Wind turbine noise propagation in flat terrain for wind farm layout optimization frameworks

This paper describes the wind turbine noise propagation in flat terrain for use in wind farm layout optimization frameworks. Large-eddy simulations of a single wind turbine in flat terrain at varying wind speeds, shear and turbulence levels are performed. The wind turbine is modeled using an actuator line approach, while the wind turbine noise propagation is computed using the Technical University of Denmark’s WindSTAR-Pro (Wind turbine Simulation Tool for AeRodynamic noise Propagation). The wind turbine noise propagation is computed in a quasi-three-dimensional manner by using a two-dimensional (2D) parabolic equation (PE) model at numerous 2D-planes around the wind turbine. In this study, the 2D, wide-angle, Crank-Nicholson PE model is used. The relative sound pressure level obtained from WindSTAR-Pro around the wind turbine is computed for varying wind speeds, shear and turbulence levels. Wind flow velocity and relative sound pressure levels for selected wind conditions are shown. The end goal is to create a noise propagation database that can be used as a lookup table in wind farm layout optimization frameworks to mitigate the noise impact in the development of new wind farms.