Articles | Volume 10, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1369-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1369-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
17 Jul 2025
Research article |
| 17 Jul 2025
| 17 Jul 2025
Wake development in floating wind turbines: new insights and an open dataset from wind tunnel experiments
Alessandro Fontanella
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, via La Masa 1, 20156 Milan, Italy
Alberto Fusetti
Department of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, Via Lambruschini 4, 20156 Milan, Italy
Stefano Cioni
Department of Industrial Engineering, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Florence, Italy
Francesco Papi
Department of Industrial Engineering, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Florence, Italy
Sara Muggiasca
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, via La Masa 1, 20156 Milan, Italy
Giacomo Persico
Department of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, Via Lambruschini 4, 20156 Milan, Italy
Vincenzo Dossena
Department of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, Via Lambruschini 4, 20156 Milan, Italy
Alessandro Bianchini
Department of Industrial Engineering, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Florence, Italy
Marco Belloli
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, via La Masa 1, 20156 Milan, Italy
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Preprint under review for WES
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This study explores how the movement of floating wind turbines affects nearby turbines. Using wind tunnel experiments, we found that certain motions of an upstream turbine can improve the energy produced by a downstream one and change the forces it experiences. These effects depend on how the turbines are spaced and aligned. Our results show that the motion of floating turbines plays a key role in how future offshore wind farms should be designed and operated.
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Simulations of different fidelities made by the participants of the OC6 project Phase III are compared to wind tunnel wake measurements on a floating wind turbine. Results in the near wake confirm that simulations and experiments tend to diverge from the expected linearized quasi-steady behavior when the reduced frequency exceeds 0.5. In the far wake, the impact of platform motion is overestimated by simulations and even seems to be oriented to the generation of a wake less prone to dissipation.
Alessandro Fontanella, Elio Daka, Felipe Novais, and Marco Belloli
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1351–1368, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1351-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1351-2023, 2023
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This study aims to enhance wind turbine modeling by incorporating industry-standard control functionalities. A control design framework was developed and applied to a 1 : 100 scale model of a large floating wind turbine. Wind tunnel tests confirmed the scaled turbine accurately reproduced the steady-state rotor speed, blade pitch, and thrust torque characteristics of the full-size turbine. However, challenges arose in simulating the turbine's aerodynamic response during above-rated operation.
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The scale model wind tunnel experiment presented in this paper investigated the aerodynamic response of a floating turbine subjected to imposed surge motion. The problem is studied under different aspects, from airfoil aerodynamics to wake, in a coherent manner. Results show quasi-static behavior for reduced frequencies lower than 0.5 and possible unsteadiness for higher surge motion frequencies. Data are made available to the public for future verification and calibration of numerical models.
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The study presents a critical analysis, using wind tunnel experiments and LES CFD simulations, aimed at quantifying to what extent turbulence affects the wake structures of a floating turbine undergoing large motions. Analyses show that, whenever realistic turbulence comes to play, only small gains in terms of wake recovery are noticed in FOWTs in comparison to bottom-fixed turbines, suggesting the absence of hypothesized superposition effects between inflow and platform motion.
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Federico Taruffi, Simone Di Carlo, Sara Muggiasca, and Marco Belloli
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 71–84, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-71-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-71-2023, 2023
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The work focuses on the experimental validation of the design of a large-scale wind turbine model, based on the DTU 10 MW reference wind turbine, installed on a scaled multipurpose platform deployed in an outdoor natural laboratory. The aim of the validation is to assess whether the behaviour of the model respects the targets established during the design phase in terms of structure, rotor aerodynamics and control. The outcome of the investigation ensures the validity of the design process.
Paul Veers, Katherine Dykes, Sukanta Basu, Alessandro Bianchini, Andrew Clifton, Peter Green, Hannele Holttinen, Lena Kitzing, Branko Kosovic, Julie K. Lundquist, Johan Meyers, Mark O'Malley, William J. Shaw, and Bethany Straw
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Alessandro Bianchini, Galih Bangga, Ian Baring-Gould, Alessandro Croce, José Ignacio Cruz, Rick Damiani, Gareth Erfort, Carlos Simao Ferreira, David Infield, Christian Navid Nayeri, George Pechlivanoglou, Mark Runacres, Gerard Schepers, Brent Summerville, David Wood, and Alice Orrell
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 2003–2037, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2003-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2003-2022, 2022
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Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1711–1729, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1711-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1711-2022, 2022
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Jörg Alber, Marinos Manolesos, Guido Weinzierl-Dlugosch, Johannes Fischer, Alexander Schönmeier, Christian Navid Nayeri, Christian Oliver Paschereit, Joachim Twele, Jens Fortmann, Pier Francesco Melani, and Alessandro Bianchini
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 943–965, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-943-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-943-2022, 2022
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This paper investigates the potentials and the limitations of mini Gurney flaps and their combination with vortex generators for improved rotor blade performance of wind turbines. These small passive add-ons are installed in order to increase the annual energy production by mitigating the effects of both early separation toward the root region and surface erosion toward the tip region of the blade. As such, this study contributes to the reliable and long-term generation of renewable energy.
Rodrigo Soto-Valle, Stefano Cioni, Sirko Bartholomay, Marinos Manolesos, Christian Navid Nayeri, Alessandro Bianchini, and Christian Oliver Paschereit
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This paper compares different vortex identification methods to evaluate their suitability to study the tip vortices of a wind turbine. The assessment is done through experimental data from the wake of a wind turbine model. Results show comparability in some aspects as well as significant differences, providing evidence to justify further comparisons. Therefore, this study proves that the selection of the most suitable postprocessing methods of tip vortex data is pivotal to ensure robust results.
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Wind Energ. Sci., 6, 1169–1190, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-6-1169-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-6-1169-2021, 2021
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The scale model wind tunnel experiment presented in this paper investigated the aerodynamic response of a floating turbine subjected to imposed surge motion. The problem is studied under different aspects, from airfoil aerodynamics to wake, in a coherent manner. Results show quasi-static behavior for reduced frequencies lower than 0.5 and possible unsteadiness for higher surge motion frequencies. Data are made available to the public for future verification and calibration of numerical models.
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Floating wind is a key technology to harvest the abundant wind energy resource of deep waters. This research introduces a new way of controlling the wind turbine to better deal with the action of waves. The turbine is made aware of the incoming waves, and the information is exploited to enhance power production.
Sebastian Perez-Becker, Francesco Papi, Joseph Saverin, David Marten, Alessandro Bianchini, and Christian Oliver Paschereit
Wind Energ. Sci., 5, 721–743, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-721-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-721-2020, 2020
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Aeroelastic design load calculations play a key role in determining the design loads of the different wind turbine components. This study compares load estimations from calculations using a Blade Element Momentum aerodynamic model with estimations from calculations using a higher-order Lifting-Line Free Vortex Wake aerodynamic model. The paper finds and explains the differences in fatigue and extreme turbine loads for power production simulations that cover a wide range of turbulent wind speeds.
Related subject area
Thematic area: Fluid mechanics | Topic: Wakes and wind farm aerodynamics
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Antonin Hubert, Boris Conan, and Sandrine Aubrun
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 1351–1368, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1351-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1351-2025, 2025
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The paper aims to study the far wake of a wind turbine under realistic inflow conditions subjected to harmonic floating motions. The present work shows that phase averaging enables the observation of the coherent spatiotemporal wake behaviour in response to the harmonic motions, contrary to previous studies with time averaging, and that the resulting variations in the chosen metrics exhibit an intensity higher than those expected when using basic quasi-steady-state approaches.
Wessel van der Deijl, Martín Obligado, Stéphane Barre, and Christophe Sicot
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 719–732, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-719-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-719-2025, 2025
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We present a wind tunnel study on the effect of an adverse pressure gradient on wakes from porous discs and cylinders. We quantified the spatial development of turbulent wakes for Reynolds numbers up to 3.9 × 105 and at distances ranging from 1 to 12 diameters downstream, both with and without an adverse pressure gradient. Consistent with previous studies, we find that the pressure gradient has an effect in all cases, resulting in larger velocity deficits and wider wakes.
YuanTso Li, Wei Yu, Andrea Sciacchitano, and Carlos Ferreira
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 631–659, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-631-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-631-2025, 2025
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A novel wind farm concept, called a regenerative wind farm, is investigated numerically. This concept tackles the significant wake interaction losses among traditional wind farms. Our results show that regenerative wind farms can greatly reduce these losses, boosting power output per unit surface. Unlike traditional farms with three-bladed wind turbines, regenerative farms use multi-rotor systems with lifting devices (MRSLs). This unconventional design effectively reduces wake losses.
Juan Felipe Céspedes Moreno, Juan Pablo Murcia León, and Søren Juhl Andersen
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 597–611, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-597-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-597-2025, 2025
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Using a global base in a proper orthogonal decomposition provides a common base for analyzing flows, such as wind turbine wakes, across an entire parameter space. This can be used to compare flows with different conditions using the same physical interpretation. This work shows the convergence of the global base, its small error compared to the truncation error in the flow reconstruction, and the insensitivity to which datasets are included for generating the global base.
Karim Ali, Pablo Ouro, and Tim Stallard
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 511–533, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-511-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-511-2025, 2025
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We introduce an innovative analytical method to better understand and optimise wind-farm performance by accurately calculating how turbine wakes affect each other. Unlike traditional numerical approaches, our method provides a precise way to measure the impact of upstream wakes on downstream turbines. This new approach, validated through numerical comparisons, enhances optimisation strategies, potentially leading to more efficient wind-farm operations and increased power generation.
Andrew Kirby, Takafumi Nishino, Luca Lanzilao, Thomas D. Dunstan, and Johan Meyers
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 435–450, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-435-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-435-2025, 2025
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Traditionally, the aerodynamic loss of wind farm efficiency is classified into wake loss and farm blockage loss. This study, using high-fidelity simulations, shows that neither of these two losses is well correlated with the overall farm efficiency. We propose new measures called turbine-scale efficiency and farm-scale efficiency to better describe turbine–wake effects and farm–atmosphere interactions. This study suggests the importance of better modelling farm-scale loss in future studies.
Olivier Ndindayino, Augustin Puel, and Johan Meyers
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2025-6, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2025-6, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
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Our aim is to understand the relationship between flow blockage and improved wind farm efficiency using large-eddy simulations, as well as developing an analytical model that shows promise for improving turbine power predictions under blockage. We found that blockage enhances turbine power and thrust by inducing a favourable pressure drop across the turbine row, while simultaneously inducing an unfavourable pressure increase downstream which has minimal direct impact on far wake development.
Kenneth Brown, Gopal Yalla, Lawrence Cheung, Joeri Frederik, Dan Houck, Nate deVelder, Eric Simley, and Paul Fleming
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-191, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-191, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
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This paper presents a one half of a companion-paper series that studies strategies to reduce negative aerodynamic interference (i.e., wake effects) between nearby wind turbines in a wind farm. The approach leverages high-fidelity flow simulations of an open-source design for an offshore wind turbine. Complimenting the companion paper’s analysis of the power and loading effects of the wake-control strategies, this article uncovers the underlying fluid-dynamic causes for these effects.
James Cutler, Christopher Bay, and Andrew Ning
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-172, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-172, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
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This study compares two methods for modeling wakes from tilted wind turbines. An optimized analytical model improves accuracy but is limited by assumptions about wake shape. In contrast, a deep learning approach captures complex wake patterns without these constraints, matching high-fidelity simulations with minimal computational effort. The comparison highlights the potential of deep learning to transform wake modeling, offering greater accuracy and efficiency for wind energy optimization.
David Bensason, Jayant Mulay, Andrea Sciacchitano, and Carlos Ferreira
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-177, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-177, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
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The wake of a scaled vertical-axis wind turbine farm was measured, resulting in the first experimental database of 3D-resovled flowfield measurements. In addition to the baseline operating conditions, two modes of wake control were tested, which involve the passive adjustment of the rotors blade pitch. The results highlight the impacts of these modes adjustments on the trailing vorticity system, wake topology, and affinity towards increasing the rate of wake recovery throughout the farm.
Flavio Avila Correia Martins, Alexander van Zuijlen, and Carlos Simão Ferreira
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 41–58, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-41-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-41-2025, 2025
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This study examines regenerative wind farming with multirotor systems fitted with atmospheric boundary layer control (ABL-control) wings near the rotor's wake. These wings create vortices that boost vertical momentum transfer and speed up wake recovery. Results show that ABL-control wings can restore 95 % of wind power within six rotor diameters downstream, achieving a recovery rate nearly 10 times faster than that without ABL control.
Lawrence Cheung, Gopal Yalla, Prakash Mohan, Alan Hsieh, Kenneth Brown, Nathaniel deVelder, Daniel Houck, and Marc Henry de Frahan
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-155, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-155, 2024
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
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Mitigating turbine wakes is an important aspect to maximizing wind farm energy production but is a challenge to model. We demonstrate a new approach to modeling active wake mixing, which re-energizes turbine wake through periodic blade pitching. The new model divides the wake into separate steady, unsteady, and turbulent components, and solves for each in a computationally efficient manner. Our results show the model can reasonably predict the faster wake recovery due to mixing.
Diederik van Binsbergen, Pieter-Jan Daems, Timothy Verstraeten, Amir R. Nejad, and Jan Helsen
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1507–1526, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1507-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1507-2024, 2024
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Wind farm yield assessment often relies on analytical wake models. Calibrating these models can be challenging due to the stochastic nature of wind. We developed a calibration framework that performs a multi-phase optimization on the tuning parameters using time series SCADA data. This yields a parameter distribution that more accurately reflects reality than a single value. Results revealed notable variation in resultant parameter values, influenced by nearby wind farms and coastal effects.
Anantha Padmanabhan Kidambi Sekar, Paul Hulsman, Marijn Floris van Dooren, and Martin Kühn
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1483–1505, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1483-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1483-2024, 2024
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We present induction zone measurements conducted with two synchronised lidars at a two-turbine wind farm. The induction zone flow was characterised for free, fully waked and partially waked flows. Due to the short turbine spacing, the lidars captured the interaction of the atmospheric boundary layer, induction zone and wake, evidenced by induction asymmetry and induction zone–wake interactions. The measurements will aid the process of further improving existing inflow and wake models.
Kelsey Shaler, Eliot Quon, Hristo Ivanov, and Jason Jonkman
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1451–1463, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1451-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1451-2024, 2024
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This paper presents a three-way verification and validation between an engineering-fidelity model, a high-fidelity model, and measured data for the wind farm structural response and wake dynamics during an evolving stable boundary layer of a small wind farm, generally with good agreement.
Peter Brugger, Corey D. Markfort, and Fernando Porté-Agel
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1363–1379, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1363-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1363-2024, 2024
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The dynamic wake meandering model (DWMM) assumes that wind turbine wakes are transported like a passive tracer by the large-scale turbulence of the atmospheric boundary layer. We show that both the downstream transport and the lateral transport of the wake have differences from the passive tracer assumption. We then propose to include the turbulent Schmidt number into the DWMM to account for the less efficient transport of momentum and show that it improves the quality of the model predictions.
Mohammad Mehdi Mohammadi, Hugo Olivares-Espinosa, Gonzalo Pablo Navarro Diaz, and Stefan Ivanell
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1305–1321, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1305-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1305-2024, 2024
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This paper has put forward a set of recommendations regarding the actuator sector model implementation details to improve the capability of the model to reproduce similar results compared to those obtained by an actuator line model, which is one of the most common ways used for numerical simulations of wind farms, while providing significant computational savings. This includes among others the velocity sampling method and a correction of the sampled velocities to calculate the blade forces.
Franz V. Mühle, Florian M. Heckmeier, Filippo Campagnolo, and Christian Breitsamter
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1251–1271, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1251-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1251-2024, 2024
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Wind turbines influence each other, and these wake effects limit the power production of downstream turbines. Controlling turbines collectively and not individually can limit such effects. We experimentally investigate a control strategy increasing mixing in the wake. We want to see the potential of this so-called Helix control for power optimization and understand the flow physics. Our study shows that the control technique leads to clearly faster wake recovery and thus higher power production.
Pascal Weihing, Marion Cormier, Thorsten Lutz, and Ewald Krämer
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 933–962, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-933-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-933-2024, 2024
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This study evaluates different approaches to simulate the near-wake flow of a wind turbine. The test case is in off-design conditions of the wind turbine, where the flow is separated from the blades and therefore very difficult to predict. The evaluation of simulation techniques is key to understand their limitations and to deepen the understanding of the near-wake physics. This knowledge can help to derive new wind farm design methods for yield-optimized farm layouts.
Nikolaos Bempedelis, Filippo Gori, Andrew Wynn, Sylvain Laizet, and Luca Magri
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 869–882, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-869-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-869-2024, 2024
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This paper proposes a computational method to maximise the power production of wind farms through two strategies: layout optimisation and yaw angle optimisation. The proposed method relies on high-fidelity computational modelling of wind farm flows and is shown to be able to effectively maximise wind farm power production. Performance improvements relative to conventional optimisation strategies based on low-fidelity models can be attained, particularly in scenarios of increased flow complexity.
Benyamin Schliffke, Boris Conan, and Sandrine Aubrun
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 519–532, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-519-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-519-2024, 2024
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This paper studies the consequences of floater motions for the wake properties of a floating wind turbine. Since wake interactions are responsible for power production loss in wind farms, it is important that we know whether the tools that are used to predict this production loss need to be upgraded to take into account these aspects. Our wind tunnel study shows that the signature of harmonic floating motions can be observed in the far wake of a wind turbine, when motions have strong amplitudes.
Erwan Jézéquel, Frédéric Blondel, and Valéry Masson
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 97–117, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-97-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-97-2024, 2024
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Wind turbine wakes affect the production and lifecycle of downstream turbines. They can be predicted with the dynamic wake meandering (DWM) method. In this paper, the authors break down the velocity and turbulence in the wake of a wind turbine into several terms. They show that it is implicitly assumed in the DWM that some of these terms are neglected. With high-fidelity simulations, it is shown that this can lead to some errors, in particular for the maximum turbulence added by the wake.
Erwan Jézéquel, Frédéric Blondel, and Valéry Masson
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 119–139, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-119-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-119-2024, 2024
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Analytical models allow us to quickly compute the decreased power output and lifetime induced by wakes in a wind farm. This is achieved by evaluating the modified velocity and turbulence in the wake. In this work, we present a new model based on the velocity and turbulence breakdowns presented in Part 1. This new model is physically based, allows us to compute the whole turbulence profile (rather than the maximum value) and is built to take atmospheric stability into account.
Maarten J. van den Broek, Delphine De Tavernier, Paul Hulsman, Daan van der Hoek, Benjamin Sanderse, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1909–1925, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1909-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1909-2023, 2023
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As wind turbines produce power, they leave behind wakes of slow-moving air. We analyse three different models to predict the effects of these wakes on downstream wind turbines. The models are validated with experimental data from wind tunnel studies for steady and time-varying conditions. We demonstrate that the models are suitable for optimally controlling wind turbines to improve power production in large wind farms.
Alessandro Sebastiani, James Bleeg, and Alfredo Peña
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1795–1808, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1795-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1795-2023, 2023
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The power curve of a wind turbine indicates the turbine power output in relation to the wind speed. Therefore, power curves are critically important to estimate the production of future wind farms as well as to assess whether operating wind farms are functioning correctly. Since power curves are often measured in wind farms, they might be affected by the interactions between the turbines. We show that these effects are not negligible and present a method to correct for them.
Filippo Trevisi, Carlo E. D. Riboldi, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 999–1016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-999-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-999-2023, 2023
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Modeling the aerodynamic wake of airborne wind energy systems (AWESs) is crucial to properly estimating power production and to designing such systems. The velocities induced at the AWES from its own wake are studied with a model for the near wake and one for the far wake, using vortex methods. The model is validated with the lifting-line free-vortex wake method implemented in QBlade.
Maarten Paul van der Laan, Oscar García-Santiago, Mark Kelly, Alexander Meyer Forsting, Camille Dubreuil-Boisclair, Knut Sponheim Seim, Marc Imberger, Alfredo Peña, Niels Nørmark Sørensen, and Pierre-Elouan Réthoré
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 819–848, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-819-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-819-2023, 2023
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Offshore wind farms are more commonly installed in wind farm clusters, where wind farm interaction can lead to energy losses. In this work, an efficient numerical method is presented that can be used to estimate these energy losses. The novel method is verified with higher-fidelity numerical models and validated with measurements of an existing wind farm cluster.
Peter Baas, Remco Verzijlbergh, Pim van Dorp, and Harm Jonker
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 787–805, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-787-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-787-2023, 2023
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This work studies the energy production and wake losses of large offshore wind farms with a large-eddy simulation model. Therefore, 1 year of actual weather has been simulated for a suite of hypothetical 4 GW wind farm scenarios. The results suggest that production numbers increase significantly when the rated power of the individual turbines is larger while keeping the total installed capacity the same. Also, a clear impact of atmospheric stability on the energy production is found.
Robert Braunbehrens, Andreas Vad, and Carlo L. Bottasso
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 691–723, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-691-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-691-2023, 2023
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The paper presents a new method in which wind turbines in a wind farm act as local sensors, in this way detecting the flow that develops within the power plant. Through this technique, we are able to identify effects on the flow generated by the plant itself and by the orography of the terrain. The new method not only delivers a flow model of much improved quality but can also help in understanding phenomena that drive the farm performance.
Tamino Wetz and Norman Wildmann
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 515–534, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-515-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-515-2023, 2023
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In the present study, for the first time, the SWUF-3D fleet of multirotors is deployed for field measurements on an operating 2 MW wind turbine (WT) in complex terrain. The fleet of multirotors has the potential to fill the meteorological gap of observations in the near wake of WTs with high-temporal and high-spatial-resolution wind vector measurements plus temperature, humidity and pressure. The flow up- and downstream of the WT is measured simultaneously at multiple spatial positions.
Christopher J. Bay, Paul Fleming, Bart Doekemeijer, Jennifer King, Matt Churchfield, and Rafael Mudafort
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 401–419, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-401-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-401-2023, 2023
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This paper introduces the cumulative-curl wake model that allows for the fast and accurate prediction of wind farm energy production wake interactions. The cumulative-curl model expands several existing wake models to make the simulation of farms more accurate and is implemented in a computationally efficient manner such that it can be used for wind farm layout design and controller development. The model is validated against high-fidelity simulations and data from physical wind farms.
Gonzalo Pablo Navarro Diaz, Alejandro Daniel Otero, Henrik Asmuth, Jens Nørkær Sørensen, and Stefan Ivanell
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 363–382, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-363-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-363-2023, 2023
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In this paper, the capacity to simulate transient wind turbine wake interaction problems using limited wind turbine data has been extended. The key novelty is the creation of two new variants of the actuator line technique in which the rotor blade forces are computed locally using generic load data. The analysis covers a partial wake interaction case between two wind turbines for a uniform laminar inflow and for a turbulent neutral atmospheric boundary layer inflow.
Maarten Paul van der Laan, Mads Baungaard, and Mark Kelly
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 247–254, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-247-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-247-2023, 2023
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Understanding wind turbine wake recovery is important to mitigate energy losses in wind farms. Wake recovery is often assumed or explained to be dependent on the first-order derivative of velocity. In this work we show that wind turbine wakes recover mainly due to the second-order derivative of the velocity, which transport momentum from the freestream towards the wake center. The wake recovery mechanisms and results of a high-fidelity numerical simulation are illustrated using a simple model.
Søren Juhl Andersen and Juan Pablo Murcia Leon
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 2117–2133, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2117-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2117-2022, 2022
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Simulating the turbulent flow inside large wind farms is inherently complex and computationally expensive. A new and fast model is developed based on data from high-fidelity simulations. The model captures the flow dynamics with correct statistics for a wide range of flow conditions. The model framework provides physical insights and presents a generalization of high-fidelity simulation results beyond the case-specific scenarios, which has significant potential for future turbulence modeling.
Mads Baungaard, Stefan Wallin, Maarten Paul van der Laan, and Mark Kelly
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1975–2002, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1975-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1975-2022, 2022
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Wind turbine wakes in the neutral atmospheric surface layer are simulated with Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) using an explicit algebraic Reynolds stress model. Contrary to standard two-equation turbulence models, it can predict turbulence anisotropy and complex physical phenomena like secondary motions. For the cases considered, it improves Reynolds stress, turbulence intensity, and velocity deficit predictions, although a more top-hat-shaped profile is observed for the latter.
Koen Devesse, Luca Lanzilao, Sebastiaan Jamaer, Nicole van Lipzig, and Johan Meyers
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1367–1382, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1367-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1367-2022, 2022
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Recent research suggests that offshore wind farms might form such a large obstacle to the wind that it already decelerates before reaching the first turbines. Part of this phenomenon could be explained by gravity waves. Research on these gravity waves triggered by mountains and hills has found that variations in the atmospheric state with altitude can have a large effect on how they behave. This paper is the first to take the impact of those vertical variations into account for wind farms.
Cited articles
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Short summary
This paper investigates the impact of large movements allowed by floating wind turbine foundations on their aerodynamics and wake behavior. Wind tunnel tests with a model turbine reveal that platform motions affect wake patterns and turbulence levels. Insights from these experiments are crucial for optimizing large-scale floating wind farms. The dataset obtained from the experiment is published and can aid in developing simulation tools for floating wind turbines.
This paper investigates the impact of large movements allowed by floating wind turbine...
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