This paper presents a method based on the imposition of velocity discontinuities to model flow perturbation due to the existence of vortical structures. The proposed method uses actuator-disk and lifting line concepts in order to provide a framework of analysis that respects conservation laws for momentum, energy, and vorticity, which is not always the case for engineering methods used in the wind industry. The flow field is described by the Euler equations. In the proposed mathematical model, the attitude toward flow determination is entirely linked to the vorticity structure of the flow, which is modeled by velocity discontinuities. The numerical method has been applied to four wind turbines: NREL phases II, IV, and VI rotors, as well as to the Tjaereborg rotor, and has shown satisfactory predictions compared to measurements up to peak power. Comparisons have also been undertaken with the results of a previous method, developed by the same authors, where the velocity field is not allowed to be discontinuous and the actuator disk is analyzed as a source of external forces only. In the stall regime of the turbine, the relative differences in power output between the two methods have been evaluated at 5% on the average.
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Wind Turbine Performance Predictions Using a Differential Actuator-Lifting Disk Model
Christian Masson
Christian Masson
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Christophe Leclerc
Christian Masson
Contributed by the Solar Energy Division of THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS. Manuscript received by the ASME Solar Division June 21, 2004; final revision September 17, 2004. Associate Editor: P. Chaviaropoulos.
J. Sol. Energy Eng. May 2005, 127(2): 200-208 (9 pages)
Published Online: April 25, 2005
Article history
Received:
June 21, 2004
Revised:
September 17, 2004
Online:
April 25, 2005
Citation
Leclerc, C., and Masson, C. (April 25, 2005). "Wind Turbine Performance Predictions Using a Differential Actuator-Lifting Disk Model ." ASME. J. Sol. Energy Eng. May 2005; 127(2): 200–208. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.1889466
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