Winglet optimization for a model‐scale wind turbine

A winglet optimization method is developed and tested for a model‐scale wind turbine. The best‐performing winglet shape is obtained by constructing a Kriging surrogate model, which is refined using an infill criterion based on expected improvement. The turbine performance is simulated by solving the incompressible Navier‐Stokes equations, and the turbulent flow is predicted using the Spalart‐Allmaras turbulence model. To validate the simulated performance, experiments are performed in the Norwegian University of Science and Technology wind tunnel. According to the simulations, the optimized winglet increases the turbine power and thrust by 7.8% and 6.3%, respectively. The wind tunnel experiments show that the turbine power increases by 8.9%, while the thrust increases by 7.4%. When introducing more turbulence in the wind tunnel to reduce laminar separation, the turbine power and thrust due to the winglet increases by 10.3% and 14.9%, respectively.     

Shape optimization of wind turbine blades

This paper presents a design tool for optimizing wind turbine blades. The design model is based on an aerodynamic/aero‐elastic code that includes the structural dynamics of the blades and the Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory. To model the main aero‐elastic behaviour of a real wind turbine, the code employs 11 basic degrees of freedom corresponding to 11 elastic structural equations. In the BEM theory, a refined tip loss correction model is used. The objective of the optimization model is to minimize the cost of energy which is calculated from the annual energy production and the cost of the rotor. The design variables used in the current study are the blade shape parameters, including chord, twist and relative thickness. To validate the implementation of the aerodynamic/aero‐elastic model, the computed aerodynamic results are compared to experimental data for the experimental rotor used in the European Commision‐sponsored project Model Experiments in Controlled Conditions, (MEXICO) and the computed aero‐elastic results are examined against the FLEX code for flow past the Tjæreborg 2 MW rotor. To illustrate the optimization technique, three wind turbine rotors of different sizes (the MEXICO 25 kW experimental rotor, the Tjæreborg 2 MW rotor and the NREL 5 MW virtual rotor) are applied. The results show that the optimization model can reduce the cost of energy of the original rotors, especially for the investigated 2 MW and 5 MW rotors. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aeroelastic multidisciplinary design optimization of a swept wind turbine blade

Mitigating loads on a wind turbine rotor can reduce the cost of energy. Sweeping blades produces a structural coupling between flapwise bending and torsion, which can be used for load alleviation purposes. A multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) problem is formulated including the blade sweep as a design variable. A multifidelity approach is used to confront the crucial effects of structural coupling on the estimation of the loads. During the MDO, ultimate and damage equivalent loads are estimated using steady‐state and frequency‐domain–based models, respectively. The final designs are verified against time‐domain full design load basis aeroelastic simulations to ensure that they comply with the constraints. A 10‐MW wind turbine blade is optimized by minimizing a cost function that includes mass and blade root flapwise fatigue loading. The design space is subjected to constraints that represent all the necessary requirements for standard design of wind turbines. Simultaneous aerodynamic and structural optimization is performed with and without sweep as a design variable. When sweep is included in the MDO process, further minimization of the cost function can be obtained. To show this achievement, a set of optimized straight blade designs is compared to a set of optimized swept blade designs. Relative to the respective optimized straight designs, the blade mass of the swept blades is reduced of an extra 2% to 3% and the blade root flapwise fatigue damage equivalent load by a further 8%.     

Integrated free‐form method for aerostructural optimization of wind turbine blades

A typical approach to optimize wind turbine blades separates the airfoil shape design from the blade planform design. This approach is sequential, where the airfoils along the blade span are preselected or optimized and then held constant during the blade planform optimization. In contrast, integrated blade design optimizes the airfoils and the blade planform concurrently and thereby has the potential to reduce cost of energy (COE) more than sequential design. Nevertheless, sequential design is commonly performed because of the ease of precomputation, or the ability to compute the airfoil analyses prior to the blade optimization. This research compares 2 integrated blade design approaches. The precomputational method combines precomputation with the ability to change the airfoil shapes in limited ways during the optimization. The free‐form method allows for a complete range of airfoil shapes, but without precomputation. The airfoils are analyzed with a panel method (XFOIL) and a Reynolds‐averaged Navier‐Stokes computational fluid dynamics method (RANS CFD). Optimizing the NREL 5‐MW reference turbine showed COE reductions of 2.0%, 4.2%, and 4.7% when using XFOIL and 2.7%, 6.0%, and 6.7% when using RANS CFD for the sequential, precomputational, and free‐form methods, respectively. The precomputational method captures most of the benefits of integrated design for minimal additional computational cost and complexity, but the free‐form method provides modest additional benefits if the extra effort is made in computational cost and development time.     

Airfoil effects on efficiency of 2 MW horizontal axis wind turbine blades

Optimization of airfoil characteristics such as lift and drag is essential for high efficiency wind turbine blade design. In this research, effects of airfoil lift and drag on blade power coefficients were investigated by using of wind turbine blade design software, PROPID. Firstly, a wind turbine blade of 2MW class was designed with DU-serics airfoils in the inner part and with aNACA series airfoil as a main airfoil in the outer part. Lift distribution was set to have near L/D maximum at each span station. Then, lift and drag curves were modified to observe effect of L/D variation. Drag and lift change with constant L/D on blade power coefficient was also studied for sensitivity investigation. Each case was optimized with Newtonian iteration incorporated in PROPID. High design lift coefficient results in less chord length and twist angle to maintain same aerodynamic load level. And, power coefficient wasn＇t improved much with high L/D. During the process, optimal inputs such as lift distribution, design lift and induction factors were suggested. As results, it was found that L/D maximization was important to obtain high efficiency. For the L/D maximization, lift maximization was important to minimize structural weight, but decreasing drag didn＇t affect the blade shape.     

Large‐eddy simulations with extremum‐seeking control for individual wind turbine power optimization

Large‐eddy simulations of the flow past an array of three aligned turbines have been performed. The study is focused on below rated (Region 2) wind speeds. The turbines are controlled through the generator torque gain, as usually done in Region 2. Two operating strategies are considered: (i) preset individual optimum torque gain based on a model for the power coefficient (baseline case) and (ii) real‐time optimization of torque gain for maximizing each individual turbine power capture during operation. The real‐time optimization is carried out through a model‐free approach, namely, extremum‐seeking control. It is shown that ESC is capable of increasing the power production of the array by 6.5% relative to the baseline case. The extremum‐seeking control reduces the torque gain of the downstream turbines, thus increasing the angular speed of the blades. This results in improved aerodynamics near the tip of the blade that is the portion contributing mostly to the torque and power. In addition, an increase in angular speed leads to a larger entrainment in the wake, which also contributes to provide additional available power downstream. It is also shown that the tip speed ratio may not be a reliable performance indicator when the turbines are in waked conditions. This may be a concern when using optimal parameter settings, determined from isolated turbine models, in applications with waked turbines. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Review of morphing concepts and materials for wind turbine blade applications

With increasing size of wind turbines, new approaches to load control are required to reduce the stresses in blades. Experimental and numerical studies in the fields of helicopter and wind turbine blade research have shown the potential of shape morphing in reducing blade loads. However, because of the large size of modern wind turbine blades, more similarities can be found with wing morphing research than with helicopter blades. Morphing technologies are currently receiving significant interest from the wind turbine community because of their potential high aerodynamic efficiency, simple construction and low weight. However, for actuator forces to be kept low, a compliant structure is needed. This is in apparent contradiction to the requirement for the blade to be load carrying and stiff. This highlights the key challenge for morphing structures in replacing the stiff and strong design of current blades with more compliant structures. Although not comprehensive, this review gives a concise list of the most relevant concepts for morphing structures and materials that achieve compliant shape adaptation for wind turbine blades.Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A spinner‐integrated wind lidar for enhanced wind turbine control

A field test with a continuous wave wind lidar (ZephIR) installed in the rotating spinner of a wind turbine for unimpeded preview measurements of the upwind approaching wind conditions is described. The experimental setup with the wind lidar on the tip of the rotating spinner of a large 80 m rotor diameter, 59 m hub height 2.3 MW wind turbine (Vestas NM80), located at Tjæreborg Enge in western Denmark is presented. Preview wind data at two selected upwind measurement distances, acquired during two measurement periods of different wind speed and atmospheric stability conditions, are analyzed. The lidar‐measured speed, shear and direction of the wind field previewed in front of the turbine are compared with reference measurements from an adjacent met mast and also with the speed and direction measurements on top of the nacelle behind the rotor plane used by the wind turbine itself. Yaw alignment of the wind turbine based on the spinner lidar measurements is compared with wind direction measurements from both the nearby reference met mast and the turbine's own yaw alignment wind vane. Furthermore, the ability to detect vertical wind shear and vertical direction veer in the inflow, through the analysis of the spinner lidar data, is investigated. Finally, the potential for enhancing turbine control and performance based on wind lidar preview measurements in combination with feed‐forward enabled turbine controllers is discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ram‐air kite airfoil and reinforcements optimization for airborne wind energy applications

We present a multidisciplinary design optimization method for the profile and structural reinforcement layout of a ram‐air kite rib. The aim is to minimize the structural elastic energy and to maximize the traction power of a ram‐air kite used for airborne wind energy generation. Because of the large deformations occurring during flight, a fluid‐structure interaction (FSI) routine is included in the optimization, which determines the actual deformed rib geometry and its corresponding aerodynamic characteristics. A qualitative comparison between FSI inclusion and exclusion in the optimization is given. Discrepancies in airfoil profile and structural layout are observed.     

Fluid dynamics wind turbine design: Critical analysis,optimization and application of BEM theory

A mathematical model for fluid dynamics wind turbine design (based on the blade element momentum theory) has been implemented and improved. The mathematical simulations have been compared with experimental data found in the literature. The simulation was performed for the whole wind velocity range, in on-design and off-design conditions. Several simulations were performed in order to maximize the agreement between the simulated and experimental data. Particular attention was paid to the tangential induction factor and to the models for the representation of the lift and drag coefficients. A comparison was also made between the mathematical model presented in the paper and those considered in the literature. Finally, the model was implemented to optimize rotor performance, especially at low wind velocities, which is crucial to produce power during the machine start-up phase.     

Dependence of optimal wind turbine spacing on wind farm length

Recent large eddy simulations have led to improved parameterizations of the effective roughness height of wind farms. This effective roughness height can be used to predict the wind velocity at hub‐height as function of the geometric mean of the spanwise and streamwise turbine spacings and the turbine loading factors. Recently, Meyers and Meneveau used these parameterizations to make predictions for the optimal wind turbine spacing in infinitely large wind farms. They found that for a realistic cost ratio between the turbines and the used land surface, the optimal turbine spacing may be considerably larger than that used in conventional wind farms. Here, we extend this analysis by taking the length of the wind farm, i.e. the number of rows in the downstream direction into account and show that the optimal turbine spacing strongly depends on the wind farm length. For small to moderately sized wind farms, the model predictions are consistent with spacings found in operational wind farms. For much larger wind farms, the extended optimal spacing found for infinite wind farms is confirmed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Grey Predictor reference model for assisting particle swarm optimization for wind turbine control

This paper proposes an approach of forming the average performance by Grey Modeling, and use an average performance as reference model for performing evolutionary computation with error type control performance index. The idea of the approach is to construct the reference model based on the performance of unknown systems when users apply evolutionary computation to fine-tune the control systems with error type performance index. We apply this approach to particle swarm optimization for searching the optimal gains of baseline PI controller of wind turbines operating at the certain set point in Region 3. In the numerical simulation part, the corresponding results demonstrate the effectiveness of Grey Modeling.     

Technoeconomic study for the optimization of turbine size and wind farm layouts

A technoeconomic analysis and optimization of wind turbine size and layout are performed using WAsP software. A case study of a 100‐MW wind farm located in Egypt is considered. Wind atlas for Egypt was used as the input data of the WAsP software. Two turbine models of powers 52 and 80 MW are considered for this project. The wind turbine size and distributions are selected based on the technoeconomic optimization, namely minimum wake effect, maximum annual energy production (AEP) rate, optimum cash flow, and payback period. The future worth method is adopted in economic comparison between the two alternatives, and the cash flow diagram provided the payback period and future worth after the lifetime of the plant. The results showed that (1) the AEP dramatically decreases for a wind farm area less than 15 km²; (2) the turbine spacing, spacing‐to‐diameter ratio, and the setback distances decrease and the wind turbine density and wake losses increase with decreasing the wind turbines size; (3) the total net AEP using G52 is lower than that of using G80 by about 16%; (4) the technoeconomic analysis recommended using G80 as it has higher profit than those of G52 by about $20 million.     

Nacelle anemometer measurement‐based extremum‐seeking wind turbine region‐2 control for improved convergence in fluctuating wind

For region‐2 operation of wind turbines in practice, the optimal torque gain can deviate from the nominal value because of the variations in turbine and wind conditions. The extremum‐seeking control (ESC) has shown its potential as a model‐free region‐2 control solution in some recent work; however, the ESC with rotor power feedback suffers from undesirable convergence under fluctuating wind. In this paper, we propose to use an estimated power coefficient as the objective function for the torque‐gain ESC, where the hub‐height free‐stream wind speed (FSWS) is estimated with the nacelle anemometer measurement on the basis of the so‐called nacelle transfer function (NTF) between the nacelle anemometer and met‐tower measurement. A sensitivity analysis is performed to quantify the impact of the wind speed estimation error on the estimation of power coefficient. An ESC integrated interregion switching scheme is proposed to avoid the load increase. Simulation results show that, compared with the power feedback‐based ESC, the proposed method can greatly improve the convergence rate of ESC under fluctuating wind, even under relatively large wind speed estimation error. Evaluation for the fatigue loads of wind turbine shows that the proposed control strategy induces mild increase of the wind turbine load.     

Application and validation of incrementally complex models for wind turbine aerodynamics,isolated wind turbine in uniform inflow conditions

A comparison of several incrementally complex methods for predicting wind turbine performance, aeroelastic behavior, and wakes is provided. Depending on a wind farm's design, wake interference can cause large power losses and increased turbulence levels within the farm. The goal is to employ modeling methods to reach an improved understanding of wake effects and to use this information to better optimize the layout of new wind farms. A critical decision faced by modelers is the fidelity of the model that is selected to perform simulations. The choice of model fidelity can affect the accuracy, but will also greatly impact the computational time and resource requirements for simulations. To help address this critical question, three modeling methods of varying fidelity have been developed side by side and are compared in this article. The models from low to high complexity are as follows: a blade element‐based method with a free‐vortex wake, an actuator disc‐based method, and a full rotor‐based method. Fluid/structure interfaces are developed for the aerodynamic modeling approaches that allow modeling of discrete blades and are then coupled with a multibody structural dynamics solver in order to perform an aeroelastic analysis. Similar methods have individually been tested by researchers, but we suggest that by developing a suite of models, they can be cross‐compared to grasp the subtleties of each method. The modeling methods are applied to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory Phase VI rotor to predict the turbine aerodynamic and structural loads and then also the wind velocities in the wake. The full rotor method provides the most accurate predictions at the turbine and the use of adaptive mesh refinement to capture the wake to 20 radii downstream is proven particularly successful. Though the full rotor method is unmatched by the lower fidelity methods in stalled conditions and detailed prediction of the downstream wake, there are other less complex conditions where these methods perform as accurately as the full rotor method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Airfoil optimisation for vertical‐axis wind turbines with variable pitch

To advance the design of a multimegawatt vertical‐axis wind turbine (VAWT), application‐specific airfoils need to be developed. In this research, airfoils are tailored for a VAWT with variable pitch. A genetic algorithm is used to optimise the airfoil shape considering a balance between the aerodynamic and structural performance of airfoils. At rotor scale, the aerodynamic objective aims to create the required optimal loading while minimising losses. The structural objective focusses on maximising the bending stiffness. Three airfoils from the Pareto front are selected and analysed using the actuator cylinder model and a prescribed‐wake vortex code. The optimal pitch schedule is determined, and the loadings and power performance are studied for different tip‐speed ratios and solidities. The comparison of the optimised airfoils with similar airfoils from the first generation shows a significant improvement in performance, and this proves the necessity to properly select the airfoil shape.     

Isogeometric based framework for aeroelastic wind turbine blade analysis

A framework based on isogeometric analysis is presented for parametrizing a wind turbine rotor blade and evaluating its response. The framework consists of a multi‐fidelity approach for wind turbine rotor analysis. The aeroelastic loads are determined using a low‐fidelity model. The model is based on isogeometric approach to model both the structural and aerodynamic properties. The structural deformations are solved using an isogeometric formulation of geometrically exact 3D beam theory. The aerodynamic loads are calculated using a standard Blade Element Momentum(BEM) theory. Moreover, the aerodynamic loads calculated using BEM theory are modified to account for the change in the blade shape due to blade deformation. The aeroelastic loads are applied in finite element solver Nastran, and both the stress response and buckling response are extracted. Furthermore, the capabilities of Nastran are extended such that design dependent loads can be applied, resulting in correct aeroelastic sensitivities of Nastran responses, making this framework suitable for optimization. The framework is verified against results from the commercial codes FAST and GH Bladed, using the NREL 61.5m rotor blade as a baseline for comparison, showing good agreement. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Turbulence influence on wind energy extraction for a medium size vertical axis wind turbine

The relation between power performance and turbulence intensity for a VAWT H‐rotor is studied using logged data from a 14 month (discontinuous) period with the H‐rotor operating in wind speeds up to 9 m/s. The turbine, designed originally for a nominal power of 200 kW, operated during this period mostly in a restricted mode due to mechanical concerns, reaching power levels up to about 80 kW. Two different approaches are used for presenting results, one that can be compared to power curves consistent with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standard and one that allows isolating the effect of turbulence from the cubic variation of power with wind speed. Accounting for this effect, the turbine still shows slightly higher efficiency at higher turbulence, proposing that the H‐rotor is well suited for wind sites with turbulent winds. The operational data are also used to create a C_p(λ) curve, showing slightly lower C_p compared with a curve simulated by a double multiple streamtube model. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Horizontal axis wind turbine systems: optimization using genetic algorithms

A method for the optimization of a grid‐connected wind turbine system is presented. The behaviour of the system components is coupled in a non‐linear way, and optimization must take into account technical and economical aspects of the complete system design. The annual electrical energy cost is estimated using a cost model for the wind turbine rotor, nacelle and tower and an energy output model based on the performance envelopes of the power coefficient of the rotor, C_P, on the Weibull parameters k and c and on the power law coefficient α of the wind profile. In this study the site is defined with these three parameters and the extreme wind speed V_max. The model parameters vary within a range of possible values. Other elements of the project (foundation, grid connection, financing cost, etc.) are taken into account through coefficients. The optimal values of the parameters are determined using genetic algorithms, which appear to be efficient for such a problem. These optimal values were found to be very different for a Mediterranean site and a northern European site using our numerical model. Optimal wind turbines at the Mediterranean sites considered in this article have an excellent profitability compared with reference northern European wind turbines. Most of the existing wind turbines appear to be well designed for northern European sites but not for Mediterranean sites. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aerodynamic design optimization of wind turbine rotors under geometric uncertainty

Presented is a robust optimization strategy for the aerodynamic design of horizontal axis wind turbine rotors including the variability of the annual energy production because of the uncertainty of the blade geometry caused by manufacturing and assembly errors. The energy production of a rotor designed with the proposed robust optimization approach features lower sensitivity to stochastic geometry errors with respect to that of a rotor designed with the conventional deterministic optimization approach that ignores these errors. The geometry uncertainty is represented by normal distributions of the blade pitch angle, and the twist angle and chord of the airfoils. The aerodynamic module is a blade‐element momentum theory code. Both Monte Carlo sampling and the univariate reduced quadrature technique, a novel deterministic uncertainty analysis method, are used for uncertainty propagation. The performance of the two approaches is assessed in terms of accuracy and computational speed. A two‐stage multi‐objective evolution‐based optimization strategy is used. Results highlight that, for the considered turbine type, the sensitivity of the annual energy production to rotor geometry errors can be reduced by reducing the rotational speed and increasing the blade loading. The primary objective of the paper is to highlight how to incorporate an efficient and accurate uncertainty propagation strategy in wind turbine design. The formulation of the considered design problem does not include all the engineering constraints adopted in real turbine design, but the proposed probabilistic design strategy is fairly independent of the problem definition and can be easily extended to turbine design systems of any complexity. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.