<p>This dissertation investigates the optimal aerodynamic performance and design of conventional and coaxial helicopters in hover and forward flight using conventional and higher harmonic blade pitch control. First, we describe a method for determining the blade geometry, azimuthal blade pitch inputs, optimal shaft angle (rotor angle of attack), and division of propulsive and lifting forces among the components that minimize the total power for a given forward flight condition. The optimal design problem is cast as a variational statement that is discretized using a vortex lattice wake to model inviscid forces, combined with two-dimensional drag polars to model profile losses. The resulting nonlinear constrained optimization problem is solved via Newton iteration. We investigate the optimal design of a compound vehicle in forward flight comprised of a coaxial rotor system, a propeller, and optionally, a fixed wing. We show that higher harmonic control substantially reduces required power, and that both rotor and propeller efficiencies play an important role in determining the optimal shaft angle, which in turn affects the optimal design of each component. Second, we present a variational approach for determining the optimal (minimum power) torque-balanced coaxial hovering rotor using Blade Element Momentum Theory including swirl. We show that the optimal hovering coaxial rotor generates only a small percentage of its total thrust on the portion of the lower rotor operating in the upper rotor's contracted wake, resulting in an optimal design with very different upper and lower rotor twist and chord distributions. We also show that the swirl component of induced velocity has a relatively small effect on rotor performance at the disk loadings typical of helicopter rotors. Third, we describe a more refined model of the wake of a hovering conventional or coaxial rotor. We approximate the rotor or coaxial rotors as actuator disks (though not necessarily uniformly loaded) and the wake as contracting cylindrical vortex sheets that we represent as discrete vortex rings. We assume the system is axisymmetric and steady in time, and solve for the wake position that results in all vortex sheets being aligned with the streamlines of the flow field via Newton iteration. We show that the singularity that occurs where the vortex sheet terminates at the edge of the actuator disk is resolved through the formation of a 45 degree logarithmic spiral in hover, which results in a non-uniform inflow, particularly near the edge of the disk where the flow is entirely reversed, as originally hypothesized by previous authors. We also quantify the mutual interference of coaxial actuator disks of various axial spacing. Finally, we combine our forward flight optimization procedure and the Blade Element Momentum Theory hover optimization to form a variational approach to the multipoint aerodynamic design optimization of conventional and coaxial helicopter rotors. The resulting nonlinear constrained optimization problem may be used to map the Pareto frontier, i.e., the set of rotor designs for which it is not possible to improve upon the performance in one flight condition without degrading performance in the other. We show that for both conventional and coaxial rotors analyzed in hover and high speed flight, a substantial tradeoff in performance must be made between the two flight conditions. Finally, computational results demonstrate that higher harmonic control is able to improve the Pareto efficiency for both conventional and coaxial rotors.</p> / Dissertation

Este trabalho apresenta a simulação numérica do escoamento turbulento em torno de uma turbina eólica de eixo vertical de pequeno porte, Savonius tipo helicoidal com torção de 180° nas pás. Com o intuito de avaliar a metodologia computacional empregada os resultados numéricos obtidos são comparados com os resultados experimental e numérico contidos no estado da arte. Também, compara-se o coeficiente de toque da turbina Savonius helicoidal com a turbina Savonius convencional. As simulações numéricas são baseadas no Método de Volumes Finitos, e para tal emprega-se o programa Fluent /Ansys versão 13.0 que resolve as equações da continuidade e as equações de Navier-Stokes com médias de Reynolds, juntamente com o modelo de turbulência . As simulações são desenvolvidas empregando diferentes malhas computacionais em estudos transientes, tridimensionais, com a turbina estacionária. A avaliação da qualidade da malha é realizada através do método de Índice de Convergência de Malha (GCI) o qual analisa o quão longe os resultados estão da solução assintótica para a malha utilizada. Após a análise da qualidade de malha, realizam-se simulações com a turbina em rotação as quais fazem uso da malha contendo uma região móvel possibilitando a imposição de uma velocidade angular ao rotor. O coeficiente de torque é obtido nas simulações e a partir dele calcula-se o coeficiente de potência. Além da análise do desempenho do rotor realiza-se uma análise qualitativa das características do escoamento sobre a turbina. A turbina Savonius helicoidal apresenta um valor de coeficiente de potência de 0,175 para a razão de velocidade de ponta de 0,58 considerando correção do efeito de bloqueio. Os resultados obtidos apresentam boa concordância com os resultados publicados por outros autores. / This dissertation presents the numerical simulation of the turbulent flow around of a small sized vertical axis wind turbine, consisting in a helical Savonius type with a 180° degree of blade twist. In order to evaluate the used methodology the obtained results are compared with the state of the art numerical and experimental data. It will be also presented the comparison between the torque coefficient of the conventional Savonius turbine and the helical Savonius turbine. The numerical simulations are based on the Finite Volume Method (FVM), using the commercial code Fluent/ANSYS version 13.0, which solves the continuity and Navier-Stokes through the Reynolds time-averaged methodology, including the turbulence model. The simulations are developed using different computational meshes for transient and three-dimensional studies with the stationary turbine. The evaluating the quality of the mesh is performed by of Grid Convergence Index (GCI) method which analyzes how far the results are the asymptotic solution to the mesh used. After the evaluation of the mesh quality, it was simulated a case considering the rotor motion using the moving mesh configuration, allowing the imposition of an angular velocity to the turbine. In the post-processing stage, it is possible to obtain the torque coefficient on the rotor shaft, allowing the calculation of the power coefficient for the turbine. In addition to the performance analysis, it is also made a qualitative analysis of the flow characteristics over the turbine rotor and in both cases presenting a good correspondence with the results in the literature. The helical Savonius turbine presents a value of power coefficient of 0.175 to a tip speed ratio of 0.58 whereas blocking effect correction.

Atmospheric icing presents serious challenges to the development of wind power of the wind energy industry in cold regions. The potential detrimental impact on the safe operation of wind turbines and the energy harvest hasn't been fully understood and requires further investigation. This thesis presents the research on icing profiles under different weather conditions and their impact on natural frequency, fatigue life, and lift and drag of the wind turbine blade. The research aims to develop a further understanding of the effect of atmospheric ice accretion on the structural integrity and aerodynamic performance of wind turbine blades through numerical and aerodynamic investigations to address the challenges facing the industry. A 5-MW NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) wind turbine blade was selected for this study, due to availability of required geometric design parameters and experimental data for verification. The turbine rotor and its three blades were modelled and numerically simulated with commercial finite element software ANSYS. Three icing scenarios were chosen according to the ISO Standard and the corresponding icing profiles were developed to investigate their influence on vibrational behaviours of the wind turbine blade and rotor under different weather conditions. Icing loads were applied on the leading edge of the blade and natural frequency results were compared between clean and iced blades. It was found that harsh icing weather drove the natural frequency down to the near resonance limit, which could lead to significant issue on structural integrity of the wind turbine. The effect of atmospheric ice accretion with additional load due to varying wind speeds on the fatigue life of the wind turbine blade has been investigated. Significant reduction of fatigue life was found due to the increase of the von Mises stresses. Finally, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was carried out to investigate the effect of atmospheric ice accretion on the aerodynamic performance of typical 1-MW and 5-MW wind turbine blades. Results of the drag and lift coefficients and power production under different icing scenarios were obtained for five angles of attack. Compared with the results of the clean aerofoil profile, remarkable reduction in the power generation was observed due to the accreted ice at various aerofoil sections in the spanwise direction of the blade, demonstrating the detrimental impact of atmospheric icing on energy harvest for the wind energy industry.

Este trabalho apresenta a simulação numérica do escoamento turbulento em torno de uma turbina eólica de eixo vertical de pequeno porte, Savonius tipo helicoidal com torção de 180° nas pás. Com o intuito de avaliar a metodologia computacional empregada os resultados numéricos obtidos são comparados com os resultados experimental e numérico contidos no estado da arte. Também, compara-se o coeficiente de toque da turbina Savonius helicoidal com a turbina Savonius convencional. As simulações numéricas são baseadas no Método de Volumes Finitos, e para tal emprega-se o programa Fluent /Ansys versão 13.0 que resolve as equações da continuidade e as equações de Navier-Stokes com médias de Reynolds, juntamente com o modelo de turbulência . As simulações são desenvolvidas empregando diferentes malhas computacionais em estudos transientes, tridimensionais, com a turbina estacionária. A avaliação da qualidade da malha é realizada através do método de Índice de Convergência de Malha (GCI) o qual analisa o quão longe os resultados estão da solução assintótica para a malha utilizada. Após a análise da qualidade de malha, realizam-se simulações com a turbina em rotação as quais fazem uso da malha contendo uma região móvel possibilitando a imposição de uma velocidade angular ao rotor. O coeficiente de torque é obtido nas simulações e a partir dele calcula-se o coeficiente de potência. Além da análise do desempenho do rotor realiza-se uma análise qualitativa das características do escoamento sobre a turbina. A turbina Savonius helicoidal apresenta um valor de coeficiente de potência de 0,175 para a razão de velocidade de ponta de 0,58 considerando correção do efeito de bloqueio. Os resultados obtidos apresentam boa concordância com os resultados publicados por outros autores. / This dissertation presents the numerical simulation of the turbulent flow around of a small sized vertical axis wind turbine, consisting in a helical Savonius type with a 180° degree of blade twist. In order to evaluate the used methodology the obtained results are compared with the state of the art numerical and experimental data. It will be also presented the comparison between the torque coefficient of the conventional Savonius turbine and the helical Savonius turbine. The numerical simulations are based on the Finite Volume Method (FVM), using the commercial code Fluent/ANSYS version 13.0, which solves the continuity and Navier-Stokes through the Reynolds time-averaged methodology, including the turbulence model. The simulations are developed using different computational meshes for transient and three-dimensional studies with the stationary turbine. The evaluating the quality of the mesh is performed by of Grid Convergence Index (GCI) method which analyzes how far the results are the asymptotic solution to the mesh used. After the evaluation of the mesh quality, it was simulated a case considering the rotor motion using the moving mesh configuration, allowing the imposition of an angular velocity to the turbine. In the post-processing stage, it is possible to obtain the torque coefficient on the rotor shaft, allowing the calculation of the power coefficient for the turbine. In addition to the performance analysis, it is also made a qualitative analysis of the flow characteristics over the turbine rotor and in both cases presenting a good correspondence with the results in the literature. The helical Savonius turbine presents a value of power coefficient of 0.175 to a tip speed ratio of 0.58 whereas blocking effect correction.

Este trabalho apresenta a simulação numérica do escoamento turbulento em torno de uma turbina eólica de eixo vertical de pequeno porte, Savonius tipo helicoidal com torção de 180° nas pás. Com o intuito de avaliar a metodologia computacional empregada os resultados numéricos obtidos são comparados com os resultados experimental e numérico contidos no estado da arte. Também, compara-se o coeficiente de toque da turbina Savonius helicoidal com a turbina Savonius convencional. As simulações numéricas são baseadas no Método de Volumes Finitos, e para tal emprega-se o programa Fluent /Ansys versão 13.0 que resolve as equações da continuidade e as equações de Navier-Stokes com médias de Reynolds, juntamente com o modelo de turbulência . As simulações são desenvolvidas empregando diferentes malhas computacionais em estudos transientes, tridimensionais, com a turbina estacionária. A avaliação da qualidade da malha é realizada através do método de Índice de Convergência de Malha (GCI) o qual analisa o quão longe os resultados estão da solução assintótica para a malha utilizada. Após a análise da qualidade de malha, realizam-se simulações com a turbina em rotação as quais fazem uso da malha contendo uma região móvel possibilitando a imposição de uma velocidade angular ao rotor. O coeficiente de torque é obtido nas simulações e a partir dele calcula-se o coeficiente de potência. Além da análise do desempenho do rotor realiza-se uma análise qualitativa das características do escoamento sobre a turbina. A turbina Savonius helicoidal apresenta um valor de coeficiente de potência de 0,175 para a razão de velocidade de ponta de 0,58 considerando correção do efeito de bloqueio. Os resultados obtidos apresentam boa concordância com os resultados publicados por outros autores. / This dissertation presents the numerical simulation of the turbulent flow around of a small sized vertical axis wind turbine, consisting in a helical Savonius type with a 180° degree of blade twist. In order to evaluate the used methodology the obtained results are compared with the state of the art numerical and experimental data. It will be also presented the comparison between the torque coefficient of the conventional Savonius turbine and the helical Savonius turbine. The numerical simulations are based on the Finite Volume Method (FVM), using the commercial code Fluent/ANSYS version 13.0, which solves the continuity and Navier-Stokes through the Reynolds time-averaged methodology, including the turbulence model. The simulations are developed using different computational meshes for transient and three-dimensional studies with the stationary turbine. The evaluating the quality of the mesh is performed by of Grid Convergence Index (GCI) method which analyzes how far the results are the asymptotic solution to the mesh used. After the evaluation of the mesh quality, it was simulated a case considering the rotor motion using the moving mesh configuration, allowing the imposition of an angular velocity to the turbine. In the post-processing stage, it is possible to obtain the torque coefficient on the rotor shaft, allowing the calculation of the power coefficient for the turbine. In addition to the performance analysis, it is also made a qualitative analysis of the flow characteristics over the turbine rotor and in both cases presenting a good correspondence with the results in the literature. The helical Savonius turbine presents a value of power coefficient of 0.175 to a tip speed ratio of 0.58 whereas blocking effect correction.