An aerodynamical model for studying three-dimensional flow fields about wind turbine rotors is presented. The developed algorithm combines a three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver with a so-called actuator line technique in which the loading is distributed along lines representing the blade forces. The loading is determined iteratively using a blade-element approach and tabulated airfoil data. Computations are carried out for a 500 kW Nordtank wind turbine equipped with three LM19.1 blades. The computed power production is found to be in good agreement with measurements. The computations give detailed information about basic features of wind turbine wakes, including distributions of interference factors and vortex structures. The model serves in particular to analyze and verify the validity of the basic assumptions employed in the simple engineering models.

As an essential ingredient in the blade element momentum theory, the tip loss effect of rotors plays an important role in the prediction of wind turbine performance. Various tip loss corrections based on the Prandtl tip loss function are analysed in the article. Comparisons with measurements and theoretical analyses show that existing tip loss correction models are inconsistent and fail to predict correctly the physical behaviour in the proximity of the tip. A new tip loss correction model is proposed that remedies the inconsistency. Comparisons between numerical and experimental data show that the new model results in much better predictions of the loading in the tip region. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Various wake status have been analysed by a numerical method that combines the actuator disc principle with the Navier–Stokes equations. Results are compared with one‐dimensional momentum theory and experiments. The computations are in excellent agreement with one‐dimensional momentum theory for rotors working in the windmill brake state as well as in the propeller and hover states. The computations demonstrate that the turbulent wake and vortex ring states are unstable regimes for a rotor with constant loading and that these states, after a complicated transient phase, settle to a steady state. Copyright © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

a b s t r a c tA new two-dimensional (2D) wake model is developed and validated in this article to predict the velocity and turbulence distribution in the wake of a wind turbine. Based on the classical Jensen wake model, this model is further employing a cosine shape function to redistribute the spread of the wake deficit in the crosswind direction. Moreover, a variable wake decay rate is proposed to take into account both the ambient turbulence and the rotor generated turbulence, different from a constant wake decay rate used in the Jensen model. The obtained results are compared to field measurements, wind tunnel experiments, and results of an advanced k À ω turbulence model as well as large eddy simulations. From the comparisons, it is found that the proposed new wake model gives a good prediction in terms of both shape and velocity amplitude of the wake deficit, especially in the far wake which is the region of interest for wind farm development projects.

A semiempirical acoustic generation model based on the work of Brooks, Pope, and Marcolini [NASA Reference Publication 1218 (1989)] has been developed to predict aerodynamic noise from wind turbines. The model consists of dividing the blades of the wind turbine into two-dimensional airfoil sections and predicting the total noise emission as the sum of the contribution from each blade element. Input is the local relative velocities and boundary layer parameters. These quantities are obtained by combining the model with a Blade Element Momentum (BEM) technique to predict local inflow characteristics to the blades. Boundary layer characteristics are determined from two-dimensional computations of airfoils. The model is applied to the Bonus 300 kW wind turbine at a wind speed of 8 m/s. Comparisons of total noise spectra show good agreement with experimental data.