“Grand Challenges in the Science of Wind Energy” celebrates 1000+ citations.

ARROW faculty Jim Manwell (UMass Amherst), Julie Lundquist (Johns Hopkins University), and Charles Meneveau (Johns Hopkins University), along with lead author and ARROW External Advisory Board member Paul Veers (National Laboratory of the Rockies) recently celebrated the 1000th citation of their paper “Grand Challenges in the Science of Wind Energy” published in Science

This seminal paper in the field of wind energy provides a guiding voice in articulating the next big steps needed to advance the field and continues to have an impact on wind energy research thinking around the world. Veers, et al identify three “grand” challenges that they feel require additional interdisciplinary research in wind energy: “improved understanding of the physics of atmospheric flow in the critical zone of wind power plant operation, materials and system dynamics of individual wind turbines, and optimization and control of fleets of wind plants comprising hundreds of individual generators working synergistically within the larger electric grid system.” 

Here are some highlights showing how ARROW faculty and students are making strides in each of these fundamental research areas: 

Golbon Zakeri (UMass Amherst) and Yuri Dvorkin (Johns Hopkins University) are leading a team to advance integrated grid planning models, linking offshore wind resilience with system-level risk to ensure that offshore wind can be integrated into the grid without compromising reliability. Work is also progressing on climate-informed extreme event modeling and modeling wake effects on annual energy production.

Julie Lundquist (Johns Hopkins University) is leading efforts to determine how mesoscale atmospheric and ocean conditions affect offshore wind power production. Papers recently published and in review include work on ocean-atmosphere coupling (Science Advances), wake loss impacts (Applied Energy), and parameterization methods (Wind Energy Science). 

The Johns Hopkins Turbulence Database (JHTDB), submitted by ARROW faculty Charles Meneveau, Dennice Gayme, and Julie Lundquist at The Johns Hopkins University, was one of 10 databases chosen for integration into the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR). Two of the datasets in the JHTDB are Large Eddy Simulations (LES) for wind farms. These simulations help researchers design more resilient turbines, develop more efficient windfarm plans, and more accurately predict power production. The team has recently published two papers (here and here) on the the use and benefits of the dataset.

A team led by Z Li (Morgan State) and Emmanuel Branlard (UMass Amherst) is modeling unsteady airfoil aerodynamics and aeroelasticity in large blades to improve performance prediction, reduce structural risks, and optimize turbine efficiency. A recent paper in Renewable Energy published by ARROW student Muhammad Rubayat Bin Shahadat introduced a new synthetic actuator disk model for wind turbine analysis. 

Dr. Alessandro Sabato (UMass Lowell) presented an ARROW Seminar on ”Enhancing structural health monitoring of wind turbine blades with UAV-based computer vision” as part of the ARROW-FLEx initiative. In this seminar, Dr. Sabato presented new findings in stereo camera calibration and stereo-matching algorithms that enable the use of three-dimensional (3D) computer vision for structural dynamics measurements of wind turbine blades. Dr. Sabato also introduced Stack-Average, a novel image-processing technique that enhances damage localization in wind turbine blades from long-range images (i.e., 50+ m). By exploring these emerging monitoring strategies, the session highlighted future directions in blade health assessment and their implications for improving the reliability and sustainability of wind energy systems. Dr. Sabato was recently honored with the CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation for his project “Enhancing Measurements of Dynamic Features in Large-Scale Structures via Three-Dimensional Aerial Stereovision.”