The advantage of flow disturbance for vertical-axis turbine in low current velocity

Abstract

Some findings start with inadvertent. One lack of a vertical-axis turbine is its low self-starting capability. This study aimed to improve the performance in low current velocities by adding a flow disturbance in front of the turbine. The idea has been inspired by the previous experimental study that was not specifically focused on this problem. The study was conducted using a numerical simulation method with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Firstly, the simulation results of the original turbine were validated with experimental data. Secondly, the turbine was modified by adding a flow disturbance in front of it. There were two foil types of flow disturbance modelled. The results showed that the flow disturbance with DU 06-W-200 had a slightly higher performance than NACA 63(4)021, with a coefficient of power (Cp) value of 0.52 at a current velocity of 0.54 m/s. At tip speed ratio (TSR) > 1, the turbine performance tended to decrease when using a higher angle of attack (AoA). Therefore, the recommended AoA for the flow disturbance is 0°. The flow disturbance has been proven to increase the performance of the vertical-axis turbine at a low current velocity.