Effects of turbine damping on performance of an impulse turbine for wave energy conversion under different sea conditions using numerical simulation techniques

This paper presents the work carried out to predict the behavior of a 0.6 m impulse turbine with fixed guide vanes with 0.6 hub to tip (H/T) ratio under real sea conditions.This enhances the earlier work done by authors on the subject by including the effects of damping applied by the turbine. Real wave data for different wave sites were used as the input data. A typical oscillating water column (OWC) geometry has been used for this simulation. Standard numerical techniques were employed to solve the non-linear behavior of the sea waves. Considering the quasi-steady assumption, uni-directional steady flow experimental data were used to simulate the turbine characteristics under irregular unsteady flow conditions. The test rotor used for this simulation consisted of 30 blades with elliptical profile with a set of symmetric, fixed guide vanes on both up-stream and down-stream sections of the rotor, with 26 vanes each. The results show that the performance of this type of turbine depends on the level of damping applied by the turbine and the prevailing wave site conditions. The objective of this paper is to predict the effects of applied damping on the behavior of impulse turbine under irregular, unsteady conditions for wave power conversion using numerical simulation.     

The performance of Wells turbine under bi-directional airflow

This paper presents the performance of a Wells turbine operating under unsteady bi-directional airflow conditions. In this study, four kinds of blade profile were selected, NACA0020, NACA0015, CA9 and HSIM 15-262123-1576. The experiments have been carried out for two solidities under sinusoidal and irregular unsteady flow conditions based on Irish waves (Site2). It was found that for a Wells turbine operating under bi-directional air flow, the rotor geometry preferred is the blade profile of CA9 with rotor solidity σ=0.64. In addition, the efficiency curve of the Wells turbine under unidirectional flow conditions fails to present the rapid rise in the instantaneous efficiency which occurs at low flow coefficient of bi-directional flow condition. A comparative analysis between the numerical simulation results and experimental results was carried out. As a result, an excellent agreement was found between the numerical and experimental results. In addition, the effect of blade profile and rotor solidity on hysteretic characteristics of the turbine has been clarified experimentally under bi-directional airflow.     

Design and performance analysis of impulse turbine for a wave energy power plant

Wave energy is the most abundant source of renewable energy in the World. For the last two decades, engineers have been investigating and defining different methods for power extraction from wave motion. Two different turbines, namely Wells turbine and impulse turbine with guide vanes, are most commonly used around the world for wave energy power generation. The ultimate goal is to optimize the performance of the turbine under actual sea conditions. The total research effort has several strands; there is the manufacture and experimental testing of new turbines using the Wave Energy Research Team's (WERT) 0.6 m turbine test rig, the theoretical and computational analysis of the present impulse turbine using a commercial software package and finally the prediction of the performance of the turbine in a representative wave power device under real sea conditions using numerical simulation. Also, the WERT 0.6 m turbine test rig was upgraded with a data acquisition and control system to test the turbine in the laboratory under real sea conditions using the computer control system. As a result, it is proven experimentally and numerically that the turbine efficiency has been raised by 7% by reducing the hub‐to‐tip ratio from 0.7 to 0.6. Effect of tip clearance on performance of the turbine has been studied numerically and designed tip clearance ratio of 1% has been validated. From the numerical simulation studies, it is computed that the mean conversion efficiency is reduced around 5% and 4.58% due to compressible flow and damping effects inside OWC device. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A linearized model for estimating the performance of submerged resonant wave energy converters

A realistic performance analysis of oscillating water column wave energy converters (WECs) addresses to a set of non-linear differential equations that need to be integrated in time, by using a stochastic approach, under the hypothesis of random wind-generated sea waves, for all the sea states which characterize the location of the system. Non-linearities of the differential equations have several origins:

• minor and major losses of the unsteady flow of water and air;

• compressibility of air and heat exchange with the walls of the air chamber;

• non-linear characteristics of the turbine.

Under the hypothesis of random sea waves with Gaussian distribution, the authors propose an original methodology for linearizing the differential equations that describe the flow motion inside a wholly submerged WEC. Under such hypothesis, the linearized model can be used for predicting the power output by means of the calculations in the frequency domain and for control design. The developed methodology has been applied to the estimation of the performance of the new “resonant sea wave energy converters”, called REWEC, patented by Boccotti in 1998, and consisting of several caissons, characterized by a structure similar to the caissons of the traditional breakwaters and placed on the seabed, close one to each other, to form a submerged breakwater. Each caisson is connected to a vertical duct wholly beneath the sea level, where a hydraulic Wells turbine is placed.The matching between turbine and resonance characteristic of the system is carefully analysed in order to maximize the energy conversion efficiency.Some results, given for a small installation in the Mediterranean sea, confirm that the REWEC system is able to absorb a large share of the incident wave energy due to a very simple regulation system which permits the tuning on sea states with different significant heights.     

气冷涡轮级气热耦合非定常数值模拟

采用三维非定常气热耦合模拟的数值方法,对具有冷却结构的单级涡轮进行非定常流动和冷却性能进行研究,通过对非定常流场和固体温度场的分析来探讨冷气对叶片排内流场和固体温度场的影响,指出在非定常状态下,不同的动、静叶相对位置对应不同的气膜出流情况。上游周期性不稳定尾流会造成下游动叶片主流掺入气膜保护层,会造成气膜冷却效率降低。尾迹对叶片前缘的撞击引起瞬间的冲角增大,叶片气动负荷以及温度分布存在一定程度的波动,吸力面前缘受到的干扰更为明显。     

Numerical Study of Pressure Pulsation of Centrifugal Pumps with the Compressible Mode

The compressible effect of water is often neglected in the simulation of hydraulic machinery. However, based on experimental and numerical study, it is found that the compressibility of water could influence the magnitude of the pressure pulsation at some frequency in the pump. Therefore, in order to investigate the influence of water compressibility, compressible model is established by using Tait equation. The internal flow of centrifugal pump under different conditions is calculated by this model. The calculated results are compared with the incompressible results, and it is indicated that the compressibility of water has little effect on the performance parameters. But it affects the amplitude of pressure fluctuations at some discrete frequency, especially at the outlet of impeller and volute tongue where significant jet-wake and rotor/stator interaction appears respectively. Meanwhile, water compressibility makes greater influence on the flow pulsation under off-design condition. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the compressibility of working medium in the numerical simulation of unsteady flow in centrifugal pumps, especially in area with strong unsteady flow and at off-design condition.     

Experimental and numerical comparisons of hydrodynamic responses for a combined wind and wave energy converter concept under operational conditions

The spar torus combination (STC) concept is a combined wind and wave energy converter concept that is composed of a spar floating wind turbine and a torus-shaped, heaving-body wave energy converter (WEC). The WEC is installed on the spar floater. Wave power can be absorbed by a power-take off (PTO) system through the relative heave motions between spar and torus. Numerical model was established to predict dynamic responses of the STC concept ​under different sea states. To validate the numerical model, a model test of the STC concept under operational conditions was performed. A two-body physical model at a 1:50 scaling ratio was built. A series of tests were performed to assess the performance of the concept. During the tests, different PTO damping levels were applied. When large power output was achieved, air compressibility of the PTO damper in the model matters, making relevant a suitable nonlinear PTO modeling in the numerical simulations. Wind conditions were considered to model the effect of the thrust force on the rotor using a wind drag disc. Numerical and experimental results are presented and compared. Good agreements are achieved.     

Influence of Reynolds Number on the Unsteady Aerodynamics of Integrated Aggressive Intermediate Turbine Duct

The ultra-high bypass ratio turbofan engine attracts more and more attention in modern commercial engine due to advantages of high efficiency and low Specific Fuel Consumption (SFC). One of the characteristics of ultra-high bypass ratio turbofan is the intermediate turbine duct which guides the flow leaving high pressure turbine (HPT) to low pressure turbine (LPT) at a larger diameter, and this kind of design will lead to aggressive intermediate turbine duct (AITD) design concept. Thus, it is important to design the AITD without any severe loss. From the unsteady flow’s point of view, in actual operating conditions, the incoming wake generated by HPT is unsteady which will take influence on boundary layer’s transition within the ITD and LPT. In this paper, the three-dimensional unsteady aerodynamics of an AITD taken from a real engine is studied. The results of fully unsteady three-dimensional numerical simulations, performed with ANSYS-CFX (RANS simulation with transitional model), are critically evaluated against experimental data. After validation of the numerical model, the physical mechanisms inside the flow channel are analyzed, with an aim to quantify the sensitivities of different Reynolds number effect on both the ITD and LPT nozzle. Some general physical mechanisms can be recognized in the unsteady environment. It is recognized that wake characteristics plays a crucial role on the loss within both the ITD and LPT nozzle section, determining both time-averaged and time-resolved characteristics of the flow field. Meanwhile, particular attention needs to be paid to the unsteady effect on the boundary layer of LPT nozzle’s suction side surface.     

Numerical modelling in wave energy conversion systems

This paper deals with a numerical modelling devoted to predict the flow characteristics in the components of an oscillating water column (OWC) system used for the wave energy capture. In the present paper, the flow behaviour is modelled by using the FLUENT code. Two numerical flow models have been elaborated and tested independently in the geometries of an air chamber and a turbine, which is chosen of a radial impulse type. The flow is assumed to be three-dimensional (3D), viscous, turbulent and unsteady. The FLUENT code is used with a solver of the coupled conservation equations of mass, momentum and energy, with an implicit time scheme and with the adoption of the dynamic mesh and the sliding mesh techniques in areas of moving surfaces. Turbulence is modelled with the k–ε model. The obtained results indicate that the developed models are well suitable to analyse the air flows both in the air chamber and in the turbine. The performances associated with the energy transfer processes have been well predicted. For the turbine, the numerical results of pressure and torque were compared to the experimental ones. Good agreements between these results have been observed.     

非定常流下Wells涡轮机准静态分析方法研究

以Wells涡轮机为研究对象,通过求解RANS方程和Spalart-Allmaras模型实现数值仿真模拟,研究非定常流下Wells涡轮机的准静态分析方法。通过网格独立性分析和已有文献对比,验证计算模型的准确性。计算并对比定常流、振荡流和往复流工况中Wells涡轮的性能,结果显示非定常流下Wells涡轮机会发生迟滞现象。通过振荡流和往复流的流动频率影响分析,说明非定常流下Wells涡轮机准静态分析方法的可行性和局限性:准静态分析对于较低流动频率的非定常流工况准确性较高,但对于较高流动频率误差较大。     

Study of turbine with self-pitch-controlled blades for wave energy conversion

The objective of this paper is to clarify the performance of a Wells air turbine using self-pitch-controlled blades under the real sea conditions and to obtain the useful information about the optimum setting angle. Experimental investigations were performed by model testing of a rotor with fixed blades under steady flow conditions. Then, the running and starting characteristics under sinusoidally oscillating flow conditions were obtained by a computer simulation using a quasi-steady analysis. As a result, the performances of the air turbine using self-pitch-controlled blades under the real sea conditions were clarified, and a suitable choice of design factor has been suggested for the setting angle of the rotor.     

Performance of an impulse turbine with fixed guide vanes for wave power conversion

A simple fixed geometry impulse turbine has been studied as a suitable power converter in Oscillating Water Column based wave power plants. Comparison with the Wells turbine, which is the commonly used self-rectifying turbine in such applications, shows it to be superior in performance under irregular flow conditions. Optimum guide vane angle for maximum efficiency has been arrived at based on the five angles tested.     

气冷涡轮转子变叶尖间距性能试验及数值研究

为量化评估工程应用的气冷低压涡轮带冠转子叶片的叶尖间距大小对涡轮气动性能的影响,综合现有涡轮部件试验能力,以单级轴流低压涡轮性能试验件为基础,通过控制圆度的机加方式磨削转子外环内壁以实现叶尖间距的变化,采用控制冷气流量比的方法,开展5次不同叶尖间距大小的涡轮级性能试验,得到多工况下涡轮效率、换算流量和换算功率等特性参数。采用加载冷气及考虑转子叶冠结构的数值模型进行三维仿真计算,并与试验结果对比分析。研究表明：叶尖间距由0.6 mm增加至3.2 mm,低压涡轮流通能力增大1%,叶冠泄漏量增多3.4%,但做功能力下降2.3%。涡轮效率变化与叶尖间距大小近似呈线性关系,叶尖间距每增加1 mm,效率约降低0.7%,同时,叶尖间距的增加导致了叶冠腔的旋涡结构、气流掺混及主流入侵强度逐渐增大,引起动叶总压损失的增大,叶尖间距增加至3.2 mm导致叶间位置总压损失由0.88增至2.3。     

Computed effect of guide vane shape on performance of impulse turbine for wave energy conversion

This paper deals with the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis on effect of guide vane shape on performance of impulse turbine for wave energy conversion. Initially, experiments have been conducted on the impulse turbine to validate the present CFD method and to analyse the aerodynamics in rotor and guide vanes, which demonstrates the necessity to improve the guide vanes shape. The results showed that the downstream guide vanes make considerable total pressure drop leads low performance of the turbine and hence three‐dimensional (3‐D) inlet and downstream guide vanes have been designed based on well‐known vortex theory to improve the efficiency of the turbine. In order to prove the improvement in efficiency due to 3‐D guide vanes, CFD analysis has been made on impulse turbine with 2‐D and 3‐D guide vanes for various flow coefficients. As a result, it is seen that the present CFD model can predict the experimental values with reasonable accuracy. Also, it is showed from the numerical results that the efficiency of the turbine can be improved by average of 4.5 percentage points by incorporating 3‐D guide vanes instead of 2‐D guide vanes. The physical reason for improvement in efficiency of the turbine due to 3‐D guide vanes has been explained with the CFD flow insight pictures. As the turbine operates in fluctuating flow conditions, the performance of the turbine with 2‐D and 3‐D guide vanes have been calculated numerically using quasi‐steady analysis. Furthermore, the performance of the turbine has been predicted for one year based on Irish wave climate to show the feasibility of using 3‐D guide vanes in actual sea wave conditions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

非定常脉冲爆震来流下涡轮气动特征仿真研究

脉冲爆震涡轮发动机是未来涡轮发动机的一种有潜力的发展方向。为了厘清具有强非定常性的脉冲爆震来流下涡轮的气动性能及流动特征,为脉冲爆震涡轮发动机涡轮的设计提供技术支撑,采用非定常进口总压与总温边界条件对某单级燃气涡轮开展了瞬态数值仿真计算分析。研究结果表明：由于进口来流的强非定常性,涡轮内部流动在爆震周期的前段时间并未完全建立起流动平衡,故进出口的流量不守恒;焓降功率与扭矩功率、焓降效率与扭矩效率不相等;在一个爆震周期内,动叶进口气流攻角的变化幅度达到40°,出口绝对气流角的变化幅度达到50°。在一个爆震周期中,只有约1/4的时间段涡轮的气动状态接近设计点,故一个爆震周期中涡轮的综合功率较低。     

Experimental and theoretical studies on air humidification by a water spray at elevated pressure

Humidification of compressed air is important for humid air turbine cycle. In this paper, theoretical and experimental investigations are carried out to analyze and predict the humidification process in spray tower.For predicting the heat and mass transfer in the water droplet–air two-phase flow, a one-dimensional numerical model simulating the conservation of heat and mass of water and humid air was developed. The model considers the effect of droplet motion on the heat and mass transfer. Experimental data were obtained on a pressurized model spray tower at different pressures and water/air ratios, which had been adopted to validate the numerical model. Droplet diameter of the spray was measured and these data were used in the model. Predictions of outlet conditions of air and water for giving input conditions agree well with experimental data, which produces a maximal error of 7.3%. On the basis of the model, distributions of droplet velocity and volumetric heat transfer coefficient over height of the tower are predicted. The effect of droplet diameter on the characteristic performance of spray humidifier is also analyzed in the simulation.     

Flow Analysis of 30 kW Gate Turbine Using Permanent Magnetic Generator

ABSTRACT

The unsteady behavior of fluid flow such as pressure variation and fluctuation in a hydraulic turbine may lead to operational instability. Such dynamic behaviors effect the performance of rotating machines, which may reduce life span and even have impact on the overall safety of the turbine. The objectives of this study are to analyze the flow characteristics and to undertake a transient Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) analysis of a model turbine to investigate the stability of operational conditions. Flow analysis was conducted by changing the number of revolutions to 100, 200, 300, and 350 rpm. Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations were discretized by the finite volume method and a two equations shear stress transport model was used to account for the three dimensionality of unsteady flows. FFT analysis was performed by monitoring dynamic pressure fluctuation on the rotor and casing. Results revealed that as the number of revolutions increased, the flow gradually became more stable as it approached the rated rotation speed of 350 rpm. Also an experiment was conducted to verify the numerical performance and a good tendency of the results was achieved.     

Computed effects of tip clearance on performance of impulse turbine for wave energy conversion

This paper depicts numerical analysis on Impulse turbine with fixed guide vanes for wave energy conversion. From the previous investigations, it is found that one of the reasons for the mismatch between computed and experimental data is due to neglecting tip clearance ef fect. Hence, a 3-D model with tip clearance has been generated to predict the internal flow and performance of the turbine. As a result, it is found that the comparison between computed and experimental data is good, quantitatively and qualitatively. Computation has been carried out for various tip clearances to understand the physics of tip leakage flow and effect of tip clearance on performance of such unconventional turbine. It is predicted that the turbine with 0.25% tip clearance performs almost similar to the case of without tip clearance for the entire flow coefficients. The designed value of 1% tip clearance has been validated numerically and computed that the efficiency of the turbine has been reduced around 4%, due to tip clearance flow at higher flow coefficients.     

Numerical investigation on the effect of blade sweep on the performance of Wells turbine

A Wells turbine is one of the simplest and promising self-rectifying air turbines which is basic to the needs of the near future and likely to be economically viable. With the recent development in computer hardware and software, it has now become practicable to conduct a reasonable computation of three-dimensional turbulent flows through complex geometry. To investigate the effect of blade sweep on the performance of the Wells turbine, the numerical investigation was carried out under steady flow condition with a fully 3-D Navier–Stokes code for two kinds of blades, NACA0020 and CA9. As a result, it was found that the performance of the Wells turbine is considerably influenced by the blade sweep. The optimum blade sweep ratio (f=0.35) for the NACA0020 was found. This value is just the same as one obtained experimentally by the authors in the past. It was also found that the overall turbine performance for the NACA0020 is better than that for the CA9. It was shown that the numerical method is able quite well to predict the effect of blade sweep of the Wells turbine. The detailed flow patterns for several blade sweeps were also shown and discussed in this paper.     

Effect of Guide Vanes on the Performance of a Variable Chord Self—Rectifying Air Turbine

INTRODUCTIONWiththeconventionalenergyresourceslikelytogetexhaustedinafewdecades,theinexhaustiblesourcesofenergyhavetotaketheirplace.Alternateenergyfromtheoceanisattractingtheattelltionoftheresearchersinrecentyearsduetoitsperennialavailabilityandminimumhealthhazards.Ofthemanypossibleformsofoceanenergy,waveenergyispromising.Waveenergyisanalternateformenergy,whichispollutantfreeandinnearfutureitislikelytobeeconomicallyviable.Countrieswhicharesurroundedbyseaandpossessremotelysituatedislandcom…