Optimized Design of Bio-Inspired Wind Turbine Blades

To enhance the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine blades,this study proposes the adoption of a bionic airfoil inspired by the aerodynamic shape of an eagle.Based on the blade element theory,a non-uniform extraction method of blade elements is employed for the optimization design of the considered wind turbine blades.Moreover,Computational Fluid Dynamics(CFD)is used to determine the aerodynamic performances of the eagle airfoil and a NACA2412 airfoil,thereby demonstrating the superior aerodynamic performance of the former.Finally,a mathematical model for optimizing the design of wind turbine blades is introduced and a comparative analysis is conducted with respect to the aerodynamic performances of blades designed using a uniform extraction approach.It is found that the blades designed using non-uniform extraction exhibit better aerodynamic performance.

Hashin Failure Theory Based Damage Assessment Methodology of Composite Tidal Turbine Blades and Implications for the Blade Design

A damage assessment methodology based on the Hashin failure theory for glass fiber reinforced polymer(GFRP)composite blade is proposed. The typical failure mechanisms including the fiber tension/compression and matrix tension/compression are considered to describe the damage behaviors. To give the flapwise and edgewise loading along the blade span, the Blade Element Momentum Theory(BEMT) is adopted. In conjunction with the hydrodynamic analysis, the structural analysis of the composite blade is cooperatively performed with the Hashin damage model. The damage characteristics of the composite blade, under normal and extreme operational conditions,are comparatively analyzed. Numerical results demonstrate that the matrix tension damage is the most significant failure mode which occurs in the mid-span of the blade. The blade internal configurations including the box-beam, Ibeam, left-C beam and right-C beam are compared and analyzed. The GFRP and carbon fiber reinforced polymer(CFRP) are considered and combined. Numerical results show that the I-beam is the best structural type. The structural performance of composite tidal turbine blades could be improved by combining the GFRP and CFRP structure considering the damage and cost-effectiveness synthetically.

NON-DIMENSIONAL DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR FOD TOLERANT FAN BLADES

Non-dimensional design concept for FOD tolerant fan blades is introduced based on the analyses of simplified impact models. The fan blades arc idealized as either beams or plates of elastic or rigid-plastic materials. The case of constant force impact as well as that of mass impact is analyzed. The centrifugal force effects are also considered in the beam models. The critical fracture conditions arc shown in simple npn-dimensional formulae or diagrams for each case.

Robust optimization design on impeller of mixed-flow pump

To increase the robustness of the optimization solutions of the mixed-flow pump,the impeller was firstly indirectly parameterized based on the 2D blade design theory.Secondly,the robustness of the optimization solution was mathematically defined,and then calculated by Monte Carlo sampling method.Thirdly,the optimization on the mixed-flow pump′s impeller was decomposed into the optimal and robust sub-optimization problems,to maximize the pump head and efficiency and minimize the fluctuation degree of them under varying working conditions at the same time.Fourthly,using response surface model,a surrogate model was established between the optimization objectives and control variables of the shape of the impeller.Finally,based on a multi-objective genetic optimization algorithm,a two-loop iterative optimization process was designed to find the optimal solution with good robustness.Comparing the original and optimized pump,it is found that the internal flow field of the optimized pump has been improved under various operating conditions,the hydraulic performance has been improved consequently,and the range of high efficient zone has also been widened.Besides,with the changing of working conditions,the change trend of the hydraulic performance of the optimized pump becomes gentler,the flow field distribution is more uniform,and the influence degree of the varia-tion of working conditions decreases,and the operating stability of the pump is improved.It is concluded that the robust optimization method proposed in this paper is a reasonable way to optimize the mixed-flow pump,and provides references for optimization problems of other fluid machinery.

Aerodynamic design optimization of helicopter rotor blades including airfoil shape for hover performance

This study proposes a process to obtain an optimal helicopter rotor blade shape for aerodynamic performance in hover flight. A new geometry representation algorithm which uses the class function/shape function transformation （CST） is employed to generate airfoil coordinates. With this approach, airfoil shape is considered in terms of design variables. The optimization process is constructed by integrating several programs developed by author. The design variables include twist, taper ratio, point of taper initiation, blade root chord, and coefficients of the airfoil distribution function. Aerodynamic constraints consist of limits on power available in hover and forward flight. The trim condition must be attainable. This paper considers rotor blade configuration for the hover flight condition only, so that the required power in hover is chosen as the objective function of the optimization problem. Sensitivity analysis of each design variable shows that airfoil shape has an important role in rotor performance. The optimum rotor blade reduces the required hover power by 7.4% and increases the figure of merit by 6.5%, which is a good improvement for rotor blade design.

Numerical Study of A Generic Tidal Turbine Using BEM Optimization Methods

Three blade-geometry optimization models derived along with assumptions from the blade element momentum(BEM)approach are studied by using a steady BEM code to improve a small horizontal-axis rotor of three blades that has been previously used in experiments.The base rotor blade has linear-radially varying chord length and pitch angle,while the other three models noted as Burton,Implicit and Hansen due to their references and characteristics yield blades of non-linearly varying chord length and pitch angle.The aim is to compare these rapid models and study how assumptions embedded in them affect performance and induction factors.It is found that the model that has the least assumptions(Hansen)and which considers the blade-profile drag in its optimization procedure yields the highest power coefficient,C_(P),at the optimal tip speed ratio(TSR),about 7%higher than the base one and also higher C_(P) at high TSR.It produces an axial induction factor distribution along the blade that is closest to the 1 D optimal value of 1/3.All optimized tangential induction-factor distributions along the blade closely vary as inverse to the square of the radial distance,while being mildly higher than the base distribution.It shows that sufficient swirl is necessary to increase power but at a level causing not too much energy loss in unnecessary swirl of the wake.At high TSR,all optimized rotors adversely produce higher thrust than the base one,but the one with most embedded assumptions(Burton)produces the highest thrust.Details of all three optimization models are given along with the distributions of the power,thrust,blade hydrodynamic efficiency and induction factors.

AERODYNAMIC OPTIMIZATION FOR TURBINE BLADE BASED ON HIERARCHICAL FAIR COMPETITION GENETIC ALGORITHMS WITH DYNAMIC NICHE

A global optimization approach to turbine blade design based on hierarchical fair competition genetic algorithms with dynamic niche （HFCDN-GAs） coupled with Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes （RANS） equation is presented. In order to meet the search theory of GAs and the aerodynamic performances of turbine, Bezier curve is adopted to parameterize the turbine blade profile, and a fitness function pertaining to optimization is designed. The design variables are the control points＇ ordinates of characteristic polygon of Bezier curve representing the turbine blade profile. The object function is the maximum lift-drag ratio of the turbine blade. The constraint conditions take into account the leading and trailing edge metal angle, and the strength and aerodynamic performances of turbine blade. And the treatment method of the constraint conditions is the flexible penalty function. The convergence history of test function indicates that HFCDN-GAs can locate the global optimum within a few search steps and have high robustness. The lift-drag ratio of the optimized blade is 8.3% higher than that of the original one. The results show that the proposed global optimization approach is effective for turbine blade.

Ice-Class Propeller Strength and Integrity Evaluation Using Unified Polar ClassURI3 Rules

A systematic method was developed for ice-class propeller modeling,performance estimation,strength and integrity evaluation and optimization.To estimate the impact of sea ice on the propeller structure,URI3 rules,established by the International Association of Classification Societies in 2007,were applied for ice loading calculations.An R-class propeller(a type of ice-class propeller)was utilized for subsequent investigations.The propeller modeling was simplified based on a conventional method,which expedited the model building process.The propeller performance was simulated using the computational fluid dynamics(CFD)method.The simulation results were validated by comparison with experimental data.Furthermore,the hydrodynamic pressure was transferred into a finite element analysis(FEA)module for strength assessment of ice-class propellers.According to URI3 rules,the ice loading was estimated based on different polar classes and working cases.Then,the FEA method was utilized to evaluate the propeller strength.The validation showed that the simulation results accorded with recent research results.Finally,an improved optimization method was developed to save the propeller constituent materials.The optimized propeller example had a minimum safety factor of 1.55,satisfying the safety factor requirement of≥1.5,and reduced the design volume to 88.2%of the original.

Blade optimization design and performance investigations of an ultra-low specific speed centrifugal blower

The ultra-low specific speed centrifugal blower is widely used in energy industries due to its features such as low flow rate,high pressure and low manufacturing cost. However,the width-to-diameter ratio of the above blower becomes relatively small to satisfy the needed operation condition and its performances are considerably degraded as a result of relatively high leakage,disc friction and passage friction loss consequently. The purpose of this paper is to improve its performance through the optimization design of the blade’s profile properly. Based on artificial neural networks (ANN) and hierarchical fair competition genetic algorithms with dynamic niche (HFCDN-GAs),the optimization design approach is established. By conjoining Bezier parameterization and FINE/TURBO solver,the optimized blade is designed by adjusting the profile gradually. An industrial ultra-low specific speed centrifugal blower with parallel hub and shroud has been selected as a reference case for optimization design. The performance investigations of the centrifugal blowers with different types of blades are conducted. The conclusions of the performance improvement of the optimized blade provide positive evidences in the application of the optimization design of the above blower blade.

Dynamic behavior of aero-engine rotor with fusing design suffering blade off

Fan blade off（FBO） from a running turbofan rotor will introduce sudden unbalance into the dynamical system,which will lead to the rub-impact,the asymmetry of rotor and a series of interesting dynamic behavior.The paper first presents a theoretical study on the response excited by sudden unbalance.The results reveal that the reaction force of the bearing located near the fan could always reach a very high value which may lead to the crush of ball,journal sticking,high stress on the other components and some other failures to endanger the safety of engine in FBO event.Therefore,the dynamic influence of a safety design named ‘‘fusing＂ is investigated by mechanism analysis.Meantime,an explicit FBO model is established to simulate the FBO event,and evaluate the effectiveness and potential dynamic influence of fusing design.The results show that the fusing design could reduce the vibration amplitude of rotor,the reaction force on most bearings and loads on mounts,but the sudden change of support stiffness induced by fusing could produce an impact effect which will couple with the influence of sudden unbalance.Therefore,the implementation of the design should be considered carefully with optimized parameters in actual aero-engine.

Study on the Rotor Design Method for a Small Propeller-Type Wind Turbine

Small propeller-type wind turbines have a low Reynolds number,limiting the number of usable airfoil materials.Thus,their design method is not sufBciently established,and their performance is often low.The ultimate goal of this research is to establish high-performance design guidelines and design methods for small propeller-type wind turbines.To that end,we designed two rotors:Rotor A,based on the rotor optimum design method from the blade element momentum theory,and Rotor B,in which the chord length of the tip is extended and the chord length distribution is linearized.We examined performance characteristics and flow fields of the two rotors through wind tunnel experiments and numerical analysis.Our results revealed that the maximum output tip speed ratio of Rotor B shifted lower than that of Rotor A,but the maximum output coefficient increased by approximately 38.7%.Rotors A and B experienced a large-scale separation on the hub side,which extended to the mean in Rotor A.This difference in separation had an impact on the significant decrease in Rotor A's output compared to the design value and the increase in Rotor B's output compared to Rotor A.

Design of Wind Turbine Blade for Solar Chimney Power Plant

Aiming at the global efficiency of solar chimney power plant(SCPP), we design a wind turbine generation device to elevate its electricity generating efficiency. Based on wind power utilization theory, a new method is proposed to design a type of wind turbine blade for SCPP. The lift and resistance coefficients on different Reynolds numbers of NACA4418 airfoil, which is suitable for experimental solar electricity generation system, are determined by Profili-V2.0 airfoil design software, a program written in Matlab to calculate chord length of the airfoil. The optimization is conducted by class-shape-transformation(CST) parameterization method and Xfoil software. An airfoil design program is designed on the basis of blade element theory and attack angle with the highest lift coefficient to iteratively determine the inflow angle and setting angle. Prandtl's tip-loss factor is applied to correct the setting angle, after the airfoil data are input into AutoCAD to build an airfoil model which is then imported into Solidworks to draw blades. A new way is put forward to design wind turbine blades in SCPP.

Hyperbolically Shaped Centrifugal Compressor

Starting from the classical centrifugal compressor, cone shaped in meridional cross section, two modifications are considered on the basis of results from 2D and 3D flow models. The first modification is the change of the meridional cross section to hyperbolically shaped channel. The second modification, proposed on the basis of 2D axisymmetric solution, concerns the shape of blading. On the strength of this solution the blades are formed as 3D shaped blades, coinciding with the recent tendency in 3D designs. Two aims were considered for the change of meridional compressor shape. The first was to remove the separation zone which appears as the flow turns from axial to radial direction. The second aim is to uniformize the flow at exit of impeller. These two goals were considered within the frame of 2D axisymmetric model. Replacing the cone shaped compressor by a hyperbolically shaped one, the separation at the corner was removed. The disc and shroud shape of the compressor was chosen in the way which satisfies the condition of most uniform flow at the compressor exit. The uniformity of exit flow from the rotor can be considered as the factor which influences the performance of the diffuser following the rotor. In the 2D model a family of stream surfaces of S1 type is given in order to find S2 surfaces which may be identified with the midblade surfaces of compressor blading. A computation of 3D type has been performed in order to establish the relations between 2D and 3D models in the calculation of flow parameters. In the presented example the 2D model appears as the inverse model which leads to 3D shape of blading whereas the 3D model has been used for the direct solution. In the presented example the confrontation of two models, 2D and 3D, leads to a better understanding of the application of these models to the design procedure.