Articles | Volume 9, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1211-2024
© Author(s) 2024. 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-9-1211-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
28 May 2024
Research article |
| 28 May 2024
| 28 May 2024
Combining wake redirection and derating strategies in a load-constrained wind farm power maximization
Alessandro Croce
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy
Stefano Cacciola
Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy
Federico Isella
Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy
Related authors
Sabrina Milani, Jessica Leoni, Stefano Cacciola, Alessandro Croce, and Mara Tanelli
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 497–510, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-497-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-497-2025, 2025
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In this paper, we propose a novel machine-learning framework for pitch misalignment detection in wind turbines. Using a minimal set of standard sensors, our method detects misalignments as small as 0.1° and localizes the affected blades. It combines signal processing with a hierarchical classification structure and linear regression for precise severity quantification. Evaluation results validate the approach, showing notable accuracy in misalignment classification, regression, and localization.
Filippo Trevisi, Carlo E. D. Riboldi, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1639–1650, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1639-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1639-2023, 2023
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The power equations of crosswind Ground-Gen and Fly-Gen airborne wind energy systems (AWESs) are refined to include the contribution from the aerodynamic wake. A novel power coefficient is defined by normalizing the aerodynamic power with the wind power passing through a disk with a radius equal to the AWES wingspan, allowing us to compare systems with different wingspans. Ground-Gen and Fly-Gen AWESs are compared in terms of their aerodynamic power potential.
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
Short summary
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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.
Roger Bergua, Amy Robertson, Jason Jonkman, Emmanuel Branlard, Alessandro Fontanella, Marco Belloli, Paolo Schito, Alberto Zasso, Giacomo Persico, Andrea Sanvito, Ervin Amet, Cédric Brun, Guillén Campaña-Alonso, Raquel Martín-San-Román, Ruolin Cai, Jifeng Cai, Quan Qian, Wen Maoshi, Alec Beardsell, Georg Pirrung, Néstor Ramos-García, Wei Shi, Jie Fu, Rémi Corniglion, Anaïs Lovera, Josean Galván, Tor Anders Nygaard, Carlos Renan dos Santos, Philippe Gilbert, Pierre-Antoine Joulin, Frédéric Blondel, Eelco Frickel, Peng Chen, Zhiqiang Hu, Ronan Boisard, Kutay Yilmazlar, Alessandro Croce, Violette Harnois, Lijun Zhang, Ye Li, Ander Aristondo, Iñigo Mendikoa Alonso, Simone Mancini, Koen Boorsma, Feike Savenije, David Marten, Rodrigo Soto-Valle, Christian W. Schulz, Stefan Netzband, Alessandro Bianchini, Francesco Papi, Stefano Cioni, Pau Trubat, Daniel Alarcon, Climent Molins, Marion Cormier, Konstantin Brüker, Thorsten Lutz, Qing Xiao, Zhongsheng Deng, Florence Haudin, and Akhilesh Goveas
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 465–485, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-465-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-465-2023, 2023
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This work examines if the motion experienced by an offshore floating wind turbine can significantly affect the rotor performance. It was observed that the system motion results in variations in the load, but these variations are not critical, and the current simulation tools capture the physics properly. Interestingly, variations in the rotor speed or the blade pitch angle can have a larger impact than the system motion itself.
Koen Boorsma, Gerard Schepers, Helge Aagard Madsen, Georg Pirrung, Niels Sørensen, Galih Bangga, Manfred Imiela, Christian Grinderslev, Alexander Meyer Forsting, Wen Zhong Shen, Alessandro Croce, Stefano Cacciola, Alois Peter Schaffarczyk, Brandon Lobo, Frederic Blondel, Philippe Gilbert, Ronan Boisard, Leo Höning, Luca Greco, Claudio Testa, Emmanuel Branlard, Jason Jonkman, and Ganesh Vijayakumar
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 211–230, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-211-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-211-2023, 2023
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Within the framework of the fourth phase of the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Wind Task 29, a large comparison exercise between measurements and aeroelastic simulations has been carried out. Results were obtained from more than 19 simulation tools of various fidelity, originating from 12 institutes and compared to state-of-the-art field measurements. The result is a unique insight into the current status and accuracy of rotor aerodynamic modeling.
Filippo Trevisi, Iván Castro-Fernández, Gregorio Pasquinelli, Carlo Emanuele Dionigi Riboldi, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 2039–2058, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2039-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2039-2022, 2022
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The optimal control problem for the flight trajectories of Fly-Gen AWESs is expressed with a novel methodology in the frequency domain through a harmonic balance formulation. The solution gives the optimal trajectory and the optimal control inputs. Optimal trajectories have a circular shape squashed along the vertical direction, and the optimal control inputs can be modeled with only one or two harmonics. Analytical approximations for optimal trajectory characteristics are also given.
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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The paper is part of the Grand Challenges Papers for Wind Energy. It provides a status of small wind turbine technology in terms of technical maturity, diffusion, and cost. Then, five grand challenges that are thought to be key to fostering the development of the technology are proposed. To tackle these challenges, a series of unknowns and gaps are first identified and discussed. Improvement areas are highlighted, within which 10 key enabling actions are finally proposed to the wind community.
Alessandro Croce, Stefano Cacciola, and Luca Sartori
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1–17, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1-2022, 2022
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In recent years, research has focused on the development of wind farm controllers with the aim of minimizing interactions between machines and thus improving the production of the wind farm.
In this work we have analyzed the effects of these recent technologies on a single wind turbine, with the aim of understanding the impact of these controllers on the design of the machine itself.
The analyses have shown there are non-negligible effects on some components of the wind turbine.
Joeri Alexis Frederik, Robin Weber, Stefano Cacciola, Filippo Campagnolo, Alessandro Croce, Carlo Bottasso, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 5, 245–257, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-245-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-245-2020, 2020
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The interaction between wind turbines in a wind farm through their wakes is a widely studied research area. Until recently, research was focused on finding constant turbine inputs that optimize the performance of the wind farm. However, recent studies have shown that time-varying, dynamic inputs might be more beneficial. In this paper, the validity of this approach is further investigated by implementing it in scaled wind tunnel experiments and assessing load effects, showing promising results.
Carlo L. Bottasso, Alessandro Croce, Federico Gualdoni, Pierluigi Montinari, and Carlo E. D. Riboldi
Wind Energ. Sci., 1, 297–310, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-297-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-297-2016, 2016
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The paper discusses different concepts for reducing loads on wind turbines using movable blade tips. Passive and semi-passive tip solutions move freely in response to air load fluctuations, while in the active case an actuator drives the tip motion in response to load measurements. The various solutions are compared with a standard blade and with each other in terms of their ability to reduce both fatigue and extreme loads.
Pietro Bortolotti, Carlo L. Bottasso, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 1, 71–88, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-71-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-71-2016, 2016
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The paper presents a new method to conduct the holistic optimization of a wind turbine. The proposed approach allows one to define the rotor radius and tower height, while simultaneously performing the detailed sizing of rotor and tower. For the rotor, the procedures perform simultaneously the design both from the aerodynamic and structural points of view. The overall optimization seeks a minimum for the cost of energy, while accounting for a wide range of user-defined design constraints.
Sabrina Milani, Jessica Leoni, Stefano Cacciola, Alessandro Croce, and Mara Tanelli
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 497–510, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-497-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-497-2025, 2025
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In this paper, we propose a novel machine-learning framework for pitch misalignment detection in wind turbines. Using a minimal set of standard sensors, our method detects misalignments as small as 0.1° and localizes the affected blades. It combines signal processing with a hierarchical classification structure and linear regression for precise severity quantification. Evaluation results validate the approach, showing notable accuracy in misalignment classification, regression, and localization.
Filippo Trevisi, Carlo E. D. Riboldi, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1639–1650, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1639-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1639-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The power equations of crosswind Ground-Gen and Fly-Gen airborne wind energy systems (AWESs) are refined to include the contribution from the aerodynamic wake. A novel power coefficient is defined by normalizing the aerodynamic power with the wind power passing through a disk with a radius equal to the AWES wingspan, allowing us to compare systems with different wingspans. Ground-Gen and Fly-Gen AWESs are compared in terms of their aerodynamic power potential.
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
Short summary
Short summary
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.
Roger Bergua, Amy Robertson, Jason Jonkman, Emmanuel Branlard, Alessandro Fontanella, Marco Belloli, Paolo Schito, Alberto Zasso, Giacomo Persico, Andrea Sanvito, Ervin Amet, Cédric Brun, Guillén Campaña-Alonso, Raquel Martín-San-Román, Ruolin Cai, Jifeng Cai, Quan Qian, Wen Maoshi, Alec Beardsell, Georg Pirrung, Néstor Ramos-García, Wei Shi, Jie Fu, Rémi Corniglion, Anaïs Lovera, Josean Galván, Tor Anders Nygaard, Carlos Renan dos Santos, Philippe Gilbert, Pierre-Antoine Joulin, Frédéric Blondel, Eelco Frickel, Peng Chen, Zhiqiang Hu, Ronan Boisard, Kutay Yilmazlar, Alessandro Croce, Violette Harnois, Lijun Zhang, Ye Li, Ander Aristondo, Iñigo Mendikoa Alonso, Simone Mancini, Koen Boorsma, Feike Savenije, David Marten, Rodrigo Soto-Valle, Christian W. Schulz, Stefan Netzband, Alessandro Bianchini, Francesco Papi, Stefano Cioni, Pau Trubat, Daniel Alarcon, Climent Molins, Marion Cormier, Konstantin Brüker, Thorsten Lutz, Qing Xiao, Zhongsheng Deng, Florence Haudin, and Akhilesh Goveas
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 465–485, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-465-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-465-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This work examines if the motion experienced by an offshore floating wind turbine can significantly affect the rotor performance. It was observed that the system motion results in variations in the load, but these variations are not critical, and the current simulation tools capture the physics properly. Interestingly, variations in the rotor speed or the blade pitch angle can have a larger impact than the system motion itself.
Koen Boorsma, Gerard Schepers, Helge Aagard Madsen, Georg Pirrung, Niels Sørensen, Galih Bangga, Manfred Imiela, Christian Grinderslev, Alexander Meyer Forsting, Wen Zhong Shen, Alessandro Croce, Stefano Cacciola, Alois Peter Schaffarczyk, Brandon Lobo, Frederic Blondel, Philippe Gilbert, Ronan Boisard, Leo Höning, Luca Greco, Claudio Testa, Emmanuel Branlard, Jason Jonkman, and Ganesh Vijayakumar
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 211–230, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-211-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-211-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Within the framework of the fourth phase of the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Wind Task 29, a large comparison exercise between measurements and aeroelastic simulations has been carried out. Results were obtained from more than 19 simulation tools of various fidelity, originating from 12 institutes and compared to state-of-the-art field measurements. The result is a unique insight into the current status and accuracy of rotor aerodynamic modeling.
Filippo Trevisi, Iván Castro-Fernández, Gregorio Pasquinelli, Carlo Emanuele Dionigi Riboldi, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 2039–2058, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2039-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-2039-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The optimal control problem for the flight trajectories of Fly-Gen AWESs is expressed with a novel methodology in the frequency domain through a harmonic balance formulation. The solution gives the optimal trajectory and the optimal control inputs. Optimal trajectories have a circular shape squashed along the vertical direction, and the optimal control inputs can be modeled with only one or two harmonics. Analytical approximations for optimal trajectory characteristics are also given.
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
Short summary
Short summary
The paper is part of the Grand Challenges Papers for Wind Energy. It provides a status of small wind turbine technology in terms of technical maturity, diffusion, and cost. Then, five grand challenges that are thought to be key to fostering the development of the technology are proposed. To tackle these challenges, a series of unknowns and gaps are first identified and discussed. Improvement areas are highlighted, within which 10 key enabling actions are finally proposed to the wind community.
Alessandro Croce, Stefano Cacciola, and Luca Sartori
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1–17, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
In recent years, research has focused on the development of wind farm controllers with the aim of minimizing interactions between machines and thus improving the production of the wind farm.
In this work we have analyzed the effects of these recent technologies on a single wind turbine, with the aim of understanding the impact of these controllers on the design of the machine itself.
The analyses have shown there are non-negligible effects on some components of the wind turbine.
Joeri Alexis Frederik, Robin Weber, Stefano Cacciola, Filippo Campagnolo, Alessandro Croce, Carlo Bottasso, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 5, 245–257, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-245-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-5-245-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The interaction between wind turbines in a wind farm through their wakes is a widely studied research area. Until recently, research was focused on finding constant turbine inputs that optimize the performance of the wind farm. However, recent studies have shown that time-varying, dynamic inputs might be more beneficial. In this paper, the validity of this approach is further investigated by implementing it in scaled wind tunnel experiments and assessing load effects, showing promising results.
Marta Bertelè, Carlo L. Bottasso, and Stefano Cacciola
Wind Energ. Sci., 4, 89–97, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-4-89-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-4-89-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper describes a new formulation for estimating the wind
inflow at the rotor disk, based on measurements of the blade loads.
The new method improves on previous formulations by exploiting the
rotational symmetry of the problem. Experimental results obtained
with an aeroelastically scaled model in a boundary layer wind
tunnel are used for validating the proposed approach.
Marta Bertelè, Carlo L. Bottasso, and Stefano Cacciola
Wind Energ. Sci., 3, 791–803, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-3-791-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-3-791-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This work presents a new fully automated method to correct for
pitch misalignment imbalances of wind turbine rotors. The method
has minimal requirements, as it only assumes the availability of a
sensor of sufficient accuracy and bandwidth to detect the 1P
harmonic to the desired precision and the ability to command the
pitch setting of each blade independently from the others.
Extensive numerical simulations are used to demonstrate the new
procedure.
Marta Bertelè, Carlo L. Bottasso, Stefano Cacciola, Fabiano Daher Adegas, and Sara Delport
Wind Energ. Sci., 2, 615–640, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2-615-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2-615-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The rotor of a wind turbine is used to determine some important parameters of the wind, including the direction of the wind vector relative to the rotor disk and horizontal and vertical shears. The method works by using measurements provided by existing onboard load sensors. The observed wind characteristics can be used to implement advanced features in smart wind turbine and wind farm controllers.
Carlo L. Bottasso, Alessandro Croce, Federico Gualdoni, Pierluigi Montinari, and Carlo E. D. Riboldi
Wind Energ. Sci., 1, 297–310, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-297-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-297-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
The paper discusses different concepts for reducing loads on wind turbines using movable blade tips. Passive and semi-passive tip solutions move freely in response to air load fluctuations, while in the active case an actuator drives the tip motion in response to load measurements. The various solutions are compared with a standard blade and with each other in terms of their ability to reduce both fatigue and extreme loads.
Riccardo Riva, Stefano Cacciola, and Carlo Luigi Bottasso
Wind Energ. Sci., 1, 177–203, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-177-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-177-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a method to assess the stability of a wind turbine. The proposed approach uses the recorded time history of the system response and fits to it a periodic reduced-order model that can handle stochastic disturbances. Stability is computed by using Floquet theory on the reduced-order model. Since the method only uses response data, it is applicable to any simulation model as well as to experimental test data. The method is compared to the well-known operational modal analysis.
Pietro Bortolotti, Carlo L. Bottasso, and Alessandro Croce
Wind Energ. Sci., 1, 71–88, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-71-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-1-71-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
The paper presents a new method to conduct the holistic optimization of a wind turbine. The proposed approach allows one to define the rotor radius and tower height, while simultaneously performing the detailed sizing of rotor and tower. For the rotor, the procedures perform simultaneously the design both from the aerodynamic and structural points of view. The overall optimization seeks a minimum for the cost of energy, while accounting for a wide range of user-defined design constraints.
Related subject area
Thematic area: Dynamics and control | Topic: Wind turbine control
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Guido Lazzerini, Jacob Deleuran Grunnet, Tobias Gybel Hovgaard, Fabio Caponetti, Vasu Datta Madireddi, Delphine De Tavernier, and Sebastiaan Paul Mulders
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 1303–1327, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1303-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-1303-2025, 2025
Short summary
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Large wind turbines face design challenges due to increased flexibility of blades. Conventional control strategies fail under large deformations, impacting performance. We present a feedforward–feedback control scheme, addressing flexibility and overcoming the limitations of conventional strategies. By testing it on a large-scale reference turbine with realistic wind conditions, we demonstrated improvements to power by up to 5 % while constraining blade deflections.
Finn Matras and Morten Dinhoff Pedersen
Wind Energ. Sci., 10, 925–939, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-925-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-10-925-2025, 2025
Short summary
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Wind energy has been dominated by ever-increasing single-rotor wind turbines. Structural scaling laws make multi-rotor wind turbines attractive, as they can achieve similar power outputs but work with, rather than against, scaling laws. This work investigates high-level control strategies for a 23-rotor multi-rotor wind turbine, including the aerodynamic interactions between the rotors, and suggests an alternative to pitch control using multi-rotor furling.
Robert H. Moldenhauer and Robert Schmid
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-184, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-184, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
Short summary
Short summary
We explore the application of a novel wind turbine control methodology for maximizing power generation while also improving the turbine's lifespan by reducing fatigue load on the tower structure, blades, and rotor. Simulations of the controller against a state-of-the-art baseline controller on a 15-MW reference turbine showed that the controller improves on all considered performance metrics. The reductions were achieved without sacrificing power generation or tracking performance.
Jesse Ishi Storm Hummel, Jens Kober, and Sebastiaan Paul Mulders
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-153, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-153, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
Short summary
Short summary
Wind turbines have grown dramatically over the last decades. Since wind speed increases with height, each blade experiences high wind speed when pointing up and less wind when pointing down, causing oscillations. These oscillations can be reduced with individual pitch control (IPC), at the expense of constant blade actuation, hindering industry adoption. This work proposes two output-constrained IPC methods to facilitate the trade-off between load reduction and actuation increase.
Irene Miquelez-Madariaga, Jesús Arellano, Daniel Lacheta-Lecumberri, and Jorge Elso
Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-154, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-2024-154, 2024
Revised manuscript accepted for WES
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a method for obtaining mechanical fatigue estimations from linear models and fatigue-based specifications for the design of controllers for wind turbines. The method is validated by the design of controllers for a 15 MW reference wind turbine. The error in the fatigue estimation is smaller than 2 % and fatigue loads are successfully reduced.
Devesh Kumar and Mario A. Rotea
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 2133–2146, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-2133-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-2133-2024, 2024
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The performance of a wind turbine is affected by blade surface degradation due to wear and tear, dirt, bugs, and icing. As blades degrade, optimal operating points such as the tip-speed ratio (TSR) can change. Re-tuning the TSR to its new optimal value can lead to recovery of energy losses under blade degradation. In this work, we utilize a real-time algorithm to re-tune the TSR to its new unknown optimal value under blade degradation and demonstrate energy gains using simulations.
Marion Coquelet, Maxime Lejeune, Laurent Bricteux, Aemilius A. W. van Vondelen, Jan-Willem van Wingerden, and Philippe Chatelain
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1923–1940, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1923-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1923-2024, 2024
Short summary
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An extended Kalman filter is used to estimate the wind impinging on a wind turbine based on the blade bending moments and a turbine model. Using large-eddy simulations, this paper verifies how robust the estimator is to the turbine control strategy as it impacts loads and operating parameters. It is shown that including dynamics in the turbine model to account for delays between actuation and bending moments is needed to maintain the accuracy of the estimator when dynamic pitch control is used.
Amr Hegazy, Peter Naaijen, Vincent Leroy, Félicien Bonnefoy, Mohammad Rasool Mojallizadeh, Yves Pérignon, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1669–1688, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1669-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1669-2024, 2024
Short summary
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Successful wave tank experiments were conducted to evaluate the feedforward (FF) control strategy benefits in terms of structural loads and power quality of floating wind turbine components. The wave FF control strategy is effective when it comes to alleviating the effects of the wave forces on the floating offshore wind turbines, whereas wave FF control requires a significant amount of actuation to minimize the platform pitch motion, which makes such technology unfavorable for that objective.
Alessandro Fontanella, Giorgio Colpani, Marco De Pascali, Sara Muggiasca, and Marco Belloli
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 1393–1417, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1393-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-1393-2024, 2024
Short summary
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Waves can boost a floating wind turbine's power output by moving its rotor against the wind. Studying this, we used four models to explore the impact of waves and platform dynamics on turbines in the Mediterranean. We found that wind turbulence, not waves, primarily affects power fluctuations. In real conditions, floating wind turbines produce less energy compared to fixed-bottom ones, mainly due to platform tilt.
Livia Brandetti, Sebastiaan Paul Mulders, Roberto Merino-Martinez, Simon Watson, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 9, 471–493, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-471-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-9-471-2024, 2024
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This research presents a multi-objective optimisation approach to balance vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) performance and noise, comparing the combined wind speed estimator and tip-speed ratio (WSE–TSR) tracking controller with a baseline. Psychoacoustic annoyance is used as a novel metric for human perception of wind turbine noise. Results showcase the WSE–TSR tracking controller’s potential in trading off the considered objectives, thereby fostering the deployment of VAWTs in urban areas.
Wei Fu, Feng Guo, David Schlipf, and Alfredo Peña
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1893–1907, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1893-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1893-2023, 2023
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A high-quality preview of the rotor-effective wind speed is a key element of the benefits of feedforward pitch control. We model a one-beam lidar in the spinner of a 15 MW wind turbine. The lidar rotates with the wind turbine and scans the inflow in a circular pattern, mimicking a multiple-beam lidar at a lower cost. We found that a spinner-based one-beam lidar provides many more control benefits than the one on the nacelle, which is similar to a four-beam nacelle lidar for feedforward control.
Andreas Rott, Leo Höning, Paul Hulsman, Laura J. Lukassen, Christof Moldenhauer, and Martin Kühn
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1755–1770, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1755-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1755-2023, 2023
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This study examines wind vane measurements of commercial wind turbines and their impact on yaw control. The authors discovered that rotor interference can cause an overestimation of wind vane measurements, leading to overcorrection of the yaw controller. A correction function that improves the yaw behaviour is presented and validated in free-field experiments on a commercial wind turbine. This work provides new insights into wind direction measurements and suggests ways to optimize yaw control.
Balthazar Arnoldus Maria Sengers, Andreas Rott, Eric Simley, Michael Sinner, Gerald Steinfeld, and Martin Kühn
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1693–1710, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1693-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1693-2023, 2023
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Unexpected wind direction changes are undesirable, especially when performing wake steering. This study explores whether the yaw controller can benefit from accessing wind direction information before a change reaches the turbine. Results from two models with different fidelities demonstrate that wake steering can indeed benefit from preview information.
Livia Brandetti, Sebastiaan Paul Mulders, Yichao Liu, Simon Watson, and Jan-Willem van Wingerden
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1553–1573, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1553-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1553-2023, 2023
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This research presents the additional benefits of applying an advanced combined wind speed estimator and tip-speed ratio tracking (WSE–TSR) controller compared to the baseline Kω2. Using a frequency-domain framework and an optimal calibration procedure, the WSE–TSR tracking control scheme shows a more flexible trade-off between conflicting objectives: power maximisation and load minimisation. Therefore, implementing this controller on large-scale wind turbines will facilitate their operation.
Matteo Capaldo and Paul Mella
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1319–1339, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1319-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1319-2023, 2023
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The controller impacts the movements, loads and yield of wind turbines.
Standard controllers are not adapted for floating, and they can lead to underperformances and overloads. New control strategies, considering the coupling between the floating dynamics and the rotor dynamics, are necessary to reduce platform movements and to improve performances. This work proposes a new control strategy adapted to floating wind, showing a reduction in loads without affecting the power production.
Feng Guo and David Schlipf
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1299–1317, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1299-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1299-2023, 2023
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This paper assesses lidar-assisted collective pitch feedforward (LACPF) and multi-variable feedback (MVFB) controls for the IEA 15.0 MW reference turbine. The main contributions of this work include (a) optimizing a four-beam pulsed lidar for a large turbine, (b) optimal tuning of speed regulation gains and platform feedback gains for the MVFB and LACPF controllers, and (c) assessing the benefits of the two control strategies using realistic offshore turbulence spectral characteristics.
Edwin Kipchirchir, M. Hung Do, Jackson G. Njiri, and Dirk Söffker
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 575–588, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-575-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-575-2023, 2023
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In this work, an adaptive control strategy for controlling the lifetime of wind turbine components is proposed. Performance of the lifetime controller is adapted based on real-time health status of the rotor blades to guarantee a predefined lifetime. It shows promising results in lifetime control of blades without speed regulation and tower load mitigation trade-off. It can be applied in optimizing maintenance scheduling of wind farms, which increases reliability and reduces maintenance costs.
Iñaki Sandua-Fernández, Felipe Vittori, Raquel Martín-San-Román, Irene Eguinoa, and José Azcona-Armendáriz
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 277–288, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-277-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-277-2023, 2023
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This work analyses in detail the causes of the yaw drift in floating offshore wind turbines with a single-point-mooring system induced by an upwind wind turbine. The ability of an individual pitch control strategy based on yaw misalignment is demonstrated through simulations using the NREL 5 MW wind turbine mounted on a single-point-mooring version of the DeepCwind OC4 floating platform. This effect is considered to be relevant for all single-point-moored concepts.
Feng Guo, David Schlipf, and Po Wen Cheng
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 149–171, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-149-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-149-2023, 2023
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The benefits of lidar-assisted control are evaluated using both the Mann model and Kaimal model-based 4D turbulence, considering the variation of turbulence parameters. Simulations are performed for the above-rated mean wind speed, using the NREL 5.0 MW reference wind turbine and a four-beam lidar system. Using lidar-assisted control reduces the variations in rotor speed, pitch rate, tower base fore–aft bending moment, and electrical power significantly.
Tuhfe Göçmen, Filippo Campagnolo, Thomas Duc, Irene Eguinoa, Søren Juhl Andersen, Vlaho Petrović, Lejla Imširović, Robert Braunbehrens, Jaime Liew, Mads Baungaard, Maarten Paul van der Laan, Guowei Qian, Maria Aparicio-Sanchez, Rubén González-Lope, Vinit V. Dighe, Marcus Becker, Maarten J. van den Broek, Jan-Willem van Wingerden, Adam Stock, Matthew Cole, Renzo Ruisi, Ervin Bossanyi, Niklas Requate, Simon Strnad, Jonas Schmidt, Lukas Vollmer, Ishaan Sood, and Johan Meyers
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1791–1825, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1791-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1791-2022, 2022
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The FarmConners benchmark is the first of its kind to bring a wide variety of data sets, control settings, and model complexities for the (initial) assessment of wind farm flow control benefits. Here we present the first part of the benchmark results for three blind tests with large-scale rotors and 11 participating models in total, via direct power comparisons at the turbines as well as the observed or estimated power gain at the wind farm level under wake steering control strategy.
Benjamin Anderson and Edward Baring-Gould
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1753–1769, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1753-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1753-2022, 2022
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Our article proposes an easy-to-integrate wind turbine control module which mitigates wind turbine fault conditions and sends predictive information to the grid operator, all while maximizing power production. This gives the grid operator more time to react to faults with its dispatch decisions, easing the transition between different generators. This study aims to illustrate the controller’s functionality under various types of faults and highlight potential wind turbine and grid benefits.
Stefan Loew and Carlo L. Bottasso
Wind Energ. Sci., 7, 1605–1625, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1605-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-7-1605-2022, 2022
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This publication presents methods to improve the awareness and control of material fatigue for wind turbines. This is achieved by enhancing a sophisticated control algorithm which utilizes wind prediction information from a laser measurement device. The simulation results indicate that the novel algorithm significantly improves the economic performance of a wind turbine. This benefit is particularly high for situations when the prediction quality is low or the prediction time frame is short.
Cited articles
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Short summary
For a few years now, various techniques have been studied to maximize the energy production of a wind farm, that is, from a system consisting of several wind turbines. These wind farm controller techniques are often analyzed individually and can generate loads higher than the design ones on the individual wind turbine. In this paper we study the simultaneous use of two different techniques with the goal of finding the optimal combination that at the same time preserves the design loads.
For a few years now, various techniques have been studied to maximize the energy production of a...
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