Survey on geometrical aspect ratios of supertall buildings

Many supertall buildings are built in the Far East. Since prescriptive fire codes had not yet been demonstrated to cover such tall buildings, performance-based designs were commonly adopted. However, fire safety objectives, scenario identification, hazard assessment, and acceptance criteria were not worked out through in-depth scientific research. Fire safety is therefore a concern and further investigational works are necessary. Before working out a detailed investigational plan, existing supertall buildings have to be surveyed to understand the possible problems. The first step is to survey their aspect ratios, and results are presented in this article. A survey on 54 supertall buildings was carried out with aspect ratios calculated. Range and distribution of the aspect ratios of supertall buildings are studied. Correlations of different-aspect ratios with heights are proposed. Supertall buildings in two countries, China and the United States, were taken out to study in more detail. The average aspect ratios are calculated and compared.