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Battisti
e-mail: lorenzo.battisti@ing.unitn.it
L. Zanne
S. DellAnna
DIMS, Faculty of Engineering,
Universita` degli Studi di Trento,
Via Mesiano 77, I-38050 Povo (TN), Italy
V. Dossena
e-mail: vincenzo.dossena@polimi.it
G. Persico
B. Paradiso
Laboratorio di Fluidodinamica delle Macchine,
Dipartimento di Energia, Politecnico di Milano,
Via Lambruschini 4, I-20158, Milano, Italy
Aerodynamic Measurements
on a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
in a Large Scale Wind Tunnel
This paper presents the first results of a wide experimental investigation on the aerodynamics of a vertical axis wind turbine. Vertical axis wind turbines have recently received
particular attention, as interesting alternative for small and micro generation applications. However, the complex fluid dynamic mechanisms occurring in these machines
make the aerodynamic optimization of the rotors still an open issue and detailed experimental analyses are now highly recommended to convert improved flow field comprehensions into novel design techniques. The experiments were performed in the large-scale
wind tunnel of the Politecnico di Milano (Italy), where real-scale wind turbines for micro
generation can be tested in full similarity conditions. Open and closed wind tunnel configurations are considered in such a way to quantify the influence of model blockage for
several operational conditions. Integral torque and thrust measurements, as well as
detailed aerodynamic measurements were carried out to characterize the 3D flow field
downstream of the turbine. The local unsteady flow field and the streamwise turbulent
component, both resolved in phase with the rotor position, were derived by hot wire
measurements. The paper critically analyses the models and the correlations usually
applied to correct the wind tunnel blockage effects. Results highlight that the presently
available theoretical correction models do not provide accurate estimates of the blockage
effect in the case of vertical axis wind turbines. The tip aerodynamic phenomena, in particular, seem to play a key role for the prediction of the turbine performance; large-scale
unsteadiness is observed in that region and a simple flow model is used here to explain
the different flow features with respect to horizontal axis wind turbines.
[DOI: 10.1115/1.4004360]
Keywords: VAWT, blockage, wind Tunnel, wind turbine, aerodynamic measurements,
unsteady flows
Introduction
At the present time, the most used aerodynamic model is the double-multiple streamtubes (DMS) [4], a blade element momentum
model (BEM) applied to two actuator disks, one representing
the upwind side of the rotor and the other one the downwind side,
each of them subdivided into multiple streamtubes. Taking
into account dynamic stall and secondary effects (e.g., parasitic arms
drag, tip losses, turbulent wake state correction, wake expansion,
and tower deficit) with dedicated submodels, the results are still
far from providing a sufficiently reliable performance estimation.
More recently, the so-called vortex methods have been developed with the aim to get a more realistic simulation of the
unsteady behavior of the wake, the tip vortex, and the blade loads.
These methods allow computing the flow field from the blade circulation, and the trailing and shed vorticity. The wake can be either prescribed or free, the latter giving much better results but
being computationally slower and affected by numerical instabilities. Normally these methods use a database for airfoils performancesas DMS doesto calculate the blade circulation. To
avoid the use of the database an unsteady panel method allows
calculating the airfoil performances [5], once coupled with the
solution of the unsteady boundary layer [6].
CFD analysis represents the most recent class of aerodynamic
performance prediction methods. In these codes, the flow field is
computed by replacing the blades elements with body forces
derived from airfoil look-up tables [7,8]. As a more complex alternative they can resolve the entire flow field including the blade
profile boundary layer.
In this uncertain scenario there is a lack of experimental data
required to validate new models of the flow behavior.
Throughout the VAWT research, Sandia Laboratories focused
the attention on free field testing [4], and only a few tests were
performed in wind tunnels (i.e., [9]). In this way, full scale
C 2011 by ASME
Copyright V
The physical model of the turbine is a small VAWT characterized by three straight blades as represented in the picture of Fig. 2.
The machine was designed and built for research purposes by the
company Tozzi Nord Wind Turbines sited in Trento (Italy) and
instrumented by the turbomachinery laboratory of the university
of Trento. The main turbine geometrical data are reported in Table 1. The wind turbine was equipped with strain gauge bridges
installed on the supporting mast 1.2 m below the rotor mid
section, to measure the streamwise and lateral aerodynamic
Table 1
1.457 m
1.030 m
NACA0021
0.250
Directional pneumatic five hole probe: The probe was calibrated on a low speed jet over an angular range of 6 24 deg
both in pitch and yaw direction. This probe was used in order
to obtain the local total pressure, static pressure and the 3D
velocity vector. Uncertainty in total and static pressure measurements can be assumed to be lower than 5 Pa, while for
angular measurement an uncertainty of 0.2 deg has been
evaluated.
Single sensor hot wire anemometer: The probe head, characterized by a sensor wire diameter of 5 lm normal to the probe
stem, was operated in constant temperature mode. The probe
was mounted with the wire in vertical direction, to minimize
the effects due to vertical velocity components. So operating,
no specific directional calibration of the hot wire probe is
required. Hot wire data allowed to define, for each point of the
measurement grid, the time averaged component of the flow
velocity and the periodic velocity component, as a function of
the rotor angular position. An estimation of the turbulence intensity was also provided by the hot wire measurements.
k [-]
CT [-]
V0 [m=s]
2D
3D
3D
1.62
1.56
2.50
0.46
0.46
0.68
16.14
13.14
10.50
1.64
1.63
2.54
0.50
0.49
0.78
16.05
13.30
10.55
where the blades stall for a nonnegligible part of the rotor revolution, while for k 2.5 this rotor works near the maximum CP condition. The maximum rotational speed was limited to avoid
structural collapse of the wind turbine rotor, while the minimum
wind speed was limited by the accuracy in pressure measurements. Table 2 reports the main specifications of the tests considered in the following.
3D Wake Profile
Blockage Modeling
Since the wind tunnel test section has a confined volume, the
aerodynamic measurements obtained from the wind tunnel tests
do not resemble those obtained in infinitely spaced boundaries,
such as the case of in open field.
The test of wind turbines in wind tunnels is based on fluiddynamic similarity rules, which scale the actual sizes to the model
ones according to the Reynolds and Strouhal numbers (the Mach
number is not of concern because the process can be considered
as incompressible). Tests are usually devoted to assess rotor
global performances (power curve) and to evaluate improved
models for the turbulent wake. Nevertheless both tasks have to
deal with the accurate correction of the tunnel blockage effect.
When rotating devices as wind turbine rotors are actually tested,
additional complexities arise from the influence of test conditions
on the wake shape. Highly loaded rotors have a more expanded
wake compared to lightly loaded rotors. Moreover, blade passing
events cause turbulent structures to be shed downstream and lead
to periodic fluctuations in the velocity and pressure fields.
A number of approaches are available to study the actual airflow
around the wind turbine rotor and to estimate the influence of blockage [1822] for an unshrouded propeller or a wind turbine. Glauert
[18], developed the basic theory for thrusting propellers, which, by
limited extension, can be adapted to HAWT wind turbines. Glauert
used a momentum-balance=actuator-disk model to provide a procedure for setting the wind tunnel inlet flow speed so as to generate
the same thrust as the one experienced in unbounded conditions.
The resulting simple relationship has been used throughout the
propulsion industry but encounters difficulty for wind turbines, as
SEPTEMBER 2011, Vol. 133 / 031201-3
Fig. 3
Contours of non dimensional velocity V=V0 on the measurement plane at k 5 1.6 for open and closed configurations
a singularity occurs when the thrust coefficient equals unity. Mikkelsen and Srensen [15] revisited the issue and, still using a
momentum-balance=actuator-disk model, provided a new velocity
adjustment relation that avoids Glauerts model singularity. Comparison to Navier Stokes CFD studies confirmed the predictions of
the simple actuator-disc model for blockage levels of practical interest. To date though, no method has been put forward for estimating the blockage correction factors for unshrouded VAWT.
Regardless of the tunnel configuration, a unique model can be
adopted to compute the one-dimensional streamwise thrust stressing the turbine. With reference to Fig. 5, the flow field within the
test chamber is shown. Five main sections are identified: section
0, upstream; sections 1 and 2, wind turbine inlet and outlet respectively; section D, wind turbine (disk section); section 3, far downstream (measuring section). The stream is entering the test section
with a uniform velocity V0 over the whole wind tunnel section
_ core ) and an
and divides itself into a core fractional mass flow (m
_ outer ). The former defines a stream
outer fractional mass flow (m
tube which passes through the upstream area A0, the turbine area
ADdelivering the work and providing the thrustand the downstream area A3 (wake area). The outer air mass flow entering the
volume outside of the central streamtube mixes with a fractional
_ R ), possibly exchanged with the external environment.
mass (m
This fraction vanishes when a closed wind tunnel is of concern.
Considering the core streamtube, the thrust operated by the
flow stream on the disk can be easily evaluated by the static pressure drop across the disk itself as
p1 p2 AD T
(1)
velocity distribution on section 3, and being sections 1 and 2 infinitely close compared to the wake streamwise extension,
V1 V2 VD and Eq. (1) can be rewritten as
T AD
1
1
p0 qV02 qVD2
2
2
1
1
p3 qV32 qVD2
(2)
2
2
leading to
1
T p0 p3 AD qV02 V32 AD
2
(3)
Fig. 4
Contours of non dimensional velocity V=V0 on the measurement plane at k 5 2.5 for open and closed configurations
profile is constant until almost the tip of the blade (Z=H 0.8),
and starts deviating consistently only in the tip region. The drop is
reabsorbed almost completely just above the turbine maximum
height (Z=H 1.2), except for the nonsymmetrical local peak
induced by the blade load variation throughout the full revolution.
A combined analysis of Figs. 3, 4, and 6, indicates that the 3D
effects vanish quite rapidly as the tip of the blade is reached.
Figure 7 shows a comparison of the nondimensional velocity
distribution in the wake for the closed and open tunnel tests. It is
to be noted that the highest nondimensional velocity rate measured in the closed wind tunnel contributes to the increase of thrust
Fig. 5
(4)
(5)
(6)
V0 V0 4 VVD
(7)
Since the velocity and the area of the wake in section 3 are computed by the aerodynamic measurements, VD can be easily estimated as
Fig. 7 Comparison of the wake shape at rotor midspan in
closed and open tunnel tests at k 5 1.6 (2D and 3D tests)
VD V3
A3
AD
(8)
Fig. 10 (a) Phase-resolved velocity magnitude at k 5 2.5, midspan, (b) Phase-resolved turbulence intensity at k 5 2.5, midspan, (c) Phase-resolved velocity magnitude at k 5 2.5, Z=H 5 1.1, and (d) Phase-resolved turbulence intensity at k 5 2.5,
Z=H 5 1.1
blades entrain some mass flow into the core flow from the virtual
bases of the rotor defined by the blade tips. The effect is to
increase the mass flow through the wind turbine and, as a consequence, in the wake, thus modifying the magnitude of the velocity
correction. This hypothesis is confirmed by the simulation of
Dixon [5] showing a roll-up phenomenon of the upwind tip vortices toward the inner part of the rotor. These phenomena will be
further discussed and modeled throughout the unsteady flow
analysis.
The results of these experiments also raise a further question
concerning the rotor wind tunnel blockage study, i.e., the applicability of the actuator disk model for stalled conditions. Maskell
[16] showed that the blockage corrections for stalled wing and
bluff bodies are about five times the corrections for attached flow.
Conclusions
In this paper the first results of a wide experimental investigation on the aerodynamics and performance of a VAWT have been
presented.
The measurement technique and the data reduction methodology employed for the present investigation were shown to be
accurate and reliable, on the basis of thrust measurement comparison and data repeatability.
The wake analysis shows congruent behavior at different tip
speed ratios and thrust coefficients, and indicates a wake dimension comparable to the wind turbine swept area. The flow is
mostly two-dimensional almost up to the tip, where large scale
turbulent structures appear in a very confined region. This suggests that modeling the tip effects is crucial for the prediction of
VAWT performances.
Experimental results evidence that the upstream velocity corrections, commonly applied to account for blockage effects in
wind tunnels, are of doubtful validity in the case of VAWT,
leading probably to underestimated correction rates for all the
considered cases. Furthermore upstream velocity corrections
based on experimental results decrease as the thrust coefficient
increases.
The key-problem of the existence of velocity components parallel to the VAWT shaft, responsible for the entrainment of an unexpected flow rate, is discussed with the support of tip unsteady data
and of a tip vortex evolution model.
Acknowledgment
The authors thank the Company Tozzi-Nord Wind Turbines
(Italy) for partial funding the research. The authors also acknowledge Mr. Claudio De Ponti for his valuable contribution to the experimental set-up.
Nomenclature
A
B
c
Cpt
CT
D
H
_
m
N
p
Tu
T
V
V0
X, Y, Z
X
q
k
s
area (m2)
blockage ratio (B AD =AT )
blade chord
pt;0 pt;3 =0; 5 q V02 non dimensional total pressure
drop
thrust coefficient
turbine diameter (m)
half blade height (m)
mass flow (kg=s)
number of blades
static pressure (Pa)
turbulence intensity
thrust (N)
velocity (m=s)
corrected velocity (m=s)
streamwise, transversal, spanwise coordinates
streamwise non-dimensional distance from rotor axis
air density (kg=m3)
tip speed ratio (x D=2=V0)
rotor phase (time divided by the blade passing period)
Subscripts
0
1
2
3
D
aer
m
t
T
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