasts.

Acknowledgments
The author gratefully acknowledges the generous financial support from National Telecommunication Regulatory
AuthorityEgypttoperformthisstudy.TheeffortsofDeltaCompanyforElectronics,representativeofEgyptBrel&
Kjr,forcalibratingthemeasurementsystemarehighlyappreciated.TheauthoralsowishestothankDr.EhabHassan
forhishelpinarrangingtheinsitumeasurements.ThehelpofEng.JemiAstomoisappreciatedinusingMStower.

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