Control Strategies Impacts during Low-Level Jet Events on a 15MW Floating Wind Turbine

Abstract

The size and complexity of wind turbines are increasing as the energy demand continues to grow. Offshore wind energy has significant potential, and the floating 15MW wind turbine has become the new standard in the venture. Offshore placement of wind turbines results in new interactions between the turbines and transient weather events. Wind turbine control strategies are crucial for enhancing wind turbines’ performance, reliability, and durability during operation. This study aims to investigate the effect of different control strategies on the performance of a 15MW floating turbine during Low-Level Jets (LLJ). The control strategies that have been investigated include collective pitch control, individual pitch control (IPC), peak shaving (PS), tip speed ratio (TSR) tracking torque control, and constant power tracking torque control. The Reference Open-Source Controller (ROSCO) was used to set up the controller, while OpenFAST simulation software was used to generate the turbine response. TurbSim was used to generate turbulent winds. The results showed that different control strategies highly impact the wind turbine performance during an LLJ. It is also evident that there are variations in the results depending on the height of the LLJ. IPC was the most effective in mitigating the greatest number of loads without reducing the power extraction. It appears that TSR tracking torque control is sub-optimal during LLJs regarding power extraction.