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.

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.

Are low-speed mountain wind farms stronger than a 1 wind farm?

Moreover, the impacts of the No. 2 and No. 3 low-speed mountain wind farms were significantly stronger than that of the No. 1 wind farm, reflecting the higher precipitation erosion and steeper terrain of the No. 2 and No. 3 wind farms.

Why do mountainous areas have a higher wind speed?

This is because wind characteristics in mountainous areas are significantly affected by the terrain. When the site is in the valley, wind is constrained by the mountain, causing the wind speed and wind direction to be relatively concentrated, so it is accompanied by a higher wind speed.