URANS and ACM for determining the aerodynamic performance of vertical-axis wind turbine

Krzysztof Rogowski,Martin O L Hansen

doi:10.1051/e3sconf/201910000069

Abstract

This paper presents numerical results of a one-bladed vertical axis wind turbine using the k-ε RNG turbulence model. The rotor geometry was developed based on the research report available on the literature. The obtained results of aerodynamic blade loads and wake profiles downstream behind the rotor are in a good agreement with the experiment. This paper presents also the ability of calculating fluid flow parameters around the operating wind turbine by using the original approach – the actuator cell model (ACM).

Highlights

The depletion of global reserves of fossil fuels has resulted in an increase in ecological awareness of the society and an increase in interest in alternative energy sources
This article aims to compare the velocity fields obtained using two numerical approaches: unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) with the ReNormalisation Group (RNG) k-ε model and the actuator cell model developed by Rogowski [12, 13]
The purpose of the paper was the analysis of the flow past the one-bladed vertical-axis wind turbine using two numerical approaches: URANS with the k-ε RNG turbulence model and the home-made actuator cell model

Summary

Introduction

The depletion of global reserves of fossil fuels has resulted in an increase in ecological awareness of the society and an increase in interest in alternative energy sources. Wind turbines very effectively provide centralized electricity because they are concentrated in large clusters (wind farms) thanks to which energy is supplied via local distribution grid to local energy companies. European countries such as Germany, Denmark or Spain are the main wind energy beneficiaries. In 2017 the percentage of electricity produced by wind power was already above 40% (44%) in DK and this number is increasing with new wind farms planned. According to the global wind report published by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), in 2017 about 54 GW of power was installed wind turbines. The report forecasts that this amount may increase to even 800 GW in 2021 [1]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion