A Parametric Study on the Thermodynamic Characteristics of DBD Plasma Actuation and Its Potential for Wind Turbine Icing Mitigation

In this paper, a dynamic stall control scheme for vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) based on pulsed dielectric-barrier-discharge (DBD) plasma actuation is proposed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The trend of the wind turbine power coefficient with the tip speed ratio is verified, and the numerical simulation can describe the typical dynamic stall process of the H-type VAWT. The tangential force coefficient and vorticity contours of the blade are compared, and the regular pattern of the VAWT dynamic stall under different tip speed ratios is obtained. Based on the understanding the dynamic stall phenomenon in flow field, the effect of the azimuth of the plasma actuation on the VAWT power is studied. The results show that the azimuth interval of the dynamic stall is approximately 60° or 80° by the different tip speed ratio. The pulsed plasma actuation can suppress dynamic stall. The actuation is optimally applied for the azimuthal position of 60° to 120°.

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Metamodeling-based parametric optimization of DBD plasma actuation to suppress flow separation over a wind turbine airfoil model

Acta Mechanica Sinica ◽

10.1007/s10409-020-00951-6 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 36 (2) ◽

pp. 260-274 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Ramsankar Veerakumar ◽

Vishal Raul ◽

Yang Liu ◽

Xiaodong Wang ◽

Leifur Leifsson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wind Turbine ◽

Flow Separation ◽

Parametric Optimization ◽

Dbd Plasma ◽

Plasma Actuation ◽

Wind Turbine Airfoil

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Experimental investigation of the effect of active flow control on the wake of a wind turbine blade

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers Part C Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science ◽

10.1177/09544062211008932 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 095440622110089

Author(s):

GholamHossein Maleki ◽

Ali Reza Davari ◽

Mohammad Reza Soltani

Keyword(s):

Experimental Investigation ◽

Wind Turbine ◽

Turbine Blade ◽

Active Flow Control ◽

Leading Edge ◽

Wind Turbine Blade ◽

Plasma Actuators ◽

Plasma Actuation ◽

Surface Pressure Distribution ◽

Stall Angle

An extensive experimental investigation was conducted to study the effects of Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD), on the flow field of an airfoil at low Reynolds number. The DBD was mounted near the leading edge of a section of a wind turbine blade. It is believed that DBD can postpone the separation point on the airfoil by injecting momentum to the flow. The effects of steady actuations on the velocity profiles in the wake region have been investigated. The tests were performed at α = 4 to 36 degrees i.e. from low to deep stall angles of attack regions. Both surface pressure distribution and wake profile show remarkable improvement at high angles of attack, beyond the static stall angle of the airfoil when the plasma actuation was implemented. The drag calculated from the wake momentum deficit has further shown the favorable role of the plasma actuators to control the flow over the airfoil at incidences beyond the static stall angle of attack of this airfoil. The results demonstrated that DBD has been able to postpone the stall onset significantly. It has been observed that the best performance for the plasma actuation for this airfoil is in the deep stall angles of attack range. However, below and near the static stall angles of attack, plasma augmentation was pointed out to have a negligible improvement in the aerodynamic behavior.

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Plasma actuation effect on a NACA 4412 airfoil

Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology ◽

10.1108/aeat-04-2021-0101 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Burak Karadag ◽

Cem Kolbakir ◽

Ahmet Selim Durna

Keyword(s):

Reynolds Number ◽

Flow Separation ◽

Open Loop ◽

Electrode Configuration ◽

Small Scale ◽

Low Velocity ◽

Dbd Plasma ◽

Content Type ◽

Plasma Actuation ◽

Electric Wind

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the effects of a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuator (PA) qualitatively on aerodynamic characteristics of a 3 D-printed NACA 4412 airfoil model. Design/methodology/approach Airflow visualization study was performed at a Reynolds number of 35,000 in a small-scale open-loop wind tunnel. The effect of plasma actuation on flow separation was compared for the DBD PA with four different electrode configurations at 10°, 20° and 30° angles of attack. Findings Plasma activation may delay the onset of flow separation up to 6° and decreases the boundary layer thickness. The effects of plasma diminish as the angle of attack increases. Streamwise electrode configuration, in which electric wind is produced in a direction perpendicular to the freestream, is more effective in the reattachment of the airflow compared to the spanwise electrode configuration, in which the electric wind and the free stream are in the same direction. Practical implications The Reynolds number is much smaller than that in cruise aircraft conditions; however, the results are promising for low-velocity subsonic airflows such as improving control capabilities of unmanned aerial vehicles. Originality/value Superior efficacy of spanwise-generated electric wind over streamwise-generated one is demonstrated at a very low Reynolds number. The results in the plasma aerodynamics literature can be reproduced using ultra-low-cost off-the-shelf components. This is important because high voltage power amplifiers that are frequently encountered in the literature may be prohibitively expensive especially for resource-limited university aerodynamics laboratories.

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Research on the Peristaltic Flow Acceleration Performance of Asynchronous and Duty Cycle Pulsed DBD Plasma Actuation

Plasma Science and Technology ◽

10.1088/1009-0630/16/9/10 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 16 (9) ◽

pp. 861-866

Author(s):

Feng Li ◽

Chao Gao ◽

Borui Zheng ◽

Yushuai Wang

Keyword(s):

Duty Cycle ◽

Peristaltic Flow ◽

Dbd Plasma ◽

Flow Acceleration ◽

Plasma Actuation

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Inboard/outboard plasma actuation on a vertical-axis wind turbine

Renewable Energy ◽

10.1016/j.renene.2015.05.020 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 83 ◽

pp. 1147-1156 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

David Greenblatt ◽

Ronen Lautman

Keyword(s):

Wind Turbine ◽

Vertical Axis ◽

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine ◽

Plasma Actuation

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Parametric Study on a Performance of a Small Counter-Rotating Wind Turbine

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13153880 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (15) ◽

pp. 3880

Author(s):

Michał Pacholczyk ◽

Dariusz Karkosiński

Keyword(s):

Wind Turbine ◽

Parametric Study ◽

Rotor Blades ◽

Speed Ratio ◽

Outer Diameter ◽

Axial Distance ◽

Computational Domain ◽

Dynamic Interactions ◽

Computational Fluids Dynamics ◽

Large Eddy

A small Counter-Rotating Wind Turbine (CRWT) has been proposed and its performance has been investigated numerically. Results of a parametric study have been presented in this paper. As parameters, the axial distance between rotors and a tip speed ratio of each rotor have been selected. Performance parameters have been compared with reference to a Single Rotor Wind Turbine (SRWT). Simulations were carried out with Computational Fluids Dynamics (CFD) solver and a Large Eddy Scale approach to model turbulences. An Actuator Line Model has been chosen to represent rotors in the computational domain. Summing up the results of simulation tests, it can be stated that when constructing a CRWT turbine, rotors should be placed at a distance of at least 0.5 D (where D is rotor outer diameter) or more. One can then expect a noticeable power increase compared to a single rotor turbine. Placing the second rotor closer than 0.5 D guarantees a significant increase in power, but in such configurations, dynamic interactions between the rotors are visible, resulting in fluctuations in torque and power. Dynamic interactions between rotor blades above 0.5 D are invisible.

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