Design and optimization of airfoil profiles for vertical wind turbines
Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Master's Thesis
Master's Thesis
Program
Applied mechanics (MPAME), MSc
Publicerad
2023
Författare
Stenmark, Johanna
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
Offshore floating vertical axis wind turbines could be a great renewable energy source
to meet the needs for renewable energy since they can be placed in deep waters and
unlock new potential areas for wind farms. The specific operating conditions of
a vertical axis wind turbine blade call for a purposely designed airfoil profile to
improve performance and reduce cost. The blades must be both aerodynamically
and structurally good. Airfoil profiles were optimized using a genetic algorithm with
both an aerodynamic and structural objective: to maximize the power coefficient
and to maximize the section modulus. The power coefficient was calculated with
the actuator cylinder method using polars from XFoil which captured the operating
conditions of the vertical axis wind turbine. The obtained optimized family of airfoils
showed increased blade and turbine performance compared to the often used NACA
0018. Some of the optimized airfoil profile have the potential to reduce the weight
of vertical axis wind blades based on a simple estimation.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
VAWT , bi-objective optimization , genetic algorithm , NSGA-II , airfoil profile , AC method , renewable energy