Research on the Power Output of Different Floating Wind Farms Considering the Wake Effect

Abstract

For floating wind turbines, one of the most interesting and challenging issues is that the movement of the rotor is strongly related to its floating platform, which results in corresponding variations in the wake characteristics of the turbine. Because the aerodynamic efficiency of the downstream turbines is affected by the wake characteristics, the power output will consequently vary depending on the different types of floating wind turbines and floating wind farms used. In this study, the rotor movement, wake characteristics, and corresponding wind farm power output are analyzed using a numerical method for three typical floating wind turbines: the semisubmersible type, spar buoy type, and tension leg platform type with a 5 MW configuration. A fixed-bottom monopile wind turbine is adopted as a benchmark. The simulation results show that of the three floating wind turbines, the rotor position and wake center are most dispersed in the case of the spar buoy type, and its wake also has the lowest impact on downstream wind turbines. Additionally, the power output of the corresponding spar buoy type wind farm is also the highest at different wind speeds, followed by the semisubmersible type, tension leg platform type, and then the fixed-bottom type. In particular, at low wind speeds, the wake effects differ significantly among the various types of wind turbines.

Keywords

• floating wind turbine
• wake effect
• wake characteristic
• power output