Study guide
Wind Loads and Pressure Paths
PE Civil: Structural Exam
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1 Exam Identity and Reference Workflow
2026 PE Civil: Structural Identity, Format, and Scoring Electronic Handbook, Design Standards, Units, and Version Control
2 Chapter 2: Gravity and Construction Loads
2.1 Dead Loads and Self-Weight 2.2 Live Loads, Reduction, and Load Placement 2.3 Construction-Stage Loads
3 Environmental Loads
Wind Loads and Pressure Paths Seismic Loads and Lateral Force Distribution Snow, Rain, and Ice Loads
4 Moving, Impact, and Lateral Soil Loads
Vehicular, Crane, and Other Moving Loads Impact and Dynamic Allowances Earth Pressure and Surcharge Loads
5 Chapter 5: Load Paths and Combinations
5.1 Tributary Areas and Complete Vertical/Lateral Load Paths 5.2 Strength and Service Load Combinations
6 Reactions, Diagrams, and Basic Axial Effects
Free-Body Diagrams, Reactions, Shear, and Moment Qualitative Diagrams, Influence Lines, and Critical Placement Axial Tension, Compression, and Deformation
7 Chapter 7: Axial Systems and Shear Effects
7.1 Trusses, Braces, and Column Axial Force 7.2 Shear Stress, Shear Flow, and Built-Up Sections 7.3 One-Way, Two-Way, Punching, and Interface Shear Effects
8 Flexure
Section Properties and Elastic Flexural Stress Beam and Slab Flexural Load Effects Biaxial and Unsymmetrical Flexure
9 Combined Stress and Deflection
Combined Axial and Flexural Stress Principal Stress, Mohr's Circle, and Combined Shear Elastic Deflection Methods
10 Chapter 10: Serviceability, Torsion, and Stability
10.1 Serviceability: Deflection, Drift, Vibration, and Ponding 10.2 Torsion and Warping Effects 10.3 Buckling, Effective Length, and Second-Order Stability
11 Fatigue, Robustness, Thermal, and Bearing Effects
Fatigue and Progressive-Collapse Concepts Thermal Deformation and Bearing/Contact Stress
12 Inspections, Submittals, and Adjacent Facilities
Special Inspections and Verification Duties Shop Drawings, Submittals, RFIs, and Delegated Design Construction Effects on Adjacent Facilities
13 Chapter 13: Temporary Works and Safety
13.1 Formwork, Falsework, Scaffolding, Shoring/Reshoring, Bracing, and Anchorage 13.2 Construction, Roadside, and Work-Zone Safety
14 Soils and Core Concrete Properties
Soil Phase Relationships and Classification Soil Strength, Permeability, and Compressibility Fresh and Hardened Concrete Properties
15 Chapter 15: Prestressed Concrete and Steel Properties
15.1 Reinforced, Precast, Pretensioned, and Post-Tensioned Concrete Materials 15.2 Structural and Cold-Formed Steel Properties 15.3 Steel Toughness, Weldability, Corrosion, and Temperature Effects
16 Timber, Masonry, and Material Conformance
Timber Properties and ASD Design Values Masonry, CMU, Mortar, Grout, and Brick Veneer Properties Concrete and Masonry Test Methods Steel, Timber, and Other Material Specification Conformance
17 Horizontal Members I
Steel Beams and Girders Reinforced Concrete Beams and Slabs Timber and Masonry Horizontal Members
18 Chapter 18: Diaphragms and Vertical Members
18.1 Diaphragms, Collectors, Struts, and Composite Slabs 18.2 Steel Columns and Beam-Columns 18.3 Concrete Columns and Bearing Walls
19 Shear Walls, Trusses, and Frames
Shear Walls and Vertical Lateral Members Trusses and Braced Systems Moment Frames and Stability Systems
20 Composite/Bridge Systems and Bolted Connections
Composite Construction and Structural System Selection Bridge Systems and Load Distribution Bolted Steel Connections
21 Chapter 21: Welded, Embedded, and Anchored Connections
21.1 Welded Steel Connections 21.2 Bearing, Embedded, and Precast Connections 21.3 Anchors, Post-Installed Anchors, and Wood/Masonry Connections
22 Shallow Foundations
Isolated, Spread, and Strip Footings Combined and Strap Footings Mat Foundations and Foundation Slabs
23 Deep Foundations
Driven Piles: Axial Capacity and Settlement Drilled Shafts, Piers, and Caissons Pile Groups, Caps, and Lateral Deep-Foundation Response
24 Chapter 24: Retaining Structures
24.1 Lateral Earth/Water Pressure and Drainage 24.2 Sliding, Overturning, Bearing, and Global Stability 24.3 Concrete Cantilever, Gravity, and Basement Walls 24.4 Sheet-Pile, Anchored, and Mechanically Stabilized Earth Walls
Wind Loads and Pressure Paths
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
Lock the exam references to ASCE 7-16 and IBC 2018; the ASCE 7-22 wind maps and coefficients are not valid substitutes for a July 2026 exam
Compute velocity pressure from the site, height, exposure, topography, directionality, and elevation inputs before applying external and internal pressure coefficients
Evaluate both signs of internal pressure because the governing sign can reverse between inward wall pressure and roof or wall suction
MWFRS and components-and-cladding checks use different pressure-coefficient procedures and answer different design questions
Trace wind force continuously from the loaded surface through connections, diaphragms or frames, vertical elements, anchors, and foundations
Last updated: July 2026
Wind Loads and Pressure Paths
Wind questions are easiest when treated as a controlled sequence rather than a search for one memorized pressure. For the July 2026 PE Civil: Structural exam, the reference lock is ASCE 7-16 , IBC 2018 , and, where a wood connection is checked, NDS 2018/SDPWS 2015 using ASD . Do not import ASCE 7-22 wind maps, tornado provisions, or revised coefficients.
The ASCE 7-16 workflow
Use this order so that every coefficient has a defined role:
Assign the building's risk category and obtain the corresponding basic wind speed, V , from the ASCE 7-16 map. Risk category selects a map; it is not an extra wind importance factor in the velocity-pressure equation.
Establish Exposure B, C, or D from the upwind surface roughness and exposure distance. Exposure is a site condition, not the building occupancy.
Determine directionality Kd , topographic factor Kzt , ground-elevation factor Ke , and the height-dependent exposure coefficient Kz or mean-roof coefficient Kh .
Classify the enclosure as open, partially open where applicable, enclosed, or partially enclosed. Then take the applicable internal pressure coefficient GCpi .
Compute velocity pressure in US customary units with the ASCE 7-16 form qz = 0.00256 Kz Kzt Kd Ke V^2 , in psf. Use qh when the procedure calls for pressure at mean roof height.
Select the permitted analytical procedure and the external coefficient for the surface, wind direction, roof geometry, and effective wind area.
Calculate every required signed pressure case, then convert pressure to force on the correct tributary or effective area.
Apply the force to the correct system and trace it to ground.
The factors must come from the supplied standard or the problem statement. A common exam error is to use Kz at one height for every windward wall point even when the selected procedure requires qz , or to insert an old-edition importance factor into the ASCE 7-16 equation.
- Preserve the pressure signs
- For the directional MWFRS procedure, the pressure relationship has the form
- p = q(GCp) - qi(GCpi)
where the external term may be written as q G Cp , and the internal term uses the velocity pressure specified by the procedure. Positive net pressure acts toward a surface; negative pressure acts away from it. Thus negative roof pressure is uplift. Never discard a minus sign just because the final connection force is reported as a positive uplift magnitude.
Internal pressure must normally be checked with both signs. Positive internal pressure pushes outward. It makes an already negative external roof pressure more negative because the internal term is subtracted. Negative internal pressure tends to increase inward pressure on a windward wall. The controlling sign therefore depends on the surface and external coefficient.
Worked pressure and uplift check
Assume an enclosed, low-rise building has already been evaluated under ASCE 7-16 and the problem gives qh = qi = 30 psf . For one roof zone, the given product GCp is -0.90 ; for an enclosed building, evaluate GCpi = +0.18 and -0.18 .
- Internal case Calculation Net roof pressure
- Positive internal pressure 30[-0.90 - (+0.18)] -32.4 psf
- Negative internal pressure 30[-0.90 - (-0.18)] -21.6 psf
The first case governs uplift. If a connection receives load from 6 ft × 10 ft = 60 ft² , its nominal uplift demand from this pressure is 32.4 × 60 = 1,944 lb , or 1.94 kip , before applying the load combination appropriate to the design method. The coefficient -0.90 is an assumed problem input, not a universal roof value; roof angle, zone, procedure, and effective wind area can change it.
Now trace the 1.94-kip action: roof covering and sheathing transfer suction into fasteners; sheathing transfers it to joists or rafters; framing transfers it through clips, straps, or bearing connections to walls; wall anchorage carries it into the floor or foundation; the foundation supplies resistance to the ground. A strong rafter with a weak sheathing fastener or missing wall-to-foundation tie does not provide a complete wind design.
MWFRS versus components and cladding
The main wind-force-resisting system (MWFRS) stabilizes the structure as a whole: frames, shear walls, diaphragms, and their collectors and foundations. Components and cladding (C&C) transfer wind from local surfaces: glazing, panels, roof deck, purlins, girts, fasteners, and their immediate connections. Local corner and edge suctions can make a C&C pressure much larger than an area-averaged MWFRS pressure.
Do not add an MWFRS pressure and a C&C pressure as if they were simultaneous independent loads on the same piece. Instead, classify the element by function and follow the applicable ASCE 7-16 procedure. An element can participate in both roles, but each role requires the correct load model. For C&C, carefully identify effective wind area; it is a code-defined coefficient-selection parameter and is not always identical to a simple tributary area.
Exam-quality checks
Before accepting an answer, ask:
Did I use ASCE 7-16 wind speed and coefficients?
Did I evaluate every required wind direction and both internal-pressure signs?
Is suction still negative in the pressure calculation?
Am I checking MWFRS or C&C, and did I use that procedure's area and coefficient?
Did I convert psf to force with the correct area and units?
Does the load path continue through connections and anchorage to the foundation?
These checks catch most wind errors before detailed member design begins.