Mean Kinetic Energy Budget of Wakes Within Model Wind Farms: Comparison of an Array of Model Wind Turbines and Porous Discs

Abstract:

To optimize the power production of large wind farms, it is important to understand the flow within the wind turbine array as well as its interaction with the surrounding atmosphere. Computational simulations are often employed to study both the velocity field within and immediately above wind farms. In many computational studies, wind turbines are modeled as stationary, porous actuator discs. A wind tunnel study is done in order to compare the wakes within an array of porous discs and an equivalent array of model wind turbines. To characterize the wakes within a 4×3 model wind farm, stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (SPIV) is employed. SPIV measurements focus on the region along the centerline of the array upstream and downstream of the center turbine in the fourth row. The computed mean flow fields and turbulent stresses provide a basis to compare the near and far wakes of the turbines with those of the porous discs. The detailed analysis of the wakes for each case focus on the mean kinetic energy budget within the wakes. Examining the mean kinetic energy budget is done via computing the mean kinetic energy, flux of kinetic energy, and production of turbulence which are analogous to a measure of extracted power.