Abstract
The conversion of kinetic energy that comes from low-head water currents to electrical energy has gained importance in recent years due to its low environmental and social impact. Horizontal axis hydrokinetic turbines are one of the most used devices for the conversion of this type of energy [1], being an emerging technology more studies are required to improve the understanding and functioning of these devices. In this context, the hydrodynamic study to obtain the characteristic curves of the turbines are fundamental. This article presents the design and hydrodynamic analysis for three horizontal axis tri-blade hydrokinetic turbine rotors with commercial profiles (NACA 4412, EPPLER E817 and NRELS802). The Blade Element Momentum (BEM) was used to design three rotors. The DesignModeler, Meshing and CFX modules from the ANSYS® commercial package were used to discretize the control volumes and configure the numerical study. In addition, Grid Convergence Index (GCI) analysis was performed to evaluate the precision of the results. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to observe the behavior of the fluid by varying the speed of rotation of the turbines from 0.1 rad s-1 to 40 rad s-1, obtaining power coefficient of 0.390 to 0.435. For a maximum shaft power of 105W. In addition, it is evident that for the same conditions the rotor designed with the EPPLER E817 profile presents better performance than built with the NACA4412 and NREL S802.
Highlights
Environmental and energy problems worldwide have forced researchers to seek sustainable energy solutions
The results show that as the mesh is densified, the error decreases, which is why the finest mesh was chosen to continue with the part of the investigation, which consists of changing the TSR
The differences of chord and twists between rotor EPPLER E817 and the other two are notorious, while the differences between the NACA 4412 and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) S802 cannot be seen in the design, but in numerical form
Summary
Environmental and energy problems worldwide have forced researchers to seek sustainable energy solutions. They have found renewable alternatives such as wind, sun and water to generate clean and environmental-friendly energy [2]–[5]. The energy available from water resources is the world’s largest and cheapest [6]. Large hydroelectric have been criticized because they require dams and infrastructure. Civil works for the construction of these projects caused damage to the environment and ecosystems [7]. Small hydroelectric plants have become one of the most economical and environmentally-friendly sources of energy generation in rural areas [8]–[9]
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