Abstract
Abstract. The aim of this paper is to analyze to which extent wind tunnel experiments can represent the behavior of full-scale wind turbine wakes. The question is relevant because on the one hand scaled models are extensively used for wake and farm control studies, whereas on the other hand not all wake-relevant physical characteristics of a full-scale turbine can be exactly matched by a scaled model. In particular, a detailed scaling analysis reveals that the scaled model accurately represents the principal physical phenomena taking place in the outer shell of the near wake, whereas differences exist in its inner core. A large-eddy simulation actuator-line method is first validated with respect to wind tunnel measurements and then used to perform a thorough comparison of the wake at the two scales. It is concluded that, notwithstanding the existence of some mismatched effects, the scaled wake is remarkably similar to the full-scale one, except in the immediate proximity of the rotor.
Highlights
The simulation of wind turbine wakes in wind tunnels has been gaining an increasing interest in recent years
A large eddy simulation actuator line method is first validated with respect to wind tunnel measurements, and used to perform a detailed comparison of the wake at the two scales
35 notwithstanding these and other unique advantages, a major question still hovers over the wind tunnel simulation of wakes: how faithful are these wakes to the actual ones in the field? in private conversations these authors have often been questioned on the actual usefulness of wind tunnel testing, based on a perceived lack of realism of these scaled tests
Summary
The simulation of wind turbine wakes in wind tunnels has been gaining an increasing interest in recent years. Since wakes represent a major form of coupling within a wind plant, understanding their behavior and accurately simulating their effects are today problems of central importance in wind energy science, with direct practical implications on design, operation and maintenance. Wind tunnel testing offers some unique advantages over full-scale field testing:. Testing in the controlled and repeatable environment of the wind tunnel is today contributing to the understanding of the physical processes at play, generates valuable data for the validation and calibration of mathematical models, and offers opportunities for the verification of control technologies. 35 notwithstanding these and other unique advantages, a major question still hovers over the wind tunnel simulation of wakes: how faithful are these wakes to the actual ones in the field? It is important to quantify the level of realism of wind tunnel simulated wakes, and to identify with better clarity what aspects faithfully represent the full-scale truth and what aspects do not
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