Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) of Wind Turbines

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) of Wind Turbines
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Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) of Wind Turbines
Wind energy is becoming more vital than ever with the increasing shortage of fossil fuels amidst multiple environmental concerns. Stakeholders in the energy sector understand the need to focus more on renewable sources of energy, which is vital at a time when sensitivity to energy conservation and preservation of the environment from greenhouse gas damages increases. To the effect of the changes above, the market for wind energy increases. As the market grows, concerns increase on how to harvest wind energy at cost-efficient limits. Multiple studies have been conducted to develop better turbines likely to match the increasing sizes of wind farms. Developing better ways of understanding farm flows has achieved a boost with the advancements in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) of wind turbines. CFD simulations have proven important in gaining greater knowledge of different flow designs, thereby allowing wind farm developers to plan better-performing, less maintenance-intensive wind farms.
The Concept of CFD
The growth of the market for wind energy has created a spontaneous growth in wind turbines and wind farms, leading to an urgent need for more research for the efficient harvesting of wind energy. CFD simulations have come at the right time in wind energy mechanisms to instill better outcomes. Utility-scale turbines currently extend a considerable distance into the air boundary layer (Kishore & Priya, 2015). As a result, a better understanding of the interaction between the atmospheric boundary layer and turbines and their wakes is required. Upstream turbines’ turbulent wakes affect the flow field of turbines behind them, reducing power output and increasing mechanical loading. Wind farm developers could plan better-performing, less-maintenance-intensive wind farms if they had a better understanding of this type of flow (Ferrer & Montlaur, 2019). CFD comes as a monumental step that could be used to steer accuracy and low-maintenance wind turbines.
CFD is a branch of fluid dynamics that has been used to solve issues involving fluid flows. CFD uses data structures and numerical analyses to analyze and solve fluid flow issues. Contemporarily, computers are employed to calculate and simulate the free-stream flow of fluids and boundary conditions that facilitate interactions between fluids and surfaces (Carrion, 2014). High-speed supercomputers can be used to solve the largest and most complex fluid flow issues. More advancements in CFD have increased accuracy during simulations, and outcomes in turbulent and transonic flows have as well improved in the margin of error terms.
The data retrieved from CFD simulations is considerably more accurate, bearing the multiple steps that it must undergo for approval. The initial software validation can be conducted using the wind tunnel data. The outcomes can be compared using empirical analyses. Eventually, the outcomes are subjected to full-scale tests such as flight tests to ascertain their reliability (Kishore & Priya, 2015). The efficiency by which CFD simulations deliver outcomes has triggered its application in multiple areas of aerodynamics, including engine and combustion analyses, fluid flows and heat transfer, biological engineering, industrial system design and analysis, weather simulation, and aerospace analyses. The CFD advancements in wind turbine technology will again trigger advancements towards renewable energy sources.
Background
Advancements in CFD have been incremental in numerical analyses. The Navier–Stokes equations, which define numerous single-phase (gas or liquid, but not both) fluid flows, are the foundation of practically all CFD problems. The analysis begins with the Euler equation computations (Carrion, 2014). The Euler equations can be obtained by omitting variables that describe viscous actions from these equations. Further simplification obtains the entire potential equations by omitting components indicating vorticity. Finally, these equations can be linearized to provide linearized potential equations for minor perturbations in subsonic and supersonic flows (not transonic or hypersonic) (Kishore & Priya, 2015). Lewis Fry Richardson is among the first individuals to make significant steps in calculations resembling contemporary CFD. The efficiency of Richardson’s calculations was marked with the application of finite differences while dividing the physical space into cells. While much of the Richardson calculations failed to materialize, they set grounds for modern numerical meteorology and CFD calculations. Three-dimensional CFD developments were enhanced with the advancements in computer technology. The T3 group experiment at the Los Almos National Lab governed by the Navier-Stokes equations marked the first attempt to model fluid flow using computers. More advancements in the three-dimensional model have since been witnessed the first paper published in 1967 by Douglas Aircraft and A.M.O Smith. With the advancements in computing, it is efficient to progress the evolution of CFD in more fields, with wind energy becoming a more viable prospect.
The advancements of CFD in wind turbine developments have been conducted using the actuator line model (ALM) and actuator disk model (ADM), with the outcomes revealing the viability of the advancements in cost reduction. When employing numerical simulation...