A coupled Navier–Stokes/Vortex–Panel solver for the numerical analysis of wind turbines

✍ Scribed by Sven Schmitz; Jean-Jacques Chattot

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2006
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 279 KB
• Volume: 35
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0045-7930
• DOI: 10.1016/j.compfluid.2006.01.006

✦ Synopsis

The present paper introduces a coupled Navier-Stokes/Vortex-Panel solver for the computational study of incompressible high Reynolds number flow around horizontal axis wind turbines. The Navier-Stokes solver is confined to the near-field around one wind turbine blade; the Vortex-Panel method accounts for the far-field of a two-bladed rotor. A robust coupling between both methods is achieved through the spanwise distribution of bound circulation determined by Stokes' theorem. The coupled solver reduces both artificial dissipation and computational cost compared to a full-domain Navier-Stokes analysis. Results obtained for inviscid and attached viscous flow around an optimal wind turbine blade are compared to a vortex model based on strip theory. Good agreement is found between both models that serves as a validation of the coupled solver for future applications to wind turbines.