Fluid Structure Interaction Analyses of Wind Turbines: The North Carolina Jennette’s Pier Turbines Case Study

Abstract

Wind power is known as an abundant source of energy that can be a promising alternative to conventional energy resources. Obtaining a competitive cost of energy for wind power harnessing technologies requires accurate resource assessment and design analyses. A robust, yet cost-effective wind turbine structure design reduces the chance of system failure in extreme events; it also reduces the operation and maintenance cost. This work obtains the required inputs for conducting fluid structure interaction (FSI) analyses of 3D Bergey Excel 10kW wind turbine installed in Jennette’s Pier in North Carolina. Six years (2013–2018) wind data (magnitude and direction) at the Jennette’s Pier are used to obtain the site wind characteristics. Some worthwhile data such as prevailing wind direction and wind speed, average air temperature, pressure and density are determined through this study. The flow field around the turbine blades is simulated to obtain the pressure distribution and aerodynamic coefficients using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software, ANSYS Workbench. The results will be beneficiary to the researchers and engineers in evaluating the turbine performance in sites with wind characteristics similar to Jennette’s Pier. Moreover, the outputs of the work can be used for designing enhanced drivetrain components.