An Investigation of Wind Farm Power Production for Various Atmospheric Boundary Layer Heights

The dependency of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) characteristics on the ABL’s height is investigated by using large eddy simulations (LES). The impacts of ABL’s height on the wind turbine (WT) power production are also investigated by simulating two subsequent wind turbines using the actuator line method (ALM). The results show that, for the same driving pressure forces and aerodynamic roughness height, the wind velocity is higher at deeper ABL, while the wind shear and the wind veer are not affected by the depth. Moreover, the turbulence intensity, kinetic energy, and kinematic shear stress increase with the ABL’s height. Higher power production and power coefficient are obtained from turbines operating at deeper ABL.

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Comparison of Field Measurements and Large Eddy Simulations of the Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWiFT) Site

Volume 4: Fluid Measurement and Instrumentation; Micro and Nano Fluid Dynamics ◽

10.1115/ajkfluids2019-5493 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Myra L. Blaylock ◽

Brent C. Houchens ◽

David C. Maniaci ◽

Thomas Herges ◽

Alan Hsieh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Boundary Layer ◽

Atmospheric Boundary Layer ◽

Wind Farm ◽

Field Measurements ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Large Eddy Simulations ◽

Department Of Energy ◽

Large Eddy ◽

In Series ◽

The Impact

Abstract Power production of the turbines at the Department of Energy/Sandia National Laboratories Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWiFT) facility located at the Texas Tech University’s National Wind Institute Research Center was measured experimentally and simulated for neutral atmospheric boundary layer operating conditions. Two V27 wind turbines were aligned in series with the dominant wind direction, and the upwind turbine was yawed to investigate the impact of wake steering on the downwind turbine. Two conditions were investigated, including that of the leading turbine operating alone and both turbines operating in series. The field measurements include meteorological evaluation tower (MET) data and light detection and ranging (lidar) data. Computations were performed by coupling large eddy simulations (LES) in the three-dimensional, transient code Nalu-Wind with engineering actuator line models of the turbines from OpenFAST. The simulations consist of a coarse precursor without the turbines to set up an atmospheric boundary layer inflow followed by a simulation with refinement near the turbines. Good agreement between simulations and field data are shown. These results demonstrate that Nalu-Wind holds the promise for the prediction of wind plant power and loads for a range of yaw conditions.

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Large-Eddy Simulation of Offshore Wind Farms for Power Prediction

Volume 6B: Energy ◽

10.1115/imece2018-87965 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Micah Sandusky ◽

Rey DeLeon ◽

Inanc Senocak

Keyword(s):

Boundary Layer ◽

Large Eddy Simulation ◽

Atmospheric Boundary Layer ◽

Wind Field ◽

Wind Farm ◽

Power Production ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Detailed Knowledge ◽

Eddy Simulation ◽

Large Eddy

Offshore wind turbines are mega structures that span a critical section of the lowest part of atmospheric boundary layer while experiencing significant wind shear. A detailed knowledge of the wind field through a wind farm as part of the atmospheric boundary layer is essential to design efficient farm layouts and estimate power production for grid integration. To address these needs, we present a micro-scale wind prediction model based on a large-eddy simulation paradigm. We consider actuator disk models with and without rotation to simulate the influence of turbines on the wind field and apply our computational capability to the well-known Horns Rev offshore wind farm in Denmark to estimate power production. Instead of using manufacturers power curve to estimate power production, we propose an alternative approach based on the control volume analysis of kinetic energy conservation around turbines.

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