Wake Steering: Curled Wake Model

Consulting Expert on Wake Steering of Wind Farms

I help in evaluating and developing wake modeling strategies to understand and improve predictions in wake steering. The "curled wake model" refers to a computational model that simulates the wake of a wind turbine, particularly when the turbine is yawed (misaligned with the wind direction). The model runs in fractions of a second using a laptop.

Six scientific plots showing vector fields and color maps comparing different models. The top row compares LES models (LES 1D, LES 5D, LES 8D). The bottom row compares different models (Model 1D, Model 5D, Model 8D). Each plot contains vector arrows and a color gradient indicating a specific variable, with a black circle in the middle of the lower row plots. Axes are labeled y/D and z/D.

Curled Wake Model for Wind Farm Control

Understanding the curled wake is crucial for optimizing wind farm performance. By accurately modeling the wake's behavior, including the curl effect, engineers can develop more effective control strategies for wind turbines, especially when considering wake steering (deliberately misaligning turbines to minimize wake losses). The curled wake model is an open source code available here.

Large eddy simulation of two aligned wind turbines showing how wake steering can be used to deflect the wake away from the downstream turbine.

Martinez Tossas et al, Wind Energy Science, 2021