An aerodynamic modelling methodology for an offshore floating vertical axis wind turbine

Abstract

Wind energy has witnessed a consistent expansion in the past decade especially with the move to offshore generation. There is an increasing need to further exploit offshore wind resources which is pushing wind farms into deeper water locations where the current popular horizontal axis wind turbine configuration may not be entirely suitable. Subsequently, a transition from fixed to floating wind turbines is essential to ensure offshore wind farms are economically viable in the future. In particular, there has been a renewed interest in the vertical axis wind turbine configuration due its clear inherent attributes for an offshore floating application. A review of current conceptual floating vertical axis wind turbines and associated aerodynamic modelling methods are presented. Also, an efficient two stage aerodynamic modelling methodology delivering initial analysis using the Cascade model and secondary stage analysis using detailed Navier-Stokes numerical simulations for the aerodynamic optimisation of a new offshore floating vertical axis wind turbine is outlined.

Wind Energy Production from Vertical Axis Wind Turbine on Offshore Production Platforms in Trinidad

“…The VAWT's structural simplicity is hampered by its extremely unsteady and fundamentally non-linear flow field aerodynamics, according to the wind energy research group [8]. As the turbine rotates, the blades' respective angle of attack (α) changes continuously, creating powerful unsteady effects in the flow sector as shown in Fig.…”

“…The most important of these unsteady effects is the flow's continuous dynamic separation, which can significantly reduce the VAWT's efficiency. One of the major challenges in modeling the VAWT is the contact of the blade and the turbine's wake interaction [8]. The most commonly used mathematical models for analyzing VAWT efficiency are momentum models, which uses the streamtubes to measure the shift in momentum through the VAWT [9].…”

Numerical Prediction on the Dynamic Response of a Helical Floating Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Based on an Aero-Hydro-Mooring-Control Coupled Model

“…To overcome these shortcomings of HAWTs, vertical rotors are proposed. The most significant improvement in the VAWT is that the rotor and blade structures could be simplified and the nacelle could be arranged at the bottom of the rotor, which makes the installation and maintenance works easier [4,5]. Another advantage of VAWTs is the rotation axis being perpendicular to both incident wind and the free sea surface.…”

Rüzgâr ve Deniz Akıntı Enerjisinin Tahrik Ettiği Güç Üretim Sisteminin İncelenmesi

“…Çeşitli çevresel koşullar simüle edilerek aerodinamik ve hidrodinamik yüklerin platformun hareketi üzerindeki etkileşimini gösteren yuvarlak ve yarı dalgıç hareket tepkilerine genel bir bakış sunulmaktadır [5]. Bu yapılan çalışmalar sonucunda, yüzen destek yapıları dikey eksenli rüzgâr türbinlerini yeterince destekleyebiliyor olsa da, bağlama sistemlerinin, özellikle dalgalı hava koşullarında dikey eksenli rüzgâr türbinleri aşırı çekme gerilimi ve sallanmaya maruz kaldığından bunları engellemek için bu yapıların yeniden tasarlanması gerektiğini göstermektedir [6,7] [11][12][13]. Yenilenebilir enerji uygulamalarında şebeke entegrasyonu alanında, batarya ve ultrakapasitör güneş enerjisi sistemleri ile kullanılan en yaygını hibrit enerji depolama sistemidir [14,15].…”