DISCUSSIONS AND CLOSURES
reem 2005兲; 共2兲 ACQC, in which both co- and quad-spectra of the
Discussion of “Cross Correlations of Modal
Responses of Tall Buildings in Wind-
Induced Lateral-Torsional Motion” by M. F.
Huang, C. M. Chan, K. C. S. Kwok, and
P. A. Hitchcock
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August 2009, Vol. 135, No. 8, pp. 802–812.
DOI: 10.1061/共ASCE兲0733-9399共2009兲135:8共802兲
Xinzhong Chen, A.M.ASCE1; and Ahsan Kareem,
Dist.M.ASCE2
1
Assistant Professor, Wind Science and Engineering Research Center,
Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas Tech Univ.,
Lubbock, TX 79409. E-mail: xinzhong.chen@ttu.edu
2
Robert M. Moran Professor of Engineering, Dept. of Civil Engineering
and Geological Sciences, Univ. of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN
46556. E-mail: kareem@nd.edu
The paper presented a slightly enhanced closed-form expression
for estimating the modal correlation coefficients of wind-excited
structures needed for complete quadratic combination 共CQC兲 of
response in various modes by extending the expression proposed
in Chen and Kareem 共2005兲. The modal correlation coefficient
between two adjacent modes, needed for the implementation of
the CQC scheme, is often estimated using the closed-form formu-
lation given in Der Kiureghian 共1980兲 for the analysis of wind
load effects on buildings and other structures, e.g., Xie et al.
共2003兲. Chen and Kareem 共2005兲 emphasized that this formula-
tion is valid only when the generalized forces are fully correlated,
for example, in the case of buildings with an earthquake input
excitation. The modal correlation coefficient depends not only on
the modal frequencies and damping ratios but also on the
correlation/coherence of the generalized forces. A utilization of
the formulation in Der Kiureghian 共1980兲, primarily intended for
earthquake load effects, will overestimate the modal correlation
associated with multiple excitations of partially correlated loads,
e.g., wind loads. Following the derivation given in Chen and Ka-
reem 共2005兲, in which the cospectrum, i.e., the real part of the
cross power spectral density 共XPSD兲 function, of the generalized
wind forces has been included, the authors have proposed includ-
ing the quad-spectrum, i.e., the imaginary part, in an effort to
further improve the estimate of modal response correlation.
When comparing the original work by Chen and Kareem to
the study by Huang et al., one will find that the latter essentially
echoes and reinforces the viewpoints expressed in the former con-
cerning the need for a modified CQC scheme and its implications
in the case of wind-excited structures. Unfortunately, it does so
with only a marginal and obscurely placed attribution to this
original work, which may leave a casual reader with the impres-
sion that Huang et al. were indeed the first to unveil this issue.
Using a 60-story building as an example, the paper compared
three different schemes for calculating the modal correlation co-
efficients and their influence on the predictions of building accel-
erations using the CQC rule. These schemes include: 共1兲 TCQC,
in which the generalized forces are assumed to be fully coherent
共conventional approach used in analysis prior to Chen and Ka-
JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING MECHANICS © ASCE / FEBRUARY 2011 / 151
J. Eng. Mech. 2011.137:151-154.
generalized forces are considered using the proposed closed-form
formula; and 共3兲 ECQC, in which the modal correlation coeffi-
cient is determined by direct numerical integrations of the re-
sponse spectra.
The paper demonstrated the accuracy of the ACQC as com-
pared to the ECQC scheme and reaffirmed the inability of TCQC
to accurately represent the combination of modal response as
originally pointed out by Chen and Kareem 共2005兲. Unfortu-
nately, the authors failed to compare the predictions based on
ACQC with the one proposed in Chen and Kareem 共2005兲 that
accounted for the cospectrum only. The discussers have made
some observations from the results given in Fig. 6 of the original
paper regarding the role of the quad-spectrum in the case of
0° wind. When the modal frequencies are well separated, the
modal correlation associated with cospectrum, i.e., the first part of
Eq. 共42兲 in the original paper, is negligibly small, and the corre-
lation is more dominated by that associated with the quad-
spectrum, i.e., the second part of Eq. 共42兲. From Fig. 6共a兲 it is
noted that at f 1 / f 2 = 0.4, r12 ⬇ −0.2. For f 1 / f 2 = 0.4 Eq. 共43兲 gives
␳共I兲
12 = −0.061. This suggests the normalized quad-spectrum, i.e.,
r12 / ␳共I兲
12 ⬇ −3.28. Similarly, from Fig. 6共b兲, f 2 / f 3 = 0.4 and r23
⬇ 0.1 results in a normalized quad-spectrum equal to around 1.64;
and from Fig. 6共c兲, f 1 / f 3 = 0.4 and r13 ⬇ −0.1 leads to a normal-
ized quad-spectrum equal to around −1.64. Similar observations
can also be made from Fig. 7 in the case of 90° wind and Table 2
in the original paper. These observations suggest that the absolute
values of the normalized quad-spectra are greater than unity. This
is contrary to the generally accepted definition in which the ab-
solute values of normalized quad-spectra are less than unity akin
to the normalized cospectra. The normalized co- and quad-spectra
between two generalized wind forces, Q j共t兲 and Qk共t兲, are defined
as Re关SQjk共f兲兴 / 冑SQj共f兲SQk共f兲 and Im关SQjk共f兲兴 / 冑SQj共f兲SQk共f兲,
where SQj共f兲, SQk共f兲, and SQjk f = PSDs and XPSD of Q j共t兲 and
Qk共t兲; and Re and Im= real and imaginary operators. Based on
these observations, the amplitude of the quad-spectrum used in
the paper may have potentially overemphasized the role of the
quad-spectra in the estimation of the modal correlation coeffi-
cients.
To better understand the role of the co- and quad-spectra of
wind loads in modal combination schemes, synchronously
mapped pressure data over the 1 / 400 scale model of a tall square
building with 40 m square in plane and 200 m in height is con-
sidered here 共Tamura et al. 1999兲. First, a tall square building with
coincident centers of geometry, mass, and rigidity is considered.
The mode shapes in primary directions are one-dimensional un-
coupled and are assumed to be identical following a power law
with an exponent of 1.25. Fig. 1 of this discussion shows the
normalized co- and quad-spectra for crosswind and torsional gen-
eralized forces. The peak around reduced frequency, fB / UH
共where f = frequency; B = building width; and UH = mean wind
speed at the building top兲 of about 0.1 is related to vortex shed-
ding. At higher reduced frequency range, which is of interest to
the design of most tall buildings, the absolute value of the quad-
spectrum is smaller than that of the cospectrum.
The influence of the quad-spectrum on the modal correlation
coefficient can be addressed through a similar calculation as
 0.8
Normalized co− and quad−spectra
1

Mode correlation coefficient r23

Modes 2 and 3 w/ Co−spectra
w/ Co−spectra (Appr.)
0.6
0.5 w/ Co− and Quad−spectra
w/ Co− and Quad−spectra (Appr.)
0.4
0
0.2

−0.5
Co−spectra 0
Quad−spectra
−1 −0.2
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0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
Reduced frequency fB/U (a) Frequency ratio f /f
H 2 3

Fig. 1. Normalized co- and quad-spectra of the generalized forces for 0.8

Mode correlation coefficient r23

modes 2 and 3, i.e., crosswind and torsional modes 共uncoupled build- w/ Co−spectra
ing兲 0.6 w/ Co−spectra (Appr.)
w/ Co− and Quad−spectra
w/ Co− and Quad−spectra (Appr.)
0.4
shown in Fig. 6 of the original paper. The following parameters
are used in this calculation: the mean wind speed at the building 0.2
top is UH = 20 and 40 m / s; the torsional modal frequency is f 3
= 0.273 Hz; and the crosswind modal frequency, f 2, is varied so 0
that the frequency ratio f 2 / f 3 ranges from 0.4 to 1.0. The modal
correlation coefficient of crosswind and torsional modes, r23, is −0.2
calculated using two different schemes: 共1兲 with cospectrum only, 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
(b) Frequency ratio f2/f3
as suggested in Chen and Kareem 共2005兲; and 共2兲 with both co-
and quad-spectra, as suggested in the original paper. Regarding
Fig. 3. Comparison of modal correlation coefficients 共uncoupled
the normalized co- and quad-spectra for the calculation of the
building兲: 共a兲 UH = 20 m / s; 共b兲 UH = 40 m / s
modal correlation coefficient as shown in Chen and Kareem
共2005兲 and the original paper, it is noted that some slightly
different normalizations may be adopted. For example, the normalized cospectrum at the frequency f jk = 0.5共f j + f k兲 can
be defined as: 共a兲 Re关SQjk共f jk兲兴 / 冑SQj共f j兲SQk共f k兲; or 共b兲
Re关SQjk共f jk兲兴 / 冑SQj共f jk兲SQk共f jk兲 where f j and f k = the jth and kth
Normalized co− and quad−spectra

1
modal frequencies. Similar normalizations exist for the quad-
spectrum. The format 共a兲 was used in the paper and is regarded as
0.5 an approximation as it is different from the standard normaliza-
tion as given in format 共b兲 used in Chen and Kareem 共2005兲. Fig.
2 of this discussion shows the comparison of these two normal-
0
ization formats for both co- and quad-spectra at f 23 = 0.5共f 2 + f 3兲 in
Co−spectra this tall building example at UH = 20 and 40 m / s. For f 2 / f 3 = 0.4
−0.5 Quad−spectra ⬃1.0, the corresponding reduced frequency f 23B / UH is 0.382
Co−spectra (Appr.) ⬃ 0.546 at 20 m / s, and 0.2191⬃ 0.273 at 40 m / s. As expected,
Quad−spectra (Appr.) the differences of these two normalization formats are negligible.
−1 The closed-form formulation for the modal correlation coefficient
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
(a) Frequency ratio f /f
2 3
is derived based on the fact that the spectra of generalized wind
forces can be regarded as constants around the modal frequencies,
and the modal correlation is noticeable only when two modal
Normalized co− and quad−spectra

1.5
frequencies are closely spaced. Fig. 3 shows the comparison of
1 the modal correlation coefficients with and without the influence
of quad-spectrum. It is seen that the contribution of the quad-
0.5
spectrum is negligible at 20 m / s, while some influence is ob-
0 served at 40 m / s, where the two modal frequencies are closely
spaced and the quad-spectrum is indistinguishable from the
−0.5 Co−spectra cospectrum.
Quad−spectra To further understand the role of quad-spectrum of wind loads
−1 Co−spectra (Appr.) on the modal correlation coefficients of buildings with three-
Quad−spectra (Appr.)
−1.5 dimensional 共3D兲 coupled mode shapes, the square building ex-
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1 amined earlier is reconsidered by introducing an eccentricity in
(b) Frequency ratio f /f
2 3 rigidity in the diagonal direction of the building cross section. The
centers of rigidity at different floors are assumed to be on a single
Fig. 2. Comparison of co- and quad-spectra 共uncoupled building兲: 共a兲 vertical line. As a result of eccentricity, the building exhibits 3D
UH = 20 m / s; 共b兲 UH = 40 m / s coupled mode shapes with particularly strong coupled motion in

152 / JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING MECHANICS © ASCE / FEBRUARY 2011

J. Eng. Mech. 2011.137:151-154.

 0.6
Normalized co− and quad−spectra
1

Mode correlation coefficient r23

Modes 2 and 3 w/ Co−spectra
w/ Co−spectra (Appr.)
0.5 0.4 w/ Co− and Quad−spectra
w/ Co− and Quad−spectra (Appr.)

0 0.2

−0.5 0
Co−spectra
Quad−spectra
−1 −0.2
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
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0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

(a) Frequency ratio f2/f3
Reduced frequency fB/U
H

0.6
Fig. 4. Normalized co- and quad-spectra of the generalized forces for

23
w/ Co−spectra

Mode correlation coefficient r

modes 2 and 3 共coupled building兲 w/ Co−spectra (Appr.)
0.4 w/ Co− and Quad−spectra
w/ Co− and Quad−spectra (Appr.)
two translational directions observed. The modal shapes in terms
of the motions at the building top center in along wind, cross- 0.2
wind, and torsional directions 共torsional displacement is multi-
plied by half of the building width兲 are 共−0.6550, 0.6550, 0.4612兲, 0
共0.7071, 0.7071, 0兲, and 共0.2663, −0.2663, 1.1346兲, respectively.
The variation of the mode shapes over the building height follows
a power law with an exponent of 1.25. The first and second fun- −0.2
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
damental modes are dominated by the out-of-phase and in-phase (b) Frequency ratio f /f
2 3
coupled translational motions, respectively, indicating that the
building approximately vibrates in the orthogonal diagonal direc- Fig. 6. Comparison of modal correlation coefficients 共coupled build-
tions of the building plan. The first mode is also coupled with ing兲: 共a兲 UH = 20 m / s; 共b兲 UH = 40 m / s
in-phase torsional motion. The third mode is dominated by the
torsional motion with coupled out-of-phase translations. Fig. 4
shows the normalized co- and quad-spectra of the generalized
forces for the modes 2 and 3. It can be seen that the correlation
between the crosswind and torsional loads contribute to the co-
Normalized co− and quad−spectra

1
and quad-spectra of the generalized forces. At the reduced fre-
quency range of interest, the normalized quad-spectra show small
0.5 absolute values as compared to the cospectra. A similar calcula-
tion using the same parameters is carried out for this coupled
building as for the uncoupled case. Figs. 5 and 6 show the results,
0
which again demonstrate a negligible influence of quad-spectrum
Co−spectra on the modal correlation coefficient at 20 m / s, while there is
−0.5 Quad−spectra some influence at 40 m / s for the modes with closely spaced fre-
Co−spectra (Appr.) quencies.
Quad−spectra (Appr.) It should be emphasized that the quad-spectra of the spa-
−1 tiotemporal fluctuations in the surface pressure field over a build-
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
(a) Frequency ratio f /f
2 3
ing surface have no contribution to the PSDs of the overall
integral loads and the generalized loads associated with one- or
three-dimensional mode shapes as a consequence of the quad-
Normalized co− and quad−spectra

1.5 Co−spectra
Quad−spectra spectrum being an odd function 共Kareem 1978兲. The significance
1 of the quad-spectra on the modal correlation coefficients depends
Co−spectra (Appr.)
Quad−spectra (Appr.) on the characteristics of dynamic wind loads and building mode
0.5
shapes. Considering the role of the quad-spectra in the formula-
0 tion presented in this paper as an enhancement of the formulation
given in Chen and Kareem 共2005兲, the authors need to clarify the
−0.5 nature of the XPSD of the generalized forces used in the example
study, as some observations made here suggest a clear departure
−1
from the normal definition. The quad-spectra of wind loads have
−1.5 often been considered negligible as compared to the cospectra
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1 based on some wind tunnel testing data on tall buildings 共e.g.,
(b) Frequency ratio f2/f3
Kareem 1992; Tallin and Ellingwood 1985兲. If the quad-spectra
of wind loads significantly impact the response estimates of
Fig. 5. Comparison of co- and quad-spectra of generalized forces for coupled buildings as implied in the paper, it may become essen-
modes 2 and 3 共coupled building兲: 共a兲 UH = 20 m / s; 共b兲 UH tial to carefully model this feature in evaluating wind loads and
= 40 m / s their effects on buildings.

JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING MECHANICS © ASCE / FEBRUARY 2011 / 153

J. Eng. Mech. 2011.137:151-154.

 In closing, the discussers would like to thank the authors for
their interest in following up on an earlier work that underscored
the shortcomings of the use of the CQC scheme, as defined for
earthquake loads, for wind-induced response and proposed a
modification based on theoretical considerations. Their suggestion
that purposefully neglected quad-spectrum be reintroduced to our
formulation is also acknowledged, at least for the sake of com-
pleteness.
References
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equivalent static wind loads on buildings with three-dimensional
modes.” J. Struct. Eng., 131共7兲, 1071–1082.
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