Journal Article

Local and Mesoscale Impacts of Wind Farms as Parameterized in a Mesoscale NWP Model

Gupta, Alok K., Michalakes, John, Olson, Joseph B., Fitch, Anna C., Lundquist, Julie K., Dudhia, Jimy, Barstad, Idar

2012

Overview

A new wind farm parameterization has been developed for the mesoscale numerical weather prediction model, the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF). The effects of wind turbines are represented by imposing a momentum sink on the mean flow; transferring kinetic energy into electricity and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE). The parameterization improves upon previous models, basing the atmospheric drag of turbines on the thrust coefficient of a modern commercial turbine. In addition, the source of TKE varies with wind speed, reflecting the amount of energy extracted from the atmosphere by the turbines that does not produce electrical energy. Analyses of idealized simulations of a large offshore wind farm are presented to highlight the perturbation induced by the wind farm and its interaction with the atmospheric boundary layer (BL). A wind speed deficit extended throughout the depth of the neutral boundary layer, above and downstream from the farm, with a long wake of 60-km e-folding distance. Within the farm the wind speed deficit reached a maximum reduction of 16%. A maximum increase of TKE, by nearly a factor of 7, was located within the farm. The increase in TKE extended to the top of the BL above the farm due to vertical transport and wind shear, significantly enhancing turbulent momentum fluxes. The TKE increased by a factor of 2 near the surface within the farm. Near-surface winds accelerated by up to 11%. These results are consistent with the few results available from observations and large-eddy simulations, indicating this parameterization provides a reasonable means of exploring potential downwind impacts of large wind farms.

• Publisher: American Meteorological Society
• Subject: Alternative energy / Atmosphere / Atmospheric boundary layer / Atmospheric drag / Atmospheric models / Boundary layers / Climatology / Computational fluid dynamics / Earth, ocean, space / Energy / Exact sciences and technology / External geophysics / Farm buildings / Farms / Fluid dynamics / Kinetic energy / Large eddy simulation / Large eddy simulations / Mathematical models / Mesoscale phenomena / Meteorology / Modelling / Momentum / Numerical prediction / Numerical weather forecasting / Oceanic eddies / Offshore / Offshore energy sources / Parameterization / Parametrization / Perturbation / Prediction models / Surface wind / Temperature / Turbine engines / Turbines / Turbulent kinetic energy / Velocity / Vertical advection / Weather / Weather forecasting / Wind / Wind effects / Wind farms / Wind power / Wind shear / Wind speed / Wind turbines / Winds / Winds and their effects