CAREER: Winter Extreme's Impact on Wind Energy - Multiscale Multiphase Thermal Transport

The rising incidence of winter extreme weather events intensifies the vulnerability of renewable energy systems and impacts the livelihoods of millions. Current knowledge of wind turbine icing primarily derives from laboratory experiments using small-scale airfoil models in cold chambers or icing wind tunnels. Complex weather and wind farm factors have not been adequately studied in relation to ice accretion and melting dynamics at utility-scale turbine levels.

Therefore, there are significant challenges in using laboratory research to understand utility-scale turbines operating in real-world environments. This proposal presents a comprehensive research and educational initiative to deepen understanding of how ice impacts turbines on winter extremes. The proposed project will clarify the underlying physics of icing and will yield crucial insights for bridging the gap between idealized laboratory experiments and real-world solutions.

Having efficient and robust power forecasts for wind farms affected by extreme winter weather will help power systems manage abrupt energy demands and enhance system integrity, yielding substantial societal and economic benefits. The integrated education and outreach effort will amplify the transformative impact of the research discoveries and facilitate workforce expansion.

The PI will conduct icing tunnel experiments, field measurements, numerical simulations, and data-driven modeling to address three research objectives: establish and validate scaling metrics for assessing the impact of ice accretion and melting processes at blade-level, turbine-level, and wind farm-level; develop data-driven models to correlate meteorological icing events with wind turbine icing events; and develop physics-based models to explore the interactions between ice accretion and melting processes and wind farm layout. The broader impacts of this project are threefold: (i) fostering collaboration between the wind power industry and research institutes by providing advanced forecasting models and sharing icing risk insights for major U.S. wind farms; (ii) launching a “microcredential” program with accessible public materials to bridge academia and society; and (iii) promoting STEM engagement.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.