Simulation method of sliding snow load on roofs and its application in some representative regions of China

Sliding snow load on roofs is an important issue. Thus, a simulation method to calculate the sliding snow load on roofs is developed in this paper. Firstly, based on previous mass- and energy-balance models, a snowmelt model for building roofs, which focuses on the features of snowpack on roofs, is developed. Then, the sufficient condition proposed in the paper for snow sliding on roofs requires that the liquid water in the snow layer on roofs exceeds the maximum water-holding capacity of snow. The present method is used to simulate the sliding snow loads on roofs in several representative regions in China. These regions are selected because of their representative locations in China and the heavy snowfalls during winter. Moreover, the influences of the features of the climate, the shielding effect of neighboring buildings, and the heat gained from the inside of buildings are analyzed. The contributions of various energies to snow slide are presented quantitatively. The results indicate that the radiation has the greatest contribution to the melting of snow, followed by the sensible heat and the latent heat, as well as the energies caused by precipitation and heat transfer from the inside of buildings. Finally, a comparison between the simulated results and results from some load codes is made, and a simplified formula that can calculate the sliding snow load coefficient is given for the convenient application of structural engineers. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013