Open Access
Modeling stable thermal stratification and its impact on wind flow over topography
Author(s) -
Bleeg James,
Digraskar Dnyanesh,
Woodcock Jon,
Corbett JeanFrançois
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
wind energy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.743
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 1099-1824
pISSN - 1095-4244
DOI - 10.1002/we.1692
Subject(s) - reynolds averaged navier–stokes equations , wind speed , stratification (seeds) , wind power , mechanics , boundary layer , environmental science , wind profile power law , meteorology , planetary boundary layer , computational fluid dynamics , atmospheric sciences , geology , physics , engineering , seed dormancy , germination , botany , dormancy , biology , electrical engineering
Abstract Microscale flow models used in the wind energy industry commonly assume statically neutral conditions. These models can provide reasonable wind speed predictions for statically unstable and neutral flows; however, they do not provide reliable predictions for stably stratified flows, which can represent a substantial fraction of the available energy at a given site. With the objective of improving wind speed predictions and in turn reducing uncertainty in energy production estimates, we developed a Reynolds‐Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS)‐based model of the stable boundary layer. We then applied this model to eight prospective wind farms and compared the results with on‐site wind speed measurements classified using proxies for stability; the comparison also included results from linear and RANS wind flow models that assume neutral stratification. This validation demonstrates that a RANS‐based model of the stable boundary layer can significantly and consistently improve wind speed predictions. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.