Utility-Scale Wind Turbine Wake Characterization Using Nacelle-Based Long-Range Scanning Lidar

AbstractTo facilitate the optimization of turbine spacing at modern wind farms, computational simulations of wake effects must be validated through comparison with full-scale field measurements of wakes from utility-scale turbines operating in the real atmosphere. Scanning remote sensors are particularly well suited for this objective, as they can sample wind fields over large areas at high temporal and spatial resolutions. Although ground-based systems are useful, the vantage point from the nacelle is favorable in that scans can more consistently transect the central part of the wake. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the work described here represents the first analysis in the published literature of a utility-scale wind turbine wake using nacelle-based long-range scanning lidar.The results presented are of a field experiment conducted in the fall of 2011 at a wind farm in the western United States, quantifying wake attributes such as the velocity deficit, centerline location, and wake width. Notab...