The aerodynamic performance of a Darrieus wind turbine operating with the rotation axis tilted with respect to the free-stream wind speed is investigated in this paper. An Unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (URANS) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model is proposed in order to provide wind turbine manufacturers with a reliable simulation tool to forecast the power conversion characteristics of vertical axis wind turbine prototypes that operate in tilted conditions. The outputs of the model are compared against experimental performance of a non-tilted rotor corrected to the standard sea level conditions. Two different tilted configurations are studied (i.e., a tilt angle of 10 and 20), and the aerodynamic performance are presented in terms of the mechanical power production and the power coecient. A sensible decrease in the power production is observed for increasing tilt angles. Comprehensive physical interpretations of the results are provided, considering also the predictions of a methodology based on semi-empirical methods.

A computational assessment of the aerodynamic performance of a tilted Darrieus wind turbine

BEDON, GABRIELE;DE BETTA, STEFANO;BENINI, ERNESTO
2015

Abstract

The aerodynamic performance of a Darrieus wind turbine operating with the rotation axis tilted with respect to the free-stream wind speed is investigated in this paper. An Unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (URANS) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model is proposed in order to provide wind turbine manufacturers with a reliable simulation tool to forecast the power conversion characteristics of vertical axis wind turbine prototypes that operate in tilted conditions. The outputs of the model are compared against experimental performance of a non-tilted rotor corrected to the standard sea level conditions. Two different tilted configurations are studied (i.e., a tilt angle of 10 and 20), and the aerodynamic performance are presented in terms of the mechanical power production and the power coecient. A sensible decrease in the power production is observed for increasing tilt angles. Comprehensive physical interpretations of the results are provided, considering also the predictions of a methodology based on semi-empirical methods.
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
articleINDAER 2015.pdf

accesso aperto

Tipologia: Postprint (accepted version)
Licenza: Accesso libero
Dimensione 1.3 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
1.3 MB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11577/3181485
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 33
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 25
social impact