Numerical evaluation of wind flow over complex terrain:: Review

This paper reviews the current state of the art in the numerical evaluation of wind flow over different types of topographies. Numerical simulations differing from one another by the type of numerical formulation followed, the turbulence model used, the type of boundary conditions applied, the type of grids adopted, and the type of terrain considered are summarized. A comparative study among numerical and experimental (both wind tunnel and field) existing works establishing the modifications of wind flow over hills, escarpments, valleys, and other complex terrain configurations demonstrates generally good predictions on the upstream but problematic predictions on the downstream areas of the complex terrain. Comparisons are also made with provisions of the current wind standards as well as with speed-up values calculated using guidelines derived from theoretical models.