Wind turbine load evaluation using wind field reconstruction techniques from numerical lidar measurements

The estimation of incoming wind fields from lidar data is critical for applications such as load validation, power-curve assessment, and Lidar-Assisted Control (LAC). Advanced control algorithms, such as LAC, which regulate turbine speed and torque through feed-forward control [1], can significantly reduce fatigue [2] and extreme loads [3]. Traditional LAC estimates the Rotor Effective Wind Speed (REWS), by spatially averaging longitudinal wind velocities across the rotor disc, as an input to the feedforward controller. However, two key challenges remain. First, nacelle-mounted lidar systems suffer from blade obstruction, reducing measurement accuracy [4]. Second, with increasing turbine sizes, the assumption of uniform wind field characteristics across the rotor plane is no longer valid. This study addresses these limitations by evaluating four methodologies for real-time wind field reconstruction across the whole rotor plane using numerical spinner-mounted pulsed lidar measurements. The reconstructed fields are integrated into HAWC2 to compare aeroelastic responses between the reconstructed and reference wind fields coming from LES inflow data.