Rigid Wingsail Research Articles

Wind Tunnel Tests of a Two-Element Wingsail with Focus on Near-Stall Aerodynamics

_ Modern wind propulsion systems on ocean-going cargo vessels require automated trimming. Rigid wingsail designs often incorporate more than one degree of freedom enabling to trim for optimal performance in all sailing conditions. A profound understanding of the aerodynamic behavior is the basis for any trimming strategy. The region around stall is of particular importance as this is where the largest lift but also potential hysteresis effects are expected. In the present research, a two-element wingsail (main wing and flap) was tested in wind tunnel experiments investigating the two available degrees of freedom: the orientation of the main wing to the inflow and the deflection of the flap. Aerodynamic loads were measured in dynamic actuation sequences over both degrees of freedom capturing stall and reattachment. The consistent data reveals two stall stages. In the region between the first and the second stall, when changing the direction of rotation, the flow is found to be reversible. The hysteresis loop is in this case smaller and reattachment occurs at larger angles compared to when both stall stages occur. This smaller hysteresis loop could be exploited in trimming. The second stall stage, however, is identified as detrimental both in the forces and the amount of required actuation to allow the flow to reattach. A considerate flap trim, i.e. the adjustment of the wingsail curvature, is suggested to avoid the second stall. Keywords Wind propulsion; Wind tunnel tests; Stall hysteresis; Two-element wing; Rigid wingsail; Trimming; Automation

Aerodynamic Analysis of Rigid Wing Sail Based on CFD Simulation for the Design of High-Performance Unmanned Sailboats

The utilization of unmanned sailboats as a burgeoning instrument for ocean exploration and monitoring is steadily rising. In this study, a dual sail configuration is put forth to augment the sailboats’ proficiency in its wind-catching ability and adapt to the harsh environment of the sea. This proposition is based on a thorough investigation of sail aerodynamics. The symmetric rigid wing sails NACA 0020 and NACA 0016 are selected for use as the mainsail and trailing wing sail, respectively, after considering the operational environment of unmanned sailboats. The wing sail structure is modeled using SolidWorks, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are conducted using ANSYS Fluent 2022R1 software to evaluate the aerodynamic performance of the sails. Key aerodynamic parameters, including lift, drag, lift coefficient, drag coefficient, and thrust coefficient, are obtained under different angles of attack. Furthermore, the effects of mainsail aspect ratios, mainsail taper ratios, and the positional relationship between the mainsail and trailing sail on performance are analyzed to determine the optimal structure. The thrust provided by the sail to the boat is mainly generated by the decomposition of lift, and the lift coefficient is used to measure the efficiency of an object in generating lift in the air. The proposed sail structure demonstrates a 37.1% improvement in the peak lift coefficient compared to traditional flexible sails and exhibits strong propulsion capability, indicating its potential for widespread application in the marine field.

Unsteady RANS and IDDES studies on a telescopic crescent-shaped wingsail

ABSTRACT Over the years, several research projects have evaluated different concepts for wind-assisted propulsion, generally concluding that it can lead to significant fuel savings. The time-averaged propulsive performance of a single rigid wingsail has been analysed in previous studies. However, the unsteady characteristics of the external loads which may induce structural vibration are also important to be considered. In this study, full-scale simulations, with both unsteady RANS and IDDES methods, are performed to analyze the flow field. The paper's analysis includes flow separation and vortex shedding, the development and dissipation of wake vortices, and the lift reduction due to tip vortices. It also studies the telescopic function of the wingsail by analyzing sails with different heights and wind conditions. The paper concludes that the unsteady RANS and IDDES simulations make similar predictions for time-averaged loads but disagree on the unsteady characteristics. The IDDES simulations indicate more complex vortex-shedding phenomena.

Propulsive performance of a rigid wingsail with crescent-shaped profiles

Wind-assisted ship propulsion is considered an effective method for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This paper presents numerical analyses of the aerodynamics of a single rigid wingsail conducted using the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (uRANS) equations. The wingsail is designed with a new sectional profile: a crescent-shaped foil. This new profile and the classical NACA 0015 profile were compared. Simulations were performed in two and three dimensions, with a focus on key physical quantities such as the external loads on the wingsail, the flow field, and the propulsive performance. It is concluded that the wingsail with the crescent-shaped section has higher propulsion efficiency than the NACA 0015. However, stronger flow separation was detected for the crescent-shaped section. As the separation deteriorates, the flow unsteadiness, challenges the strength and stability of the wingsail structure. The three-dimensional simulations of both profiles, particularly NACA 0015, show that the tip vortices induced from the side edge of the wingsail account for substantial negative effects on the propulsion performance. A case study revealed that installing a wingsail with a crescent-shaped profile reduced fuel consumption by 9% compared with no wingsail.

Performance Prediction Program for Wind-Assisted Cargo Ships

Wind-Assisted Propulsion Systems (WAPS) can play a key role in achieving the IMO 2050 targets on reducing the total annual GHG emissions from international shipping by at least 50%. The present project deals with the development of a six degree of freedom (DoF) Performance Prediction Program (PPP) for wind-assisted cargo ships aimed at contributing knowledge on WAPS performance. It is a fast and easy tool, able to predict the performance of any commercial ship with three possible different WAPS installed: rotor sails, rigid wing sails and DynaRigs; with only the ship main particulars and general dimensions as input data. The tool is based on semi-empirical methods and a WAPS aerodynamic database created from published data on lift and drag coefficients, which can be interpolated with the aim to scale to different sizes and configurations. A model validation is carried out to evaluate its reliability. The results are compared with the real sailing data of a Long Range 2 (LR2) class wind-assisted tanker vessel, the Maersk Pelican. The study indicates that the PPP shows good agreement with the technology suppliers’ own modelling tool and reasonable agreement with the trends of the real sailing measurements. However, for downwind sailing conditions, the predictions are more conservative than the measured values. Lastly, results showing and comparing power savings for the three different WAPS are presented. Rotor Sails are found to be the most efficient WAPS studied with a much higher potential of driving force generation per square meter of projected sail area.

Numerical Investigation of a Two-Element Wingsail for Ship Auxiliary Propulsion

The rigid wingsail is a new type of propulsion equipment which greatly improves the performance of the sailboat under the conditions of upwind and downwind. However, such sail-assisted devices are not common in large ships because the multi-element wingsail is sensitive to changes in upstream flow, making them difficult to operate. This problem shows the need for aerodynamic study of wingsails. A model of two-element wingsail is established and simulated by the steady and unsteady RANS approach with the k-ω SST turbulence model and compared with the known experimental data to ensure the accuracy of the numerical simulation. Then, some key design and structural parameters (camber, the rotating axis position of the flap, angle of attack, flap thickness) are used to characterize the aerodynamic characteristics of the wingsail. The results show that the position of the rotating shaft of the flap has little influence on the lift coefficient at low camber. When stall occurs, the lift coefficient first increases and then decreases as the flap axis moves backward, which also delays the stall angle at a low camber. At the high camber of AOA = 6°, the lift coefficient always increases with the increase of the rotating axis position of the flap; especially between 85% and 95%, the lift coefficient increases suddenly, which is caused by the disappearance of large-scale flow separation on the suction surface of the flap. It reflects the nonlinear coupling effect between camber of wingsail and the rotating axis position of the flap

ZERO EMISSION SAILING SHIP – CONCEPTUAL DESIGN –

When a sailing ship which has large rigid wing sails such as the Wind Challenger Sail runs in a sufficiently windy sea, the thrust by sails is utilized to not only drive the ship at the proper speed but also to rotate an underwater turbine at significant speed and torque. The turbine generates electricity which is used for the electrolysis of water to generate hydrogen. The hydrogen is stored using toluene in the form of methylcyclohexane (MCH), which is in liquid form under normal temperature and pressure. MCH is stored in the ship's tank as hydrogen fuel. In the case of weak winds when the sails cannot generate sufficient thrust, using the hydrogen generated by the dehydrogenation device, the fuel cell works and supplies electricity to the electric motor propeller for the ship's propulsion. Thus, the ship can run at a constant speed regardless of wind speed and direction.

Rigid wing sailboats: A state of the art survey

The design, development and deployment of autonomous sustainable ocean platforms for exploration and monitoring can provide researchers and decision makers with valuable data, trends and insights into the largest ecosystem on Earth. Although these outcomes can be used to prevent, identify and minimise problems, as well as to drive multiple market sectors, the design and development of such platforms remains an open challenge. In particular, energy efficiency, control and robustness are major concerns with implications for autonomy and sustainability. Rigid wingsails allow autonomous boats to navigate with increased autonomy due to lower power consumption and increased robustness as a result of mechanically simpler control compared to traditional sails. These platforms are currently the subject of deep interest, but several important research problems remain open. In order to foster dissemination and identify future trends, this paper presents a survey of the latest developments in the field of rigid wing sailboats, describing the main academic and commercial solutions both in terms of hardware and software.

Numerical and experimental analysis of the flow around a two-element wingsail at Reynolds number 0.53 × 106

The rigid wingsail is a propulsion system, utilized in sailing competitions in order to enhance the yacht performance in both upwind and downwind conditions. Nevertheless, this new rig is sensitive to upstream flow variations, making its steering difficult. This issue suggests the need to perform a study on wingsail aerodynamics. Thus this paper reports some investigations done to better understand the flow physics around a scaled model of an America’s Cup wingsail, based on a two-element AC72 profile. First a wind tunnel test campaign was carried out to generate a database for aerodynamic phenomena analyses and CFD validation. Unsteady RANS simulations were performed to predict and validate the flow characteristics on the wingsail, in the wind tunnel test conditions. The wind tunnel domain was fully modeled, in order to take into account the facility confinement effects. Numerical simulations in freestream and wind tunnel conditions were then compared with experimental data. This analysis shows the necessity to consider the wind tunnel walls when experimental and numerical data are compared. Numerical simulations correctly reproduce the flow field for low-to-moderate flow angles. However, discrepancies on the pressure distribution increase when the boundary layer starts to separate from the wingsail. In this regard, the flow generated by the slot between both elements of the wingsail is of paramount importance. This slot flow is analyzed in details through PIV measurements and numerical simulations. While the numerical simulation correctly predicts the jet flow itself, it only partially reproduces the interaction between the jet flow and the main flow, especially at high angle of attacks. More precisely, the numerical simulation fails to predict the correct jet flow trajectory, which affects the lift capabilities of the entire wing. The influence of the wingsail deformation during experimental campaigns has been investigated to explain this behavior.

Finite-element model of a rigid wing sail for a maxi trimaran

Since 1994, HDS is a major player in the design of complex composite parts, especially for racing sailing yachts [1]. In this paper, we suggest to present our approach in the design and finite-element modelling of the rigid wing-sail of the trimaran that won the 33rd America’s Cup, held in February 2010. From the decision to design the wing-sail to the assembly on the maxi trimaran, we will present the different steps of design and computation: principles and assessment of the aerodynamic loads, structural design and modelling with tools adapted to each problem, mass optimization. Then, we will detail some of the numerical problems that we faced in this project.

Development and Preliminary Experimental Validation of a Wind- and Solar-Powered Autonomous Surface Vehicle

The design and initial testing of a wind- and solar-powered (WASP) autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) are presented. The concept vehicle is a 4.2-m length overall monohull keelboat powered by a rigid wing sail with a 5-m span. It is designed to operate in 7-10 km of wind and a maximum sea state of 2. Specific attention is placed on the aerodynamic, hydrodynamic, and systems integration aspects of the design. Rigid wing sails are shown to have superior performance to conventional cloth sails for use on ASVs owing to their higher aerodynamic efficiency and robustness. The manual design process involved in selection of the airfoil cross section for the wing sail and the resulting aerodynamic performance predictions are presented. Through mathematical derivation, the optimal angle for switching the sail configuration from an upwind/crosswind lift-generating mode to a downwind drag-generating mode is found to be 135 . To simplify implementation of the control system when operating in the lift-generating sailing mode, a control scheme that decouples heading and speed control by simply setting the wing sail to an angle of attack of 10 and independently controlling heading was used. The simulation results from a velocity prediction program (VPP) used to verify the feasibility of this control approach are presented. Initial field trials of the vehicle using the control approach with autonomous wing control and manual rudder control are presented. It is shown that the measured boat speeds and wind speed/directions are within the range of values expected from the VPP. Temperatures recorded in a thermal plume during the field trials of the ASV are shown as a function of global positioning system (GPS) location and time.

Analysis and Preliminary Design of a Sailboat with Self-Trimming Wing Sail

A theoretical analysis has been made of the static and dynamic stability of a self-trimming rigid wing sail for use on a sailboat without sheets or halyards. The effects of camber or flap deflection and the position of the trimming plane are considered. A satisfactory design incorporates an uncambered main wing of medium aspect ratio and a trimming tail plane. Wind tunnel tests on a model of this design confirmed the stability of the sail and indicated adequate damping. The measured lift and drag coefficients were in good agreement with existing data at a similar Reynolds number.