Investigating the breakdown of wind turbine wakes

The interaction between wind turbines in a wind farm through their wakes is a phenomenon that has been studied for decades and is still a relevant topic today. Turbines exist in the wake of downstream turbines which leads to significant power losses and fatigue loads. As well as this, turbine wakes are significantly altered by the atmospheric conditions. For modern large-scale wind turbines, the mean shear velocity profile and the thermal stratification are major components of the atmospheric boundary layer that impact wake development. An understanding of how wind turbine wakes are impacted by external conditions, with a focus on shear and thermal stratification, can aid farm design to improve efficiency and fatigue loads, and inform the design of control strategies which shorten the stable wake length. This talk will discuss how inflow conditions impact tip vortex stability of a wind turbine wake, and how this in turn affects the breakdown and length of the wake.

Amy Hodgkin is a final year PhD student in the aeronautics department. Amy is interested in how different inflow conditions impact the stability and length of a wind turbine’s wake. Their research is conducted computationally using high order, high resolution large eddy simulations and data-driven analysis. Outside of work you will find Amy at the Imperial boxing club.

About Energy Futures Lab

Energy Futures Lab is one of seven Global Institutes at Imperial College London. The institute was established to address global energy challenges by identifying and leading new opportunities to serve industry, government and society at large through high quality research, evidence and advocacy for positive change. The institute aims to promote energy innovation and advance systemic solutions for a sustainable energy future by bringing together the science, engineering and policy expertise at Imperial and fostering collaboration with a wide variety of external partners.