Wake-related issues are also found in wind energy applications. The wake of a wind turbine is characterized by a lower wind velocity and a higher turbulence level. A wind turbine operating in the wake of another has consequently a reduced power production (up to 40%), a higher unsteady loading and a shorter mean time between failures. Those three effects affect the wind energy production costs very much. The wake-related issues therefore concern most of the wind energy players. Moreover, the increasing size of wind turbines and wind farms will make the wake effects even more significant in the future. Using its simulation tools and its expertise, WaPT brings solutions to problems related to several aspects of the production optimization. The simulation results are useful at all stages of the wind farm design and operation: design of the blade and of the rotor, optimization of the turbine positioning, assessment and optimization of existing farms and predictive maintenance.

• Challenges and solutions
• VPM4WIND simulation tool
• BigFlow4WIND simulation tool