Blade Pressure Distribution Research Articles

Aerodynamic performance analysis of a floating wind turbine with coupled blade rotation and surge motion

The unsteady aerodynamic characteristics and interference effects of a floating wind turbine are significantly influenced by the six-degree-of-freedom (6DoF) motions. In this paper, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method using the overset grid technique and the improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) model was adopted to investigate the effects of harmonic enforced surge motions on the aerodynamic performance and wake characteristics of wind turbines. The aerodynamic load coefficients including the constant term, damping coefficients (surge velocity-induced), and additional mass coefficients (surge acceleration-induced), were fitted by using the least squares method at different surge frequencies and surge amplitudes. The blade pressure distributions and wake characteristics were analysed in detail. The Ω ~ R of the third-generation vortex identification method was applied to visualize vortex evolution. The numerical results are evaluated against the data obtained by wind tunnel experiments, indicating an acceptable relative error of 3.45 % for the power coefficient, C p , at the rated tip speed ratio (TSR). The higher frequency and greater amplitude surge motions lead to more dramatic fluctuations for the power coefficient than the axial load coefficient. The neglect of the additional mass coefficient only results in an acceptable error. Furthermore, the mean damping coefficient is on average approximately 3.5 times the mean constant term coefficient for C p , approximately 1.5 times for C z . In terms of the blade pressure distributions and wake characteristics, a higher comprehensive induced velocity, V c , is induced to expand the wider high-pressure area and shrink the low-pressure area at the pressure surface. Meanwhile, toroidal vortex ropes were induced by surge motion. Besides, the surge motion at high frequency and greater amplitude positively impacts enhancing wake deficit recovery.

Aerodynamic analysis of TLP offshore wind turbine under wind and waves

Based on the real-scale NREL 5MW wind turbine as the analysis object, combined with the TLP floating platform, using the CFD software fluent and the Volume of Fluid (VOF) multiphase flow model, this paper simulates and analyzes the aerodynamic characteristics of the TLP floating offshore wind turbine under the wind and wave conditions by applying surge motion through UDF, and carries out an in-depth analysis of its power, axial thrust change, and blade pressure distribution. The power and axial thrust will fluctuate and change more violently as the amplitude and frequency of surge movement increase corresponding to waves. Low wave height, low amplitude, and low frequency are more obvious for local disturbance of power and axial thrust. After the surge motion is applied, the blade pressure at different times changes significantly. With the increase of amplitude, the pressure difference at the same time increases at the entire blade root, blade center, and blade tip, which focus mainly on the leading edge of the blade suction surface, and is most obvious at the blade root and least obvious at the blade tip. When the surge motion is not applied, with the increase of wave height, the front edge of the blade suction will obtain a greater negative pressure, and the pressure difference of each part will increase. The research results provide a technical reference and theoretical basis for the optimization design of the aerodynamic performance.

Hydrodynamic Model of Hydraulic Engineering Based on Trigonometric Function Relation Equation

Abstract In order to explore the application of fluid mechanics technology in water conservancy and hydropower stations, the author proposes the study of hydraulic engineering fluid mechanics model based on trigonometric function relationship equation. According to standard k- ε Double equation and Reynolds time average (N-S) equation, given the runner boundary conditions, establish the mathematical model of the internal flow of the hydraulic turbine. Through CFD simulation technology, the runner of hydraulic turbine is numerically simulated to obtain the velocity distribution and blade pressure distribution inside the runner, movable guide vane and fixed guide vane, the reliability of the design is improved, and the application of CFD technology in hydropower project is analyzed with an example. The results show that, when the diameter of guide vane distribution circle is 4760mm, the scheme is optimal, and the relative efficiency under the optimal working condition is 96.35%. The flow of the modified runner from the inlet of the volute to the outlet of the draft tube is very stable under the optimal working condition, and there is no obvious vortex, especially there is no obvious vortex belt and vortex at the outlet of the runner; There is no obvious vortex in the draft tube, the flow on both sides of the pier is very uniform, and the flow on one side is not significantly greater than that on the other side, which fully shows that the flow performance of the modified runner is good. After reconstruction, the runner outlet flow field is good, and the internal flow line of the draft tube is smooth. The application prospect of hydrodynamic algorithm for hydraulic engineering is relatively broad.

New Two-BWT Blade Aerodynamic Design and CFD Simulation

Due to reduced manufacturing, transportation, and installation costs, the two-blade wind turbines (Two-BWT) are a viable option for offshore wind farms. So far, there is no mature design model for offshore Two-BWT. This paper proposes an aerodynamic design method for offshore Two-BWT blades using the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. This method calculates the power coefficient of the Two-BWT by analogy with the three-blade wind turbines (Three-BWT), and then determines the wind rotor diameter. Then, the airfoil, chord length, and twist angle are taken as the key design factors. Furthermore, the piecewise combination method (PCM) for airfoil distribution, the three-point sine method (Three-PSM) for chord length distribution, and the two-point sine method (Two-PSM) for torsion angle distribution are adopted, respectively. Subsequently, the minimum rotational speed, under the rated wind speed and rated power, is taken as the optimization objective to establish the optimization model. The global flow field of Two-BWT is constructed based on CFD technology, and the characteristics of wind speed distribution and blade pressure distribution in the flow field are investigated. Finally, the CFD results are compared with the results of the BEM theory, and the consistency of the results also shows the feasibility of the design method.

Investigation of Tip Leakage Vortex Structure and Trajectory in a Centrifugal Pump with a New Omega Vortex Identification Method

Semi-open centrifugal pumps are widely used in various fields. However, the tip leakage vortex (TLV) has a malign effect on the impeller flow field. The structure and trajectory of a TLV under different discharge conditions were simulated and are discussed herein. Then, the characteristics of the TLV were analyzed using a new omega vortex identification method. The external characteristic and pressure fluctuation of the simulation and experiment were consistent. A secondary leakage vortex near the blade outlet was formed under the high-discharge condition. A leading-edge overflow phenomenon under the low-discharge condition and led to the formation of a reverse-flow vortex. The interface between the main flow and tip leakage flow moved toward the impeller upstream with decreased discharge. As a result, the peak of the entropy production curve moved upstream, and leading-edge overflow and reverse flow occurred. The tip leakage flow changed the blade pressure distribution, resulting in a decrease in the blade load.

A strongly coupled Eulerian Lagrangian method applied in unsteady 3D external flows around Wind Turbine rotors

This paper presents a hybrid CFD solver that couples a standard Eulerian approach that solves the compressible Navier-Stokes equations under a cell-centered finite volume discretization, with a Lagrangian one, based on particles representation which carry mass, pressure, dilatation and vorticity. The velocity field is calculated using the Helmholtz’s decomposition theorem. Computational performance is enhanced by employing the Particle Mesh (PM) technique in order to solve the Poisson equations for the scalar potential ϕ and the stream function ψ. Even though validated for 2D flows over airfoils, this specific solver is used for the first time in order reproduce the flow around a wind turbine rotor. The validation simulations concern axial flow over the wind turbine model rotor used in the New MEXICO experimental campaign. Results of the hybrid solver, presented as blade pressure distribution and axial flow velocities are compared against the ones produced by its pure Eulerian counterpart and experimental measurements. PM grids of up to 5 points per chord of the blade section at 75% radius have been used. Comparison with the standard Eulerian solver suggest that the produced blade loads are over-predicted by approximately 7% near the tip and 14% near the root. However, the calculated velocity field is much closer to the experimental measurements as compared to the one produced by the Eulerian approach, which is attributed to the reduced numerical diffusion of the Lagrangian-vorticity formulation.

Performance and wake analysis of horizontal axis tidal current turbine using Improved Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation

This paper presents the results of hydrodynamic performance and wake assessment for a horizontal axis tidal current turbine. The three-dimensional instantaneous flow field is resolved utilizing the Improved Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (IDDES) turbulence model and polyhedral mesh. The rotor rotation is simulated by employing the sliding mesh approach. The simulation results using turbulence model of k-ω Shear Stress Transport are also presented for comparison. The simulated thrust and power coefficients and wake characteristics are validated against published experimental results. It is shown that the performance and wake velocity predicted by IDDES are closer to the experimental values than those predicted by k-ω Shear Stress Transport model. In determining the pressure coefficient, only IDDES captures the time-varying fluctuations pertaining to blade generated turbulence. The oscillations in phase-averaged performance coefficients are substantially larger for IDDES because the inflow turbulence in this model is more realistically resolved using Synthetic Eddy Method. The IDDES predicts more detailed vortex structures which has impact on accurate determination of blade pressure distribution, energy dissipation rate and downstream flow field. It is demonstrated that the IDDES model is capable to satisfactorily simulate the hydrodynamics of a horizontal axis tidal current turbine.

Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Cavity/Mean-Flow Interaction in Low Pressure Axial Flow Turbines

The increasing performance of modern aeroengines led the research towards the optimization of machine components not deeply analyzed in the past. In this context, the mechanisms driving the interaction process between the secondary flows evolving at the hub of low-pressure turbines with the rotor-stator cavity systems have been poorly investigated in the literature. In this work, an experimental and numerical analysis of the interaction between the endwall near wall flow and the leakage flow of a real cavity system is presented. The experimental results were carried out in the annular low-pressure axial flow turbine of the University of Genova. Experimental blade loading and pressure distributions into the cavity, as well as the measured total pressure loss coefficient, have been used for a proper validation of CFD results. Both steady and unsteady calculations were carried out through the commercial solver Numeca. Particularly, several numerical approaches have been tested into this work: RANS, Non Linear Harmonic (NLH), and URANS. The most promising CFD techniques have been firstly identified by comparison with experimental results and then systematically employed to extend the analysis of secondary flow-cavity flow interaction to positions and quantities not available from the experiments. Losses characterizing the mean flow-cavity flow interaction process will be shown to cover a great amount of the overall stage losses and should be properly accounted for the design of future optimized cavity configurations.

Tip leakage vortex and its breakdown mechanism in aspirated compressor cascades designed with conventional method and curvature induced pressure recovery concept

Boundary layer suction (BLS), or aspiration, is an effective methodology to eliminate flow separation and improve blade loading in axial compressors. The objective of this study is to reveal the flow physics and loss mechanism of tip leakage vortex in aspirated compressor cascades with multiple loading levels under diffusion factor ranging from 0.42 to 0.71. The effect of blade pressure distribution on tip leakage flows was investigated numerically based on three aspirated blades, including the one designed with conventional method and the other two designed with curvature induced pressure recovery. The influences of tip clearance dimension and BLS schemes (BLS location, BLS height and BLS mass flow rate) on tip leakage vortex as well as its breakdown mechanism were investigated. Results show that a pseudo-shock was found in aspirated compressor cascades designed with conventional method and curvature induce pressure recovery concept. Compared with conventional compressor blades, the main flow phenomenon of tip leakage flow of aspirated compressor blades is the tip leakage vortex breakdown (TLVB) caused by strong adverse pressure gradient introduced by BLS. The TLVB phenomenon occurred both in conventionally loaded compressor cascade and highly loaded compressor cascade. For conventionally loaded blade, TLVB phenomenon occurred under low tip clearance condition but disappeared under high tip clearance condition due to increased strength of tip leakage vortex. Lower BLS mass flow resulted in weaker pseudo-shock, which reduced the swirl number of tip leakage vortex and improved the vortex breakdown phenomenon as a consequence. The vortex breakdown of highly loaded cascades was resulted from the joint action of high blade loading and pseudo-shock. Pseudo-shock designed near blade trailing edge resulted in higher leakage mass flow but promised superior tip leakage flow field. For all the aspirated cascades studied, the tip leakage loss decreased as tip clearance dimension increased, which was opposite to the results of conventional compressor cascade.

Comparative Study of Coaxial Main Rotor Aerodynamics in the Hover with the Usage of Two Methods of Computational Fluid Dynamics

The paper is focused on numerical modeling of the aerodynamic characteristics of a full-scale coaxial main rotor in hover. The simulation was performed using two approaches of computational fluid dynamics (CFD): the original free wake model (FWM) developed by the authors and the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (URANS) equations method based on the Ansys Fluent software. The structure of the rotor vortex wake, flow images, vorticity and induced velocity fields, total and distributed aerodynamic characteristics of the rotor, including the rotor performance and figure of merit diagrams, have been analyzed. A comparison between FWM/URANS based calculations and calculated/experimental data by other authors has been performed. A satisfactory match of these data confirms reliability of used methods when modeling the aerodynamic characteristics of coaxial rotors. The FMW demonstrates a significant advantage in speed and resources intensity when calculating the total aerodynamic characteristics of a coaxial rotor. The URANS method makes it possible to model with significant accuracy the effects associated with the blade vortex interactions and pressure distribution over the blade surface. Finally, conclusions about most effectiveness of joint application of considered methods in solving complex problems of coaxial rotor aerodynamics has been made.

Large eddy simulation of a linear turbine cascade with a trailing edge cutback

In this work, the effects of trailing edge (TE) cutback on the turbulent flow field and the aerodynamic loss of a turbine blade are investigated by Large-Eddy-Simulation (LES). A high-fidelity LES code was first developed based on a high-order finite difference method and applied to the simulation. The effects of the TE cutback on the blade surface boundary layer, pressure distribution, and loss generation are then discussed on the basis of time-mean flow fields of LES. The results represent that the cutback changed the boundary layer thickness just upstream of the TE and the base pressure around the TE, resulting in larger aerodynamic loss. Next, the time-dependent flow dynamics in the cascade is investigated. The results indicate that the dominant pressure fluctuation after the blade was influenced by the cutback. Furthermore, the phase-locked flow field is analyzed to reveal the flow dynamics responsible for the pressure fluctuation. Finally, the LES approach could clarify the underlying mechanisms of performance degradation of a turbine blade that caused by TE cutback.

Time‐accurate blade surface static pressure behaviour on a rotating H‐Darrieus wind turbine

AbstractTime‐accurate blade pressure distributions on a rotating H‐Darrieus wind turbine at representative tip speed ratios during start‐up are presented here, which allow blade dynamic stall and laminar separation bubbles to be observed clearly and which provide a rare experimental demonstration of the flow curvature effect inherent in H‐Darrieus turbine operation. The convection of a dynamic stall vortex along the blade surface at high reduced frequency has also been clearly identified. This study provides new information of the complex aerodynamics of the vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) and provides unique experimental data to validate the transient blade static surface pressure distribution predicted by CFD models. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that the instantaneous pressure variation around the blade has been measured and recorded directly for an H‐Darrieus wind turbine.

Numerical Simulation of Aeroacoustics of Hovering Helicopter Rotor

The specifics of the problem of estimating the noise of a hovering rotor, allows for some simplification of the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkins (FW-H) equation. Most published works dedicated to helicopter tonal noise estimates use the far-field formulation. This paper estimates the aeroacoustic emissions of a helicopter rotor in hover, for observers placed at different distances using the FW-H equation, including near-field and far-field terms. The blade pressure distribution is obtained from numerical simulations with the RANS equations. To demonstrate this approach, the near- and far-field contributions are analyzed for the model-scale UH-1H main helicopter rotor. For the numerical simulations, the HMB solver of Glasgow University and the ANSYS Fluent13 commercial solver are used. As the rotor blade behaviour is characterized by a complex motion in the computer program it is assumed that the blade is seen in as a rotating rigid body. The most commonly used mathematical model of the FW-H equation corresponds to the classical impermeable formulation. In this case, the source surface corresponds to the blade surface. Then, the acoustic pressure (based on the FW-H 1A formulation) is modified with empirical adjustments, based on the radiation Mach number. This was applied for the near- or far-field thickness noise depending on the rotor-observer distance.

Numerical Study on the Unsteady Hydrodynamic Performance of a Four-Propeller Propulsion System Undergoing Oscillatory Motions

ABSTRACT Zhao, D.; Guo, C.; Su, Y.; Wang, L., and Wang, C., 2017. Numerical study on the unsteady hydrodynamic performance of a four-propeller propulsion system undergoing oscillatory motions. In this study, the hydrodynamic performance of single- and four-propeller propulsion systems were numerically calculated under open-water and oscillating conditions to elucidate the effect of oscillatory motions on the hydrodynamic performance of propellers of large vessels under wave conditions. The Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes method and self-defined motion equations were adopted to describe the coupled rotation/oscillation of propellers in order to simulate their motion with the ship body under actual sea conditions. A numerical simulation of the unsteady flow fields was performed by using an overset-grid approach. The unsteady thrust coefficient, torque coefficient, propeller wake vortex, and blade pressure distribution during the coupled self-rotation and heaving oscillation of the propellers were analyzed a...

Aerodynamic Efficiency Optimization of the 1st Stage of Transonic High Pressure Turbine through Lean and Sweep Angles

Abstract The purpose of this study is to optimize the 1st stage of the transonic high pressure turbine (HPT) for enhancement of aerodynamic performance. Isentropic total-to-total efficiency is designated as the objective function. Since the isentropic efficiency can be improved through modifying the geometry of vane and rotor blade, lean angle and sweep angle are chosen as design variables, which can effectively alter the blade geometry. The sensitivities of each design variable are investigated by applying lean and sweep angles to the base nozzle and rotor, respectively. The design space is also determined based on the results of the parametric study. For the design of experiment (DoE), Optimal Latin Hypercube sampling is adopted, so that 25 evenly distributed samples are selected on the design space. Sequentially, based on the values from the CFD calculation, Kriging surrogate model is constructed and refined using Expected Improvement (EI). With the converged surrogate model, optimum solution is sought by using the Genetic Algorithm. As a result, the efficiency of optimum turbine 1st stage is increased by 1.07 % point compared to that of the base turbine 1st stage. Also, the blade loading, pressure distribution, static entropy, shock structure, and secondary flow are thoroughly discussed.

Spectral-Boundary-Integral Compact-Source Formulation for Aero-Hydroacoustics of Rotors

This paper presents an aeroacoustic compact-source formulation for predicting tonal noise generated aerodynamically by rotors that is applicable to hydroacoustic problems as well. Based on the knowledge of blade sectional loads, it is suitable for reducing the amount of aerodynamic data required (particularly relevant, for instance, in maneuvering motion) and is applicable also when detailed blade pressure is not available. The Küssner–Schwarz airfoil aerodynamics theory is applied to derive the chordwise pressure jump equivalent to the sectional loads provided (either by measurements or computational tools). A zeroth-order boundary element method is applied for spanwise integration of the resulting compact-source, spectral-integral formulation. Numerical investigations concern a helicopter main rotor in descent flight and a marine propeller in nonuniform inflow. They demonstrate that, increasing the number of spectral coefficients (and corresponding sectional loads), this compact-source formulation converges toward solutions providing accurate noise predictions, even for rotors with irregular blade pressure distributions.

Adaptability of turbulence models to predict the performance and blade surface pressure prediction of a Francis turbine

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the ability of turbulence models to model the flow field in the runner of a Francis turbine. Although the complex flow in the turbine can be simulated by CFD models, the prediction accuracy still needs to be improved. The choice of the turbulence model is one key tool that affects the prediction accuracy of numerical simulations. Design/methodology/approach – This study used the SST k-w and RNG k-e turbulence models, which can both accurately predict complex flow fields in numerical simulations, to simulate the flow in the entire flow passage of a Francis turbine with the results compared against experimental data for the performance and blade pressure distribution in the turbine to evaluate the applicability of the turbulence models. Findings – The results show that the SST k-w turbulence model more accurately predicts the turbine performance than the RNG turbulence model. However, the blade surface pressures predicted by the SST k-w turbulence model were basically identical to those predicted by the RNG k-e turbulence model, with both accurately predicting the experimental data. Research limitations/implications – Due to the lack of space, the method used to measure the blade surface pressure distributions is not introduced in this paper. Practical implications – Turbine performance and flow field pressure in the runner, which are the basis of turbine preliminary performance judgment and optimization through CFD, can be used to judge the rationality of the turbine runner design. The paper provides an evidence for the turbulence selection in numerical simulation to predict turbine performance and flow field pressure in the runner and improves the CFD prediction accuracy. Originality/value – This paper fulfils a test of the flow field pressure in the runner, which provide an evidence for judge the adaptability of turbulence model on the flow field in runner. And this paper also provides important evaluations of two turbulence models for modeling the flow field pressure distribution in the runner of a Francis turbine to improve the accuracy of CFD models for predicting turbine performance.

Prediction and analysis of 3D hydrofoil and propeller under potential flow using panel method

Potential flow over an airfoil plays an important historical role in the theory of airfoil. The governing equation for potential flow is Laplace’s equation. One of Green’s identities can be used to write a solution to Laplace’s equation as a boundary integral. Using distributions of singularity solutions and determining their strength via the boundary conditions is the essence of panel method. This paper introduces a quick prediction method of three-dimensional hydrofoil and propeller performance based on panel method. The surface of hydrofoil and propeller is divided into numbers of quadrilateral panels. Combined sources with doublets singularities will be distributed on the corners of panels. Calculated blade pressure distributions of hydrofoil and propeller agree well with experimental data. Several sample calculations have been included using panel method.

Comparisons of Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine Wake Interaction Models

In this study, Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations are performed using the k-ε and k-ω shear stress transport (SST) turbulence closure schemes to investigate the interactions of horizontal-axis wind turbine (HAWT) models in the neutrally stratified atmospheric boundary layer (ABL). A comparative study of actuator disk, actuator line, and full rotor models of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) 5 MW reference turbine is presented. The open-source computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code openfoam 2.1.0 and the commercial software ansysfluent 13.0 are used for simulations. Single turbine models are analyzed for turbulent structures and wake resolution in the downstream region. To investigate the influence of the incident wind field on very large turbine blades, a high-resolution full rotor simulation is carried out for a single turbine to determine blade pressure distributions. Finally, simulations are performed for two inline turbines spaced 5 diameters (5D) apart. The research presented in this study provides an intercomparison of three dominant HAWT models operating at rated conditions in a neutral ABL using an RANS framework. Furthermore, the pressure distributions of the highly resolved full rotor model (FRM) will be useful for future aeroelastic structural analysis of anisotropic composite blade materials.

Influence of the Sweep Stacking on the Performance of an Axial Fan

In modern turbomachinery blade design, nonradial stacking of the profiles is often assumed to be one of the ways to improve the performance of a machine. Instead of stacking the profiles radially, the stacking line is changed by several modifications such as sweep, dihedral, lean, or a combination of these. Nonradial stacking influences secondary flows that have effects on the aerodynamic parameters such as efficiency, pressure rise, blade loading, and stall margin. However, many of the studies in literature are limited by the comparison of two or three cases. This situation leads to conflicting results because a modification may cause a positive effect in one study while in another one, the same modification may have a negative effect. In this study, a modified free vortex axial fan (named as base fan (BF) for this study) is designed first and the profiles of the blades are stacked radially by joining the centroids of the profiles. Second, 45 deg, 30 deg forward sweep (FS) and backward sweep (BS) modifications are applied. The effects of these modifications on aerodynamic performance of the fans are investigated by means of numerical calculations. The results show that FS and BS do not significantly affect the overall performance of the fan at the design flowrate in spite of the occurring modifications of the local blade pressure distribution. However, at low flowrates, FS and BS have positive and negative effects on the fan performance, respectively.