Experimental and numerical simulation of extreme operational conditions for horizontal axis wind turbines based on the IEC standard

Abstract

In this study, the possibility of simulating some transient and deterministic extreme operational conditions for horizontal axis wind turbines based on the IEC 61400-1 standard using 60 individually controlled fans in the Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Dome at Western University was investigated. Experiments were carried out for the extreme operational gust (EOG), positive and negative extreme vertical shear (EVS), and extreme horizontal shear (EHS) cases, tailored for a scaled 2.2 m horizontal axis wind turbine. For this purpose, firstly a numerical model for the test chamber was developed and used to obtain the fans' configurations for simulating each extreme condition with appropriate scaling prior to the physical experiments. The results show the capability of using numerical modelling to predict the fans' setup based on which physical simulations can generate IEC extreme conditions in the range of interest.