Wind power generation in the mountains

Do mountain waves affect wind farm power output and nacelle wind speed?

When analyzing wind farm power output and nacelle wind speeds, we found that even small oscillations in wind speed caused by mountain waves can induce oscillations between full-rated power of a wind farm and half of the power output, depending on the position of the mountain wave's crests and troughs.

Do mountain waves affect wind power?

The NREL -led study, found that the mountain waves caused large upward and downward surges in power generation from the wind farm. This finding underscores the necessity of accounting for mountain wave impacts in wind power forecasting operations and when choosing wind farm locations and layouts downwind of mountains.

How do mountain waves affect power production?

In this particular case, the oscillations of a few meters per second caused by the mountain waves have dramatic effects on power production. Even after aggregating the power output from all turbines, the power still fluctuates approximately 25 MW from mountain waves at the wind farm.

What is the spatial pattern of mountain waves in 100 m wind speeds?

From the spatial pattern of mountain waves in the 100 m wind speeds, we extract wind speeds along a latitude of 45.6 ∘ N and calculate the power spectrum using the fast Fourier transform (FFT) (Fig. 9). The spatial pattern of the waves at 50 and 200 m is similar (not shown). At this latitude, most of the WFIP2 sodar sites are located.

Why do wind farms have oscillations in power output?

Averaged wind speeds for that wind farm indicate similar oscillations (not shown). Oscillations in power output are also visible at the other two wind farms (although those oscillations are not as regular) because mountain wake effects might play a role at those farms as well.

How many MW does a wind farm have?

Oscillations of approximately 25 MW exist in averaged power at the wind plant (shown in Fig. 15 as percentage) and did not get canceled out by alternating wave influences at different locations in the wind farm. Averaged wind speeds for that wind farm indicate similar oscillations (not shown).