# Filtered actuator disks: Theory and application to wind turbine models in large eddy simulation

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a vortex cylinder correction model for filtered actuator disks in large eddy simulations, improving wind turbine power predictions without requiring high-resolution grids.

## Contribution

It develops a vortex cylinder model to quantify shed vorticity and derives a correction factor that enhances power prediction accuracy in LES of wind turbines.

## Key findings

- Correction factor collapses power curves across filter widths
- Enables accurate power measurement without high grid resolution
- Reduces over-prediction of power in LES simulations

## Abstract

The actuator disk model (ADM) continues to be a popular wind turbine representation in large eddy simulations (LES) of large wind farms. Computational restrictions typically limit the number of grid points across the rotor of each actuator disk and require spatial filtering to smoothly distribute the applied force distribution on discrete grid points. At typical grid resolutions, simulations cannot capture all of the vorticity shed behind the disk and subsequently over-predict power by upwards of 10%. To correct these modeling errors, we propose a vortex cylinder model to quantify the shed vorticity when a filtered force distribution is applied at the actuator disk. This model is then used to derive a correction factor for numerical simulations that collapses the power curve for simulations at various filter widths and grid resolutions onto the curve obtained using axial momentum theory. The proposed correction therefore facilitates accurate power measurements in LES without resorting to highly refined numerical grids.