New Two-BWT Blade Aerodynamic Design and CFD Simulation

Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory is a well understood and proven method for modeling blade loads and determining steady state performance characteristics of wind turbines. Recently this theory has successfully been applied to horizontal axis marine current turbines when incorporating modifications that lead to better predictions of turbine performance for a range of operating conditions. Relatively little work exists in the implementation of BEM theory in a marine environment with surface gravity waves. A better understanding of the effects of waves on tidal turbines is necessary to predict fatigue loading that can eventually lead to blade failure. This paper presents a BEM numerical model that incorporates the unsteady velocities due to the presence of waves and assesses the effects of waves on tidal turbine performance. Numerical results of the coefficient of power (CP) and coefficient of thrust (CT) match closely with experimental results for the mean Cp and CT for a range of tip speed ratios. The model is also able to predict the instantaneous amplitudes of the performance characteristics as compared with the measured values except for the BEM calculated thrust which shows a 20% reduction in amplitude.

Design of 10 kW Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) Blade and Aerodynamic Investigation Using Numerical Simulation

The powerful wind generators, producing electric power on the order of megawatts are with significant sizes. The studies on the interaction between the air flow and the wind turbine usually assume that the airflow is homogeneous in vertical direction, which admission is made also in the classical Blade element momentum (BEM) theory. While for the smaller wind turbines this assumption does not lead to significant inaccuracies, for powerful generators the vertical gradient of the wind velocity causes a dependence of the aerodynamic interaction from the angle of rotation of the turbine and leads to a significant cyclic variability of the forces and moments acting on the blades, even for a constant flow velocity without a longitudinal turbulence. The study of this problem is important for the blades loads and fatigue calculations as well as for the synthesis of an individual pitch control of the turbine blades. In this publication adaptation of the BEM theory is proposed in order to account of the influence of the vertical gradient of the wind velocity.

Abstract. Load calculations play a key role in determining the design loads of different wind turbine components. To obtain the aerodynamic loads for these calculations, the industry relies heavily on the Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory. BEM methods use several engineering correction models to capture the aerodynamic phenomena present in Design Load Cases (DLCs) with turbulent wind. Because of this, BEM methods can overestimate aerodynamic loads under challenging conditions when compared to higher-order aerodynamic methods – such as the Lifting-Line Free Vortex Wake (LLFVW) method – leading to unnecessarily high design loads and component costs. In this paper, we give a quantitative answer to the question of load overestimation of a particular BEM implementation by comparing the results of aeroelastic load calculations done with the BEM-based OpenFAST code and the QBlade code, which uses a particular implementation of the LLFVW method. We compare extreme and fatigue load predictions from both codes using sixty-six 10 min load simulations of the Danish Technical University (DTU) 10 MW Reference Wind Turbine according to the IEC 61400-1 power production DLC group. Results from both codes show differences in fatigue and extreme load estimations for the considered sensors of the turbine. LLFVW simulations predict 9 % lower lifetime damage equivalent loads (DELs) for the out-of-plane blade root and the tower base fore–aft bending moments compared to BEM simulations. The results also show that lifetime DELs for the yaw-bearing tilt and yaw moments are 3 % and 4 % lower when calculated with the LLFVW code. An ultimate state analysis shows that extreme loads of the blade root out-of-plane bending moment predicted by the LLFVW simulations are 3 % lower than the moments predicted by BEM simulations. For the maximum tower base fore–aft bending moment, the LLFVW simulations predict an increase of 2 %. Further analysis reveals that there are two main contributors to these load differences. The first is the different way both codes treat the effect of the nonuniform wind field on the local blade aerodynamics. The second is the higher average aerodynamic torque in the LLFVW simulations. It influences the transition between operating modes of the controller and changes the aeroelastic behavior of the turbine, thus affecting the loads.

Abstract. We show that the upscaling of wind turbines from rotor diameters of 15–20 m to presently large rotors of 150–200 m has changed the requirements for the aerodynamic blade element momentum (BEM) models in the aeroelastic codes. This is because the typical scales in the inflow turbulence are now comparable with the rotor diameter of the large turbines. Therefore, the spectrum of the incoming turbulence relative to the rotating blade has increased energy content on 1P, 2P, …, nP, and the annular mean induction approach in a classical BEM implementation might no longer be a good approximation for large rotors. We present a complete BEM implementation on a polar grid that models the induction response to the considerable 1P, 2P, …, nP inflow variations, including models for yawed inflow, dynamic inflow and radial induction. At each time step, in an aeroelastic simulation, the induction derived from a local BEM approach is updated at all the stationary grid points covering the swept area so the model can be characterized as an engineering actuator disk (AD) solution. The induction at each grid point varies slowly in time due to the dynamic inflow filter but the rotating blade now samples the induction field; as a result, the induction seen from the blade is highly unsteady and has a spectrum with distinct 1P, 2P, …, nP peaks. The load impact mechanism from this unsteady induction is analyzed and it is found that the load impact strongly depends on the turbine design and operating conditions. For operation at low to medium thrust coefficients (conventional turbines at above rated wind speed or low induction turbines in the whole operating range), it is found that the grid BEM gives typically 8 %–10 % lower 1 Hz blade root flapwise fatigue loads than the classical annular mean BEM approach. At high thrust coefficients that can occur at low wind speeds, the grid BEM can give slightly increased fatigue loads. In the paper, the implementation of the grid-based BEM is described in detail, and finally several validation cases are presented. Comparisons with blade loads from full rotor CFD, wind tunnel experiments and a field experiment show that the model can predict the aerodynamic forces in half-wake, yawed flow, dynamic inflow and turbulent inflow conditions.

The Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory is nowadays the cornerstone of the horizontal axis wind turbine design, as its application allows for the accurate aerodynamic simulation and power output prediction of wind turbine rotors in a remarkably short period of time. Therefore, efforts have been made for the extension of the classic BEM theory to the performance analysis of Diffuser Augmented Wind Turbines (DAWTs) as well. In this study, the development and assessment of such an in-house BEM code are presented. The proposed computational model is based on the modification of the momentum part of the classical BEM theory; thus, it is capable to account for the diffuser’s effect on the calculation of the axial and tangential induction factors, through the utilization of the velocity speed-up distribution over the rotor plane of the unloaded diffuser. Furthermore, a detailed Glauert’s correction model, which employs Buhl’s modification, specially tailored for the DAWT case is included, to deal with the high values of the axial induction factor. The accuracy of the model is assessed against numerical and experimental results available in the literature, while the impact of the Prandtl’s tip loss correction model on the rotor’s predicted power output is also examined.

A coupled blade element momentum – Computational fluid dynamics model for evaluating tidal stream turbine performance

The positive effects of passive flow control on the blade that uses various methods on the aerodynamic performances of horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) are well‐known. In the current study, splits were made on the blade for passive aerodynamic stall control. A numerical study using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling was conducted to investigate the split impacts on the HAWT blades. The blades are designed using NREL's S819 profile at the root section and NACA 63‐415 profile at the middle and tip sections. Chord length and angle of attack are determined by blade element momentum (BEM) theory. In the optimization process, the slope, position, width, and number of the splits were taken as parameters, and the optimum blade design was created. A steady‐state turbulent flow and transition SST turbulence model was used for the moving reference frame calculation to find the optimum split parameters. The flow in the rotating and stationary zones was solved in an unsteady state by the sliding‐mesh method. Compared with the reference blade, numerical results showed that the power coefficient ( C p ) of the single‐split blade with a width of 1.5 mm and a slope of 120° increased to 0.322, an increase of 9.2%. It has been determined that the optimum blade design reaches its maximum C p at a lower tip–speed ratio (TSR) compared with the reference blade without splits. As a result, the study revealed that using split blades can increase energy production with passive flow control, especially in small‐scale HAWTs.

The general objective of this paper is to present the initial results obtained as an outcome of applying a coupled Experimentally Derived – Blade Element Momentum Theory (BEMT) model for evaluating the airflow-defining parameters of a hovering helicopter rotor close to obstacles and making performance predictions. Several empirical models are described, and proper comparison with the experimentally obtained data is conducted. In detail, the characterization of the rotor inflow ratio (λ), when operating at fixed rotational frequency (n), at different relative distances to the ground (H/R), varying the pitching angle (θ) is discussed. The dependencies show an increase in the rotor inflow ratio parameter (λ), when increasing the collective pitch angle (θ) in hovering regime at fixed constant relative distance to the ground surface (H/R). On the contrary, the inflow ratio (λ) is experiencing a decline once the helicopter rotor operates closer to the ground surface. Moreover, the inflow ratio characterization (λ) along the blade span can be applied to the total generated thrust (T). As a result, the corresponding thrust coefficients (CT) are calculated and graphically represented. The overall characterization of the thrust coefficients (CT) will allow the definition of the ground effect zone.

Aerodynamic loads of wind turbine blades are often predicted by manufacturers using the blade element momentum (BEM) theory, for which many corrections have been proposed in the literature. The physical impacts of such corrections on field measurements have seldom been assessed because of the relative unavailability of dedicated measurements. Based on the unique full‐scale database of the DANAERO project, available through the IEA (International Energy Agency) Task 29, this work incrementally applies on aerodynamic field measurement improvements of the BEM theory: atmospheric boundary layer vertical velocity gradient, neighboring wake, yaw misalignment, wind inflow location, tower shadow effect, cone angles modeling, blade aeroelastic deformation, and dynamic wake. This is performed using the iBEM method (inverse Blade Element Momentum), which back‐calculates the aerodynamic coefficients (lift—CL and drag—CD) using aerodynamic loads from field tests.

Tidal current power generation is attracting more and more attention these days for its cleanness, predictability and reliability. A brimmed diffuser from Wind-lens technology is employed in this study. Experiments were carried out in the calculating water channel (CWC) for the bare turbine and the shrouded turbine, results of which proved that the diffuser was effective to improve the performance of the tidal turbine. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method and the blade element momentum (BEM) theory were used to evaluate the performance of the bare turbine and the shrouded turbine. For the tip speed ratio (TSR) around 3.0, calculation results from CFD and BEM fit experimental results well for the bare turbine. For the shrouded turbine, CFD results failed in capturing the experimental results but BEM results succeeded for the TSR greater than 3.0. In consideration of the actual running of turbines and calculation time cost, BEM is a satisfactory method for evaluating the performance of a turbine.

Low order models based on the Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory exhibit modeling issues in the performance prediction of Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT) compared to Computational Fluid Dynamics, despite the widespread engineering practice of such methods. The present study shows that the capability of BEM codes applied to VAWTs can be greatly improved by implementing a novel three-dimensional set of high-order corrections and demonstrates this by comparing the BEM predictions against wind-tunnel experiments conducted on three small-scale VAWT models featuring different rotor design (H-shaped and Troposkein), blade profile (NACA0021 and DU-06-W200), and Reynolds number (from 0.8×105 to 2.5×105). Though based on the conventional Double Multiple Stream Tube (DMST) model, the here-presented in-house BEM code incorporates several two-dimensional and three-dimensional corrections including: accurate extended polar data, flow curvature, dynamic stall, a spanwise-distributed formulation of the tip losses, a fully 3D approach in the modeling of rotors featuring general shape (such as but not only, the Troposkein one), and accounting for the passive effects of supporting struts and pole. The detailed comparison with experimental data of the same models, tested in the large-scale wind tunnel of the Politecnico di Milano, suggests the very good predictive capability of the code in terms of power exchange, torque coefficient, and loads, on both time-mean and time-resolved basis. The peculiar formulation of the code allows including in a straightforward way the usual spanwise non-uniformity of the incoming wind and the effects of skew, thus allowing predicting the turbine operation in a realistic open-field in presence of the environmental boundary layer. A systematic study on the operation of VAWTs in multiple environments, such as in coastal regions or off-shore, and highlighting the sensitivity of VAWT performance to blade profile selection, rotor shape and size, wind shear, and rotor tilt concludes the paper.

The challenge of wind turbine blade design is to balance the conflict between high capacity and heavy system loads introduced by the large scale rotor. To solve this problem, we present a multi-objective optimization method to maximize the Annual energy production (AEP) and minimize the blade mass. The well-known Blade element momentum (BEM) theory is employed to predict the aerodynamic performance and AEP of the blade. The blade is simplified as a thin Bernoulli beam. The cross section is modelled as a combination of composite layer, shear webs and spar caps typically. The strain of every cross section has been considered as a constraint to minimize the spar cap thickness for minimizing the blade mass. An improved genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is applied to obtain the Pareto front set. Several solutions of the Pareto set are selected to compare with the reference blade (NREL 5MW blade). Performance of the rotors on design condition is simulated by STAR-CCM+ to verify the results of BEM theory. Optimal results show that the present blade, which is fully superior to the reference blade, can be selected from the Pareto set. The optimization design method can provide a superior blade with an increase by 2.48% of AEP and a reduction by 5.52% of the blade mass. It indicates the present optimization method is effective. Results of numerical simulations show that the spanwise flow would be increased obviously in tip region of the reference blade. The reason is that chord length variation in blade tip affects the flow and causes minor stall. The abrupt change of chord distribution in blade tip should be avoided to reduce the spanwise flow in initial blade design.

Double-blade vertical axis wind turbines (DB-VAWTs) can improve the self-starting performance of lift-driven VAWTs. We here propose the quadruple-multiple streamtube model (QMS), based on the blade element momentum (BEM) theory, for simulating DB-VAWT performance. Model validity is investigated by comparison to computational fluid dynamics (CFD) prediction for two kinds of two-dimensional DB-VAWT rotors for two rotor scales with three inner-outer radius ratios: 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75. The BEM-QMS model does not consider the effects of an inner rotor on the flow speed in the upwind half of the rotor, so we introduce a correction factor for this flow speed. The maximum power coefficient predicted by the modified BEM-QMS model for a DB-VAWT is thus closer to the CFD prediction.

A dual-objective optimization study was carried out to illuminate how the tip speed ratio of a small wind turbine affects the aerodynamic noise as well as the blade geometry. A 0.75 kW three-bladed small horizontal axis wind turbine was selected as the case study. Two important goals were considered in the study: maximization of the output power and the minimization of the aerodynamic noise. The former was calculated by the well-known blade-element momentum theory while a validated semi-empirical model was adopted for the computation of the latter. A combination of these goals defined the objective function and the weighted-sum approach was employed to find the optimal values for the design variables of the optimization including the distributions of the chord and the twist angle along the blade together with the tip speed ratio. The extracted power was calculated at the rated wind speed of 10 m/s while the noise was computed at lower wind speeds of 5 and 7.5 m/s. The genetic algorithm technique was adopted for the muti-objective optimization. The results revealed the importance of the blade tip region in producing the emitted aerodynamic noise. Specifically, an increase in the chord and twist values near the tip results in the reduction in the emitted noise. Results also show that a good compromise between the two goals is achievable such that a noticeable reduction in the emitted aerodynamic noise is attainable in exchange for a very small drop in the power coefficient. The optimization results also indicated that the noise could be adequately reduced at the smaller value of the tip speed ratio without a large reduction in output power which is due to the decrease in the rotational speed of the turbine.