Atmospheric boundary-layer characteristics and their significance in wind energy and urban air quality assessment

Abstract

The study of the Atmospheric Boundary-Layer (ABL) flow is growing rapidly, owing to its crucial role in promoting environmental sustainability and facilitating renewable energy development. The significance of ABL modeling cannot be over-emphasized due to its broad applications in air quality management, meteorology, wind energy, weather forecasting, and climatology, which directly impact human lives. This research specifically focuses on modeling the ABL characteristics and their significance in wind energy and urban air quality assessment. The purpose is to investigate how the presence of canopy structures affects the development of the ABL and their importance in areas like wind resource evaluation and air quality management. To model the ABL flow, the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools based on Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations and Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approaches were employed. The simulations used open-source codes such as the Open-source Field Operation And Manipulation (OpenFOAM) and Parallelized Large-Eddy Simulation Model (PALM). The results were validated through comparison with relevant experimental data and field measurements. The research outcome demonstrated the impacts of various forest structures on ABL development and wind-turbine wake flow patterns for wind energy applications. The outcome also has the prospect of providing insights for improving air quality in urban areas.