Wind resource assessment and influence of atmospheric stability on wind farm design using Computational Fluid Dynamics in the Andes Mountains, Ecuador

Abstract

In recent years, research has revealed that hydropower designs in Ecuador have not adequately considered sensitivity to climate change. In addition, variations in rainfall patterns cause a drought from July to October. Therefore, it would decrease the flow of the rivers that feed the dams for hydroelectric generation, which would result in a significant reduction of its generating capacity.To prevent this inconvenience from occurring, it is necessary to promote the use of wind energy to diversify the Ecuadorian energy matrix. This matrix is made up of 70% hydropower and 0.26% wind power. Moreover, the Ecuadorian Andes has significant untapped wind potential due to their complex topography. Currently, there are no detailed studies on wind potential or wind energy prediction in the Andes. As a result, wind resource characterization is necessary. In order to address the challenges mentioned above, promote wind energy development, assess wind potential, and diminish the need for thermal generators. This article describes a methodology for wind resource characterization over complex terrain using measured data from two meteorological towers installed in the mountainous zone of study and wind characteristics modeling through the Ansys Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software for the positioning of 11 Goldwind 70/1500 kW wind turbines to optimize the Annual Energy Production (AEP) of a hypothetical wind farm.The study’s main findings indicate that the wind passing between two volcanoes has a high wind potential. This potential is dependent on meteorological variables, orography, and the accelerating effect of wind speed. These favorable conditions make it possible to install a wind farm in this area with 11 high-power wind turbines. Furthermore, the most suitable turbulence model for wind farm design using Ansys Fluent CFD is the K-epsilon which can model with high precision the profile of wind characteristics over a simulated mountain under the influence of atmospheric stability on the state of the air mass to assist in the decision-making process when selecting the best wind farm locations over complex terrain in the Ecuadorian Andes.