Partners
Promotor / Supervisor
Promotor: Prof. dr. Johan Meyers
Copromotor: Prof. dr. Charles Meneveau, John Hopkins University
Samenvatting van het onderzoek / Summary of Research
With the reducing cost of wind energy, the size and quantity of wind farms is rapidly increasing. Especially for large wind farms, that can extend over a distance of more than ten kilometer, it becomes important to better understand the interaction with the atmospheric boundary layer and the influence it has on farm efficiency. Computational models can be used for such detailed flow studies. However, it is important to verify the effects of the inherent modelling approximations. To this end, experimental data is necessary. In this study, a wind tunnel model of a farm with one hundred models of wind turbines is designed. Each model is instrumented to measure a surrogate for the power output. A large dataset is compiled with measurements for fifty-six different layouts. The measurement data indicates the potential benefit of a non-uniform farm layout to improve the overall power output. The measurement data are also used to study the variability of the power output. Finally, a model is developed which can estimate the frequency spectrum of the power output, based on the wind farm layout and the characteristics of the boundary layer.
Examencommissie / Board of examiners
Prof. dr. Johan Meyers (promotor)
Prof. dr. Charles Meneveau (co-promotor) , John Hopkins University
Prof. dr. ir. Omer Van Der Biest (voorzitter/chairman)
Prof. dr. ir. Bert Blocken (secretaris/secretary)
Prof. dr. Maria Rosaria Vetrano
Prof. dr. Jeroen van Beeck , von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics
Prof. dr. Bharathram Ganapathisubramani , University of Southampto