*Article* **Development of a Computational System to Improve Wind Farm Layout, Part I: Model Validation and Near Wake Analysis**

#### **Rafael V. Rodrigues \* and Corinne Lengsfeld**

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Denver, Denver, CO 80210, USA; corinne.lengsfeld@du.edu

**\*** Correspondence: Rafael.rodrigues@du.edu; Tel.: +1-720-810-8349

Received: 23 January 2019; Accepted: 6 March 2019; Published: 12 March 2019

**Abstract:** The first part of this work describes the validation of a wind turbine farm Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation using literature velocity wake data from the MEXICO (Model Experiments in Controlled Conditions) experiment. The work is intended to establish a computational framework from which to investigate wind farm layout, seeking to validate the simulation and identify parameters influencing the wake. A CFD model was designed to mimic the MEXICO rotor experimental conditions and simulate new operating conditions with regards to tip speed ratio and pitch angle. The validation showed that the computational results qualitatively agree with the experimental data. Considering the designed tip speed ratio (TSR) of 6.6, the deficit of velocity in the wake remains at rate of approximately 15% of the free-stream velocity per rotor diameter regardless of the free-stream velocity applied. Moreover, analysis of a radial traverse right behind the rotor showed an increase of 20% in the velocity deficit as the TSR varied from TSR = 6 to TSR = 10, corresponding to an increase ratio of approximately 5% <sup>m</sup>·s<sup>−</sup><sup>1</sup> per dimensionless unit of TSR. We conclude that the near wake characteristics of a wind turbine are strongly influenced by the TSR and the pitch angle.

**Keywords:** wind turbine near wake; wind turbine wakes; wake aerodynamics; computational fluid dynamics; rotor aerodynamics; wind turbine validation; MEXICO experiment
