Enhancement of wind turbine aerodynamic performance by a numerical optimization technique

Kwon, Hye Won; You, Ju Yeol; Kwon, Oh Joon

doi:10.1007/s12206-011-1035-2

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…One approach adopted to incorporate high‐fidelity simulations into wind turbine design is to use two‐dimensional Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) CFD solvers to optimize wind turbine airfoils, neglecting 3D effects . Another effort considered 3D CFD to optimize turbine blade winglets with respect to two design variables .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One approach adopted to incorporate high-fidelity simulations into wind turbine design is to use two-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) CFD solvers to optimize wind turbine airfoils, neglecting 3D effects. 28,29 Another effort considered 3D CFD to optimize turbine blade winglets with respect to two design variables. 30 However, CFD-based aerodynamic shape optimization for wind turbine blades has not yet been done because of the compounding challenges of high cost simulations and large numbers of shape design variables.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Aerodynamic shape optimization of wind turbine blades using a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model and an adjoint method

2016

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Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is increasingly used to analyze wind turbines, and the next logical step is to develop CFD‐based optimization to enable further gains in performance and reduce model uncertainties. We present an aerodynamic shape optimization framework consisting of a Reynolds‐averaged Navier Stokes solver coupled to a numerical optimization algorithm, a geometry modeler, and a mesh perturbation algorithm. To efficiently handle the large number of design variables, we use a gradient‐based optimization technique together with an adjoint method for computing the gradients of the torque coefficient with respect to the design variables. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, we maximize the torque of the NREL VI wind turbine blade with respect to pitch, twist, and airfoil shape design variables while constraining the blade thickness. We present a series of optimization cases with increasing number of variables, both for a single wind speed and for multiple wind speeds. For the optimization at a single wind speed performed with respect to all the design variables (1 pitch, 11 twist, and 240 airfoil shape variables), the torque coefficient increased by 22.4% relative to the NREL VI design. For the multiple‐speed optimization, the torque increased by an average of 22.1%. Depending on the CFD mesh size and number of design variables, the optimization time ranges from 2 to 24h when using 256 cores, which means that wind turbine designers can use this process routinely. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aerodynamic shape optimization of wind turbine blades using a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model and an adjoint method

2016

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“…It is known that approximately 60% of the total energy loss of typical wind turbine systems is the aerodynamic loss. Since large horizontal-axis wind turbines are very expensive and operate for many years after the initial installation, it is important to design the wind turbine rotor blades in an aerodynamically efficient manner such that the maximum possible energy conversion can be achieved for the initial investment cost [1]. S809 airfoil is a common thick airfoil type for horizontalaxis wind turbine application which was developed by National Renewable Laboratory (NREL) to produce a low profile drag and maximum lift.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical Analysis of Wind Turbine Airfoil Aerodynamic Performance with Leading Edge Bump

Asli

Gholamali²,

Tousi³

2015

Mathematical Problems in Engineering

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Aerodynamic performance improvement of wind turbine blade is the key process to improve wind turbine performance in electricity generated and energy conversion in renewable energy sources concept. The flow behavior on wind turbine blades profile and the relevant phenomena like stall can be improved by some modifications. In the present paper, Humpback Whales flippers leading edge protuberances model as a novel passive stall control method was investigated on S809 as a thick airfoil. The airfoil was numerically analyzed by CFD method in Reynolds number of 10 6 and aerodynamic coefficients in static angle of attacks were validated with the experimental data reported by Somers in NREL. Therefore, computational results for modified airfoil with sinusoidal wavy leading edge were presented. The results revealed that, at low angles of attacks before the stall region, lift coefficient decreases slightly rather than baseline model. However, the modified airfoil has a smooth stall trend while baseline airfoil lift coefficient decreases sharply due to the separation which occurred on suction side. According to the flow physics over the airfoils, leading edge bumps act as vortex generator so vortices containing high level of momentum make the flow remain attached to the surface of the airfoil at high angle of attack and prevent it from having a deep stall.

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“…To enhance the aerodynamic performance of blades, the sectional aerodynamic design optimization was studied by Kwon et al [2012]. Design optimization of a wind turbine blade was presented by Jeong et al [2012] to minimize the fluctuation of the bending moment of the blade in turbulent wind.…”

Section: Rotor Design Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multidisciplinary design optimization of offshore wind turbines for minimum levelized cost of energy

et al. 2014

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This paper presents a method for multidisciplinary design optimization of offshore wind turbines at system level. The formulation and implementation that enable the integrated aerodynamic and structural design of the rotor and tower simultaneously are detailed. The objective function to be minimized is the levelized cost of energy. The model includes various design constraints: stresses, deflections, modal frequencies and fatigue limits along different stations of the blade and tower. The rotor design variables are: chord and twist distribution, blade length, rated rotational speed and structural thicknesses along the span. The tower design variables are: tower thickness and diameter distribution, as well as the tower height. For the other wind turbine components, a representative mass model is used to include their dynamic interactions in the system. To calculate the system costs, representative cost models of a wind turbine located in an offshore wind farm are used. To show the potential of the method and to verify its usefulness, the 5 MW NREL wind turbine is used as a case study. The result of the design optimization process shows 2.3% decrease in the levelized cost of energy for a representative Dutch site, while satisfying all the design constraints.

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Enhancement of wind turbine aerodynamic performance by a numerical optimization technique

Cited by 13 publications

References 6 publications

Aerodynamic shape optimization of wind turbine blades using a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model and an adjoint method

Aerodynamic shape optimization of wind turbine blades using a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model and an adjoint method

Numerical Analysis of Wind Turbine Airfoil Aerodynamic Performance with Leading Edge Bump

Multidisciplinary design optimization of offshore wind turbines for minimum levelized cost of energy

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