A large-eddy simulation (LES) model for wind-farm-induced atmospheric gravity wave effects inside conventionally neutral boundary layers

Abstract. The interaction of large wind farm clusters with the thermally stratified atmosphere has emerged as an important physical process that impacts the productivity of wind farms. Under stable conditions, this interaction triggers atmospheric gravity waves (AGWs) in the free atmosphere due to the vertical displacement of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) by the wind farm. AGWs induce horizontal pressure gradients within the ABL that alter the wind speed distribution within the farm, influencing both wind farm power generation and wake development. Additional factors, such as the growth of an internal boundary layer originating from the wind farm entrance and increased turbulence due to the wind turbines, further contribute to wake evolution. Recent studies have highlighted the considerable computational cost associated with simulating gravity wave effects within large-eddy simulations (LESs), as a significant portion of the free atmosphere must be resolved due to the large vertical spatial scales involved. Additionally, specialized boundary conditions are required to prevent wave reflections from contaminating the solution. In this study, we introduce a novel methodology to model the effects of AGWs without extending the LES computational domain into the free atmosphere. The proposed approach addresses the wave reflection problem inherently, eliminating the need for these specialized boundary conditions. We utilize the recently developed multi-scale coupled (MSC) model of Stipa et al. (2024b) to estimate the vertical ABL displacement triggered by the wind farm, and we apply the deformation to the domain of an LES that extends only to the inversion layer. The accuracy in predicting the AGW-induced pressure gradients is equivalent to the MSC model. The AGW modeling technique is verified for two distinct free-atmosphere stability conditions by comparing it to the traditional approach in which AGWs are fully resolved using a domain that extends several kilometers into the free atmosphere. The proposed approach accurately captures AGW effects on the row-averaged thrust and power distribution of wind farms while demanding 12.7 % of the computational resources needed for traditional methods. Moreover, when conventionally neutral boundary layers are studied, there is no longer a need to solve the potential temperature equation, as stability is neutral within the boundary layer. The developed approach is subsequently used to compare the global blockage and pressure disturbances obtained from the simulated cases against a solution characterized by zero boundary layer displacement, which represents the limiting case of very strong stratification above the boundary layer. This approximation, sometimes referred to as the “rigid lid”, is compared against the full AGW solution using the MSC model. This is done for different values of inversion strength and free atmosphere lapse rate, evaluating the ability of the “rigid lid” to predict blockage, wake effects, and overall wind farm performance.