There are many real-world examples of steel stacks or chimneys supported on top of another structure. This could be a space frame, building or another piece of equipment such as a heater. The supporting structure can introduce flexibility to the system, and this...
Articles
Steel Stack Deflection
When designing a stack should steel stack deflection be a concern? It's a good question and one that comes up frequently, The design standards give some guidance, but the standards vary in how they handle steel stack deflection and there is some room for...
Anchor Bolt Pretension
There is nothing simple about recommending anchor bolt pretension, ask ten engineers and you could get eleven different recommendations. Meca has done all of the research in order to try to resolve this topic once and for all...at least until the next anchor bolt...
Add Some Guy Wires
When and why should I use guy wires on a stack? When a stack has a vortex shedding problem there can be many factors that determine which solutions are the best. Guy wires aren't always the most conventional solution, but its always an option to consider.How do Guy...
Slow Down
I'll bet "Slow Down" isn't an expression you hear much in your business. I dream of a day when a customer tells me, "Slow down, we really don't care when you finish your design." I can't get you more time on your deadline, but I can tell you one instance that...
I Feel the Need, the Need for Speed
In my humble opinion, the Movie Top Gun is one of the best movies of all time. One of the best parts is when Tom Cruise says "I feel the need, the need for speed". It's not just a great line, it also applies to many stack designs. More speed (critical wind speed)...
Welcome to our Damping Pad
When a vortex shedding problem exists on a stack, sometimes the most economical option is a damping pad. What is a damping pad?A damping pad is a preformed laminated fabric pad of a manufactured material composed of layers of tightly twisted, closely woven lightweight...
How to Determine Damping
We can all grasp the physical attributes of a stack such as the height, weight, diameters, etc.; however, what is the stack's structural damping? Does MecaStack estimate the damping of the stack? Is there any harm in just arbitrarily changing the damping...
Getting Twisted about Helical Strakes
If you have a vortex shedding problem on a stack, then in some cases helical strakes are your best option; however, there are other cases where helical strakes are not the best option. When not to use Helical Strakes? If there is another stack (or tall structure) that...