Passive flow control in wind turbine blade by geometrical optimization of vortex generator

A wind turbine is a device that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy by its rotary action. In this paper, a wind turbine’s lift and power characteristics are improved by employing a vortex generator as a passive flow control device on the surface of the wind turbine. A triangular vortex generator is used for this study for its simplicity in design and effective results. NACA 4418 airfoil is selected for the conceptual design by BEM (Blade Element Momentum theory), and geometrical modeling is carried out using SOLIDWORKS. Computational analysis of the blade with vortex generators is done using ANSYS CFX, and analysis on a clean blade is verified using Q Blade. The geometrical parameters considered for optimization are chordwise position (xvg), Height (hvg), and Inclination from the baseline(βvg), keeping fixed spacing (svg). By optimizing the design parameters, the lift and power increment is observed alongside a delay in the flow separation point, which agrees with the experimental results. This investigation can be extended to future unconventional shapes such as ogive, vane, and wishbone generators through wind tunnel and field tests

Passive flow control in wind turbine blade by geometrical optimization of vortex generator

A wind turbine is a device that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy by its rotary action. In this paper, a wind turbine’s lift and power characteristics are improved by employing a vortex generator as a passive flow control device on the surface of the wind turbine. A triangular vortex generator is used for this study for its simplicity in design and effective results. NACA 4418 airfoil is selected for the conceptual design by BEM (Blade Element Momentum theory), and geometrical modeling is carried out using SOLIDWORKS. Computational analysis of the blade with vortex generators is done using ANSYS CFX, and analysis on a clean blade is verified using Q Blade. The geometrical parameters considered for optimization are chordwise position (xvg), Height (hvg), and Inclination from the baseline(βvg), keeping fixed spacing (svg). By optimizing the design parameters, the lift and power increment is observed alongside a delay in the flow separation point, which agrees with the experimental results. This investigation can be extended to future unconventional shapes such as ogive, vane, and wishbone generators through wind tunnel and field tests

Wind Turbine Aerodynamics and Flow Control

Aerodynamics is one of the prime topics in wind turbine research. In aerodynamics, the design of a flow control mechanism lays the foundation for an efficient power output. Lift generation in the airfoil section leading to rotary motion of blade and transfer of mechanical to electrical power generation through gearbox assembly. The primary objective of a flow control mechanism in wind turbine blades is to delay the stall and increase the lift, thereby an efficient power generation. Flow control is classified into active and passive flow control mechanisms. Active flow control works on an actuation mechanism that comes into action when required during varied operating conditions. Passive flow control devices are designed, developed, and fixed on the surface to extract the required output through effective flow control. Vortex generators are the simplest, most cost-effective and efficient passive flow control devices. These devices influence the power of wind turbine blades in various ways, such as placement of generator along the chord, distance between pairs of a generator, angle of inclination of a generator with the blade surface, the height of generator. Flow control device needs to be optimized with the aforementioned parameters for efficient stall delay and power generation