Transition of Dust Transport Characteristics From the Near to Far‐Wake of Wind Turbines

Abstract Wind turbine wakes can substantially modify the flow structure of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL); however, their effects on dust particle transport and deposition—particularly the differences between the near‐wake and far‐wake regions—remain insufficiently quantified. In this study, the spatial evolution of dust particle transport within wind turbine wakes is systematically investigated under neutral ABL conditions using improved delayed detached‐eddy simulation coupled with a Lagrangian particle tracking approach. The results show that, in the near‐wake region, the combined effects of rotation‐induced mean momentum transport and turbulent structures significantly enhance upwash motions, leading to particle uplift. In the far‐wake region, the mean vertical velocity is substantially reduced, and the vertical flux of dust particles is primarily governed by the competition between turbulent fluctuations and gravitational settling. The shear layer formed during wake recovery enhances turbulent shear stresses, making particles overall more prone to downward transport. The vertical particle transport in this region can be consistently characterized by the turbulent settling parameter Sv t = v s / σ z , where v s is the particle settling velocity and σ z is the standard deviation of vertical velocity fluctuations. These findings provide a new physical insight into the dust particle transport and deposition in wind‐energy environments.