Wind tunnel tests have become one of the most effective ways to evaluate aerodynamics and aeroelasticity in bluff bodies. This paper has firstly overviewed the development of conventional wind tunnel test techniques, including high frequency base balance technique, static synchronous multi-pressure sensing system test technique and aeroelastic test, and summarized their advantages and shortcomings. Subsequently, two advanced test approaches, a forced vibration test technique and hybrid aeroelastic- force balance wind tunnel test technique have been comprehensively reviewed. Then the characteristics and calculation procedure of the conventional and advanced wind tunnel test techniques were discussed and summarized. The results indicated that the conventional wind tunnel test techniques ignored the effect of structural oscillation on the measured aerodynamics as the test model is rigid. A forced vibration test can include that effect. Unfortunately, a test model in a forced vibration test cannot respond like a structure in the real world; it only includes the effect of structural oscillation on the surrounding flow and cannot consider the feedback from the surrounding flow to the oscillation test model. A hybrid aeroelastic-pressure/force balance test technique that can observe unsteady aerodynamics of a test model during its aeroelastic oscillation completely takes the effect of structural oscillation into consideration and is, therefore, effective in evaluation of aerodynamics and aeroelasticity in bluff bodies. This paper has not only advanced our understanding for aerodynamics and aeroelasticity in bluff bodies, but also provided a new perspective for advanced wind tunnel test techniques that can be used for fundamental studies and engineering applications.

Existing research on interference effects predominantly focuses on rigid structures. However, studies based on rigid models tend to overlook the feedback of structural motions on the flow field, thus failing to capture the intrinsic dynamics of the interference effect induced by wind-induced structural vibrations. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the fluid–structure interaction mechanisms considering interference effects involving two parallel square prisms, employing large-eddy simulation (LES). Various factors, including wind speed, arrangement, and vibration amplitude, are meticulously considered in the analysis. The study utilized three-dimensional LES simulations, incorporating the narrowband synthesis random flow generator method for inlet turbulence generation and adjusted through the “feedback” approach to ensure accuracy and efficiency. The research highlighted different structural arrangements exhibited distinct interference effects, and the end effect of the structure could substantially modify the flow pattern at various heights. In the tandem arrangements, the study observed several flow phenomena, including early reattachment, attenuation of the end effect, premature formation of roll structures, increased turbulence in the flow field due to vibration, resulting in wider second leading-edge separation, and a fragmented wake flow on the downstream structure. For side-by-side arrangements, the “acceleration effect” was identified and found to be further intensified by structural vibrations. The vibration of the interfering structure was noted to cause changes in vortex shedding frequencies and alterations in the wake flow pattern. In addition, vibration would enhance the interference effect but increasing amplitude and wind speed might diminish the interference effect. Overall, this study offers valuable insight into the intricate interplay of factors influencing the aerodynamics of parallel structures across diverse arrangements and under varying conditions.

Transient diffraction of sound pulses by a sphere is a classical problem extensively studied in acoustics (and in EM) for nearly a century. In spite of this volume of work, a satisfactory treatment of the sound field in the neighborhood of the shadow boundary is not available, and it is still one of the unsolved problems of diffraction theory [see comments in F. Friedlander, Sound Pulses (1958), p. 148]. To our knowledge, no treatment of this case has yet appeared. The modal series solution for this situation is presented here. The time histories of a sufficiently large number of terms of the modal series are accurately computed; a task that is possible today due to the existence of better computers and of more sophisticated computational algorithms. The Cesàro summation method [E. Whittaker and G. Watson, Modern Analysis (1965), p. 155] is used to completely eradicate the Gibbs’ phenomenon effect. This approach yields the diffracted field in the entire space‐time domain. In particular, a complete treatment of the diffracted sound field is developed for a hard sphere insonified by a step pressure pulse, including the neighborhood of the shadow boundary where, heretofore, no analytical solution exists.