Actuator disc modelling based on aerodynamic data extraction from direct rotor modelling of the NREL Phase Ⅵ turbine

摘要

Traditional blade element momentum (BEM) methods based on two-dimensional data are unable to accurately predict blade forces and thus are unreliable when used in actuator discs to predict wind turbine wake profiles. This can be circumvented by extracting relevant force and velocity data from direct modelling simulations or experiments, which are almost certainly used in the design process of a wind turbine. Methods developed by Bak et al. in 1999 to extract cross-sectional aerodynamic data from wind turbines included one based on an inverse BEM method, and an actuator disc-based method, which used the exact pressure drop for each specific wind speed to create a model of pressure drop against local velocities. The present work will thus investigate the accuracy of actuator disc models based on direct rotor modelling data, by creating actuator discs through extraction of the induction factors using the methods described earlier, for the NREL Phase Ⅵ rotor.