Modelling turbulent unsteady loading on a 2-bladed horizontal axis tidal stream turbine

This research studies the interactions between a utility scale horizontal axis tidal stream turbine (HATT) and its supporting foundation. Made possible by ARCHIE-WeSt, URANS Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations with the commercial software Star-CCM+ give insight into the turbulent wake generated by different foundation structure types, and how this shadowing effect impacts the performance and loading on a HATT. Outputs from this study to date have quantified the impact of operating a 2-bladed HATT in the shadow of a simplified support structure example. Proposed work aims to extend this study to include a more realistic case setup for a multi-rotor foundation, and considering different flow misalignment angles, turbulence, and velocity shear impacts.

This project is a collaboration between the IDCORE programme with the Universities of Strathclyde, Edinburgh, and Exeter, and the project is part sponsored by the tidal developer HydroWing.

For more information about the project, please contact Bryn Townley (bryn.townley@ed.ac.uk) IDCORE Research Student or Dr Qing Xaio (qing.xiao@strath.ac.uk) Professor at the Department of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Marine Engineering at the University of Strathclyde.

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