Marina Carrion

CFD and aeroelastic analysis of the MEXICO wind turbine

This paper presents an aerodynamic and aeroelastic analysis of the MEXICO wind turbine, using the compressible HMB solver of Liverpool. The aeroelasticity of the blade, as well as the effect of a low-Mach scheme were studied for the zero-yaw 15m/s wind case and steady- state computations. The wake developed behind the rotor was also extracted and compared with the experimental data, using the compressible solver and a low-Mach scheme. It was found that the loads were not sensitive to the Mach number effects, although the low-Mach scheme improved the wake predictions. The sensitivity of the results to the blade structural properties was also highlighted.

Analysis of Hybrid Air Vehicles Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

This paper presents a study of the aerodynamics of shapes pertinent to lighter-than-air vehicles, using computational fluid dynamics. The work begins with the validation of the computational-fluid-dynamics method using a 6∶1 prolate spheroid. The validated method is then employed for the study of the flow around a shape similar to the Airlander 50 airship of Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd. An overview of the flow around this kind of shape is presented, supported by pressure survey, flow visualization, and transition effects, as function of the Reynolds number. The sensitivity of the transition location to the Reynolds number is also demonstrated, and then the role of each component of the vehicle is analyzed. The effect of each component on the flowfield, the lift and drag, and stability in pitch are provided. It was found that the fins contributed the most to increase the lift and drag coefficients.

Study of Hybrid Air Vehicle Stability Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

This paper uses computational fluid dynamics to predict aerodynamic damping of airships or hybrid air vehicles. This class of aircraft is characterized by large lifting bodies combining buoyancy and circulatory lift. Damping is investigated via forced oscillations of the vehicle in pitch and yaw. The employed method is verified using data for lighter-than-air vehicles. The use of fins and stabilizers is found to be beneficial. The rear part of the body is dominated by separated flow that contains more frequencies than the forcing frequency imposed on the body. The final design is seen to be dynamically stable across a range of conditions for small pitch angles.