Wind tunnel investigation on the effect of the turbine tower on wind turbines wake symmetry

In wind farms, the wake of the upstream turbines becomes the inflow for the downstream machines. Ideally, the turbine wake is a stable vortex system. In reality, because of factors like background turbulence, mean flow shear, and tower‐wake interaction, the wake velocity deficit is not symmetric and is displaced away from its mean position. The irregular velocity profile leads to a decreased efficiency and increased blade stress levels for the downstream turbines. The object of this work is the experimental investigation of the effect of the wind turbine tower on the symmetry and displacement of the wake velocity deficit induced by one and two in‐line model wind turbines (,D= 0.9 m). The results of the experiments, performed in the closed‐loop wind tunnel of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim (Norway), showed that the wake of the single turbine expanded more in the horizontal direction (side‐wall normal) than in the vertical (floor normal) direction and that the center of the wake vortex had a tendency to move toward the wind tunnel floor as it was advected downstream from the rotor. The wake of the turbine tandem showed a similar behavior, with a larger degree of non‐symmetry. The analysis of the cross‐stream velocity profiles revealed that the non‐symmetries were caused by a different cross‐stream momentum transport in the top‐tip and bottom‐tip region, induced by the turbine tower wake. In fact, when a second additional turbine tower, mirroring the original one, was installed above the turbine nacelle, the wake recovered its symmetric structure. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

雾霾之后的反思

新年过后的第二个周末,浓重的雾霾已在全国多个城市肆虐,这让人们的心情变得糟糕。数据显示,截至1月13日零时,全国有33个城市的部分监测点PM2.5浓度超过300微克/立方米,个别城市出现PM2.5"爆表",比如北京的PM2.5浓度最高达到950微克/立方米。环保专家称,如此严重的空气质量污染,可以说已近人类所能承受的极限。于是,人们看到了政府有关方面发布的紧急预案,比如通知市民减少户外活动,要求学校停止户外体育锻炼,这体现了政府的责任意识。但我们是满足于制定完美的灾情应对预案,还是谋求从根本上消除灾难?     

Impact of aerodynamic modelling on seakeeping performance of a floating vertical axis wind turbine

This study focuses on the impact of the aerodynamic model on the dynamic response of a floating vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT). It compares a state‐of‐the‐art quasi‐steady double multiple streamtube (DMS) solver, a prescribed vortex wake (PVW), and a free vortex wake (FVW) solver. The aerodynamic loads acting on a bottom‐fixed VAWT and computed with the three aerodynamic solvers are compared, then the dynamic responses of the floating turbine in irregular waves and turbulent wind with the different aerodynamic solvers are compared. Differences are observed, particularly in the mean motions of the platform. Eventually, the aerodynamic damping computed by the solvers are estimated with aerodynamic simulations on the turbine with imposed surge and pitch motions. The estimated damping can then be correlated with the dynamic response amplitude of the VAWT. Substantial discrepancies are observed between the three solvers at high tip speed ratio, when the rotor is highly loaded. It is shown that the quasi‐steady DMS solver seems to give greater amplitude of motions for the floating VAWT because of strong rotor/wake interaction that are not correctly accounted for.     

基于预定涡尾迹法的风力机性能研究

以三叶片水平轴风力机为研究对象,建立了尾迹扩张模型,研究了叶片尾迹流动结构。涡面模型叶片无量纲环量的计算结果与经典环量数据对比,结果吻合较好。计算了根尖涡模型风轮面诱导速度随尾迹扩张系数的变化关系,得出了尖速比对气动性能的影响:推力系数与环量及尖速比成正比;对于不同环量,功率系数存在最佳尖速比。分析了尾迹扩张模型对气动性能的影响:推力系数和功率系数与尾迹扩张系数成正比,尾迹收敛参数对其影响甚微。     

A wind‐tunnel study of the wake development behind wind turbines over sinusoidal hills

In the present work, the wake development behind small‐scale wind turbines is studied when introducing local topography variations consisting of a series of sinusoidal hills. Additionally, wind‐tunnel tests with homogeneous and sheared turbulent inflows were performed to understand how shear and ambient turbulence influence the results. The scale of the wind‐turbine models was about 1000 times smaller than full‐size turbines, suggesting that the present results should only be qualitatively extrapolated to real‐field scenarios. Wind‐tunnel measurements were made by means of stereoscopic particle image velocimetry to characterize the flow velocity in planes perpendicular to the flow direction. Over flat terrain, the wind‐turbine wake was seen to slowly approach the ground while it propagated downstream. When introducing hilly terrain, the downward wake deflection was enhanced in response to flow variations induced by the hills, and the turbulent kinetic energy content in the wake increased because of the speed‐up seen over the hills. The combined wake observed behind 2 streamwise aligned turbines was more diffused and when introducing hills, it was more prone to deflect towards the ground compared to the wake behind an isolated turbine. Since wake interactions are common at sites with multiple turbines, this suggested that it is important to consider the local hill‐induced velocity variations when onshore wind farms are analysed. Differences in the flow fields were seen when introducing either homogeneous or sheared turbulent inflow conditions, emphasizing the importance of accounting for the prevailing turbulence conditions at a given wind‐farm site to accurately capture the downstream wake development.     

The spectral signature of wind turbine wake meandering: A wind tunnel and field‐scale study

Field‐scale and wind tunnel experiments were conducted in the 2D to 6D turbine wake region to investigate the effect of geometric and Reynolds number scaling on wake meandering. Five field deployments took place: 4 in the wake of a single 2.5‐MW wind turbine and 1 at a wind farm with numerous 2‐MW turbines. The experiments occurred under near‐neutral thermal conditions. Ground‐based lidar was used to measure wake velocities, and a vertical array of met‐mounted sonic anemometers were used to characterize inflow conditions. Laboratory tests were conducted in an atmospheric boundary layer wind tunnel for comparison with the field results. Treatment of the low‐resolution lidar measurements is discussed, including an empirical correction to velocity spectra using colocated lidar and sonic anemometer. Spectral analysis on the laboratory‐ and utility‐scale measurements confirms a meandering frequency that scales with the Strouhal number St = fD/U based on the turbine rotor diameter D. The scaling indicates the importance of the rotor‐scaled annular shear layer to the dynamics of meandering at the field scale, which is consistent with findings of previous wind tunnel and computational studies. The field and tunnel spectra also reveal a deficit in large‐scale turbulent energy, signaling a sheltering effect of the turbine, which blocks or deflects the largest flow scales of the incoming flow. Two different mechanisms for wake meandering—large scales of the incoming flow and shear instabilities at relatively smaller scales—are discussed and inferred to be related to the turbulent kinetic energy excess and deficit observed in the wake velocity spectra.     

Effect of tower and nacelle on the flow past a wind turbine

Large eddy simulations (LES) of the flow past a wind turbine with and without tower and nacelle have been performed at 2 tip speed ratios (TSR, ), λ=3 and 6, where the latter corresponds to design conditions. The turbine model is placed in a virtual wind tunnel to reproduce the “Blind test 1” experiment performed at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) closed‐loop wind tunnel. The wind turbine was modeled using the actuator line model for the rotor blades and the immersed boundary method for the tower and nacelle. The aim of the paper is to highlight the impact of tower and nacelle on the turbine wake. Therefore, a second set of simulations with the rotating blades only (neglecting the tower and nacelle) has been performed as reference. Present results are compared with the experimental measurements made at NTNU and numerical simulations available in the literature. The tower and nacelle not only produce a velocity deficit in the wake but they also affect the turbulent kinetic energy and the fluxes. The wake of the tower interacts with that generated by the turbine blades promoting the breakdown of the tip vortex and increasing the mean kinetic energy flux into the wake. When tower and nacelle are modeled in the numerical simulations, results improve significantly both in the near wake and in the far wake.     

Application and validation of incrementally complex models for wind turbine aerodynamics,isolated wind turbine in uniform inflow conditions

A comparison of several incrementally complex methods for predicting wind turbine performance, aeroelastic behavior, and wakes is provided. Depending on a wind farm's design, wake interference can cause large power losses and increased turbulence levels within the farm. The goal is to employ modeling methods to reach an improved understanding of wake effects and to use this information to better optimize the layout of new wind farms. A critical decision faced by modelers is the fidelity of the model that is selected to perform simulations. The choice of model fidelity can affect the accuracy, but will also greatly impact the computational time and resource requirements for simulations. To help address this critical question, three modeling methods of varying fidelity have been developed side by side and are compared in this article. The models from low to high complexity are as follows: a blade element‐based method with a free‐vortex wake, an actuator disc‐based method, and a full rotor‐based method. Fluid/structure interfaces are developed for the aerodynamic modeling approaches that allow modeling of discrete blades and are then coupled with a multibody structural dynamics solver in order to perform an aeroelastic analysis. Similar methods have individually been tested by researchers, but we suggest that by developing a suite of models, they can be cross‐compared to grasp the subtleties of each method. The modeling methods are applied to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory Phase VI rotor to predict the turbine aerodynamic and structural loads and then also the wind velocities in the wake. The full rotor method provides the most accurate predictions at the turbine and the use of adaptive mesh refinement to capture the wake to 20 radii downstream is proven particularly successful. Though the full rotor method is unmatched by the lower fidelity methods in stalled conditions and detailed prediction of the downstream wake, there are other less complex conditions where these methods perform as accurately as the full rotor method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantification of power losses due to wind turbine wake interactions through SCADA,meteorological and wind LiDAR data

Power production of an onshore wind farm is investigated through supervisory control and data acquisition data, while the wind field is monitored through scanning light detection and ranging measurements and meteorological data acquired from a met‐tower located in proximity to the turbine array. The power production of each turbine is analysed as functions of the operating region of the power curve, wind direction and atmospheric stability. Five different methods are used to estimate the potential wind power as a function of time, enabling an estimation of power losses connected with wake interactions. The most robust method from a statistical standpoint is that based on the evaluation of a reference wind velocity at hub height and experimental mean power curves calculated for each turbine and different atmospheric stability regimes. The synergistic analysis of these various datasets shows that power losses are significant for wind velocities higher than cut‐in wind speed and lower than rated wind speed of the turbines. Furthermore, power losses are larger under stable atmospheric conditions than for convective regimes, which is a consequence of the stability‐driven variability in wake evolution. Light detection and ranging measurements confirm that wind turbine wakes recover faster under convective regimes, thus alleviating detrimental effects due to wake interactions. For the wind farm under examination, power loss due to wake shadowing effects is estimated to be about 4% and 2% of the total power production when operating under stable and convective conditions, respectively. However, cases with power losses about 60‐80% of the potential power are systematically observed for specific wind turbines and wind directions. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An actuator sector method for efficient transient wind turbine simulation

This paper investigates a new method for transient simulation of flow through a wind turbine using an actuator technique. The aim, in the context of wind turbine wake simulation, is to develop an alternative to the widely used actuator disc model with an increased resolution and range of applications, for the same or less computational expense. In this new model, the actuator sector method, forces applied to the fluid are distributed azimuthally to maintain a continuous flow solution for increased time‐step intervals compared with the actuator line method. Actuator sector results are presented in comparison with actuator disc and actuator line models initially for a non‐dimensionalized turbine in laminar onset flow. Subsequent results are presented for a turbine operating in a turbulent atmospheric boundary layer. Results show significant increases in flow fidelity compared with actuator disc model results; this includes the resolution of diametric variation in rotor loading caused by horizontal or vertical wind shear and the helical vortex system shed from the turbine blade tips. Significant reductions in computational processing time were achieved with wake velocities and turbulence statistics comparable with actuator line model results. The actuator sector method offers an improved alternative to applications employing conventional actuator disc models, with little or no additional computational cost. This technique in conjunction with a Cartesian mesh‐based parallel flow solver leads to efficient simulation of turbines in atmospheric boundary layer flows. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Three‐dimensional viscous‐inviscid coupling method for wind turbine computations

In this paper, a computational model for predicting the aerodynamic behavior of wind turbine wakes and blades subjected to unsteady motions and viscous effects is presented. The model is based on a three‐dimensional panel method using a surface distribution of quadrilateral sources and doublets, which is coupled to a viscous boundary layer solver. Unlike Navier‐Stokes codes that need to solve the entire flow domain, the panel method solves the flow around a complex geometry by distributing singularity elements on the body surface, obtaining a faster solution and making this type of codes suitable for the design of wind turbines. A free‐wake model has been employed to simulate the wake behind a wind turbine by using vortex filaments that carry the vorticity shed by the trailing edge of the blades. Viscous and rotational effects inside the boundary layer are taken into account via the transpiration velocity concept, applied using strip theory with the cross sectional angle of attack as coupling parameter. The transpiration velocity is obtained from the solution of the integral boundary layer equations with extension for rotational effects. It is found that viscosity plays a very important role in the predictions of blade aerodynamics and wake dynamics, especially at high angles of attack just before and after boundary layer separation takes place. The present code is validated in detail against the well‐known MEXICO experiment and a set of non‐rotating cases. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Wake impacts on downstream wind turbine performance and yaw alignment

Aerodynamic wake interaction between commercial scale wind turbines can be a significant source of power losses and increased fatigue loads across a wind farm. Significant research has been dedicated to the study of wind turbine wakes and wake model development. This paper profiles influential wake regions for an onshore wind farm using 6 months of recorded SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) data. An average wind velocity deficit of over 30% was observed corresponding to power coefficient losses of 0.2 in the wake region. Wind speed fluctuations are also quantified for an array of turbines, inferring an increase in turbulence within the wake region. A study of yaw data within the array showed turbine nacelle misalignment under a range of downstream wake angles, indicating a characteristic of wind turbine behaviour not generally considered in wake studies. The turbines yaw independently in order to capture the increased wind speeds present due to the lateral influx of turbulent wind, contrary to many experimental and simulation methods found in the literature. Improvements are suggested for wind farm control strategies that may improve farm‐wide power output. Additionally, possible causes for wind farm wake model overestimation of wake losses are proposed.Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analytical model for predicting the performance of arbitrary size and layout wind farms

A simple engineering model for predicting wind farm performance is presented, which is applicable to wind farms of arbitrary size and turbine layout. For modeling the interaction of wind farm with the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), the wind farm is represented as added roughness elements. The wind speed behind each turbine is calculated using a kinematic model, in which the friction velocity and the wind speed outside the turbine wake, constructed based on the wind farm‐ABL interaction model, are employed to estimate the wake expansion rate in the crosswind direction and the maximum wind speed that can be recovered within the turbine wake, respectively. Validation of the model is carried out by comparing the model predictions with the measurements from wind tunnel experiments and the Horns Rev wind farm. For all validation cases, satisfactory agreement is obtained between model predictions and experimental data. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An experimental investigation on the effect of individual turbine control on wind farm dynamics

Individual wind turbines in a wind farm typically operate to maximize their performance with no consideration of the impact of wake effects on downstream turbines. There is potential to increase power and reduce structural loads within a wind farm by properly coordinating the turbines. To effectively design and analyze coordinated wind turbine controllers requires control‐oriented turbine wake models of sufficient accuracy. This paper focuses on constructing such a model from experiments. The experiments were conducted to better understand the wake interaction and impact on voltage production in a three‐turbine array. The upstream turbine operating condition was modulated in time, and the dynamic impact on the downstream turbine was recorded through the voltage output time signal. The flow dynamics observed in the experiments were used to improve a static wake model often used in the literature for wind farm control. These experiments were performed in the atmospheric boundary layer wind tunnel at the Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory at the University of Minnesota using particle image velocimetry for flow field analysis and turbine voltage modulation to capture the physical evolution in addition to the dynamics of turbine wake interactions. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the wake deflection of vertical axis wind turbines by pitched blades

Wake losses are a critical consideration in wind farm design. The ability to steer and deform wakes can result in increased wind farm power density and reduced energy costs and can be used to optimize wind farm designs. This study investigates the wake deflection of a vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) experimentally, emphasizing the effect of different load distributions on the wake convection and mixing. A trailing vortex system responsible for the wake topology is hypothesized based on a simplified vorticity equation that describes the relationship between load distribution and its vortex generation; the proposed vorticity system and the resulting wake topology are experimentally validated in the wind tunnel via stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements of the flow field at several wake cross-sections. Variations in load distribution are accomplished by a set of fixed blade pitches. The experimental results not only validate the predicted vorticity system but also highlight the critical role of the streamwise vorticity component in the deflection and deformation of the wake, thus affecting the momentum and energy recoveries. The evaluation of the various loading cases demonstrates the significant effect of the wake deflection on the wind power available to a downwind turbine, even when the distance between the two turbines is only three diameters.     

Comparison of the near‐wake between actuator‐line simulations and a simplified vortex model of a horizontal‐axis wind turbine

The flow around an isolated horizontal‐axis wind turbine is estimated by means of a new vortex code based on the Biot–Savart law with constant circulation along the blades. The results have been compared with numerical simulations where the wind turbine blades are replaced with actuator lines. Two different wind turbines have been simulated: one with constant circulation along the blades, to replicate the vortex method approximations, and the other with a realistic circulation distribution, to compare the outcomes of the vortex model with real operative wind‐turbine conditions (Tjæreborg wind turbine). The vortex model matched the numerical simulation of the turbine with constant blade circulation in terms of the near‐wake structure and local forces along the blade. The results from the Tjæreborg turbine case showed some discrepancies between the two approaches, but overall, the agreement is qualitatively good, validating the analytical method for more general conditions. The present results show that a simple vortex code is able to provide an estimation of the flow around the wind turbine similar to the actuator‐line approach but with a negligible computational effort. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characterizing the response of a wind turbine model under complex inflow conditions

A horizontal axis wind turbine model was tested in a closed‐circuit wind tunnel under various inflow conditions. Separate experiments placed the test turbine (i) in the wake of a three‐dimensional, sinusoidal hill, (ii) in the wake of another turbine and (iii) in the turbulent boundary layer, as a reference case. Simultaneous high‐frequency measurements of the turbine output voltage, rotor angular velocity along with streamwise and wall normal velocity components were collected at various locations through the turbine's miniature direct‐current (DC) generator, a high‐resolution laser tachometer and cross‐wire anemometer, respectively. Validation trials were conducted first in order to characterize the test turbine's output and response to the baseline turbulent boundary layer. Analysis was performed by comparing the cross‐wire anemometry measurements of the incoming flow with the turbine voltage output to investigate the unsteady rotor kinematics under different flow perturbations. Using spectral, auto‐correlation and cross‐correlation methods, it was found that the flow structures developing downwind of the hill leave a stronger signature on the fluctuations and spectrum of the rotor angular velocity, as compared with those flow structures filtered or deflected by placing a turbine upwind. In summary, we show that the effects on downwind turbines of complex terrain and multi‐turbine arrangements are consistent with the induced modifications by the hill or turbine on the large scale structures in the incoming flow. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hybrid vortex simulations of wind turbines using a three‐dimensional viscous–inviscid panel method

A hybrid filament‐mesh vortex method is proposed and validated to predict the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine rotors and to simulate the resulting wake. Its novelty consists of using a hybrid method to accurately simulate the wake downstream of the wind turbine while reducing the computational time used by the method. The proposed method uses a hybrid approach, where the near wake is resolved by using vortex filaments, which carry the vorticity shed by the trailing edge of the blades. The interaction of the vortex filaments in the near vicinity of the wind turbine is evaluated using a direct calculation, whereas the contribution from the large downstream wake is calculated using a mesh‐based method. The hybrid method is first validated in detail against the well‐known MEXICO experiment, using the direct filament method as a comparison. The second part of the validation includes a study of the influence of the time‐integration scheme used for evolving the wake in time, aeroelastic simulations of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory 5 MW wind turbine and an analysis of the central processing unit time showing the gains of using the hybrid filament‐mesh method. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.