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Full-Scale And Wind Tunnel Investigation Of The Flow Field Over A Coastal Escarpment, Julien Lotufo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

A multiscale experimental approach, consisting of full-scale measurements and physical modeling in a laboratory environment, was conducted to investigate the flow field over a coastal escarpment on the Wind Energy Institute of Canada’s research and development wind park. The influence of sea breeze inflow conditions, thermal stability and local topographic features on the flow field were examined.

The results of the full-scale study show that the near surface flow field is significantly influenced by the sea breeze circulatory coastal flow regime, creating larger shear layers with a smaller recirculation regions compared to cases of typical boundary layer flow typical boundary …

Characterization Of Mean And Turbulent Flow Over Complex Topography Under Various Inflow And Geometric Configurations, Ryan J. Kilpatrick

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

An experimental investigation of flow over a complex topography was undertaken to study the influence of inflow conditions including Reynolds number, upstream roughness, and inflow shear profile on mean and turbulent flow behaviour.

Large-scale physical testing was employed over the escarpment of a hill, covering a Reynolds number range of 3.6×10⁴ to 5.2×10⁵. Measurements taken using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Cobra Probes were analyzed in terms of mean and turbulent statistics. Coherent structures were characterized through Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD).

The results show that the Reynolds number had little effect on the flow behaviour, while the …