TY - JOUR
T1 - Characterization of a new open jet wind tunnel to optimize and test vertical axis wind turbines
AU - Tourn, Silvana
AU - Pallarès, Jordi
AU - Cuesta, Ildefonso
AU - Schmidt Paulsen, Uwe
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Based on the increasing interest in urban environmental technologies, the study of small scale vertical axis wind turbines shows motivating challenges. In this paper, we present the characteristics and potentials of a new open jet wind tunnel. It has a nozzle exit area of 1.5 × 1.5 m2, and it can be operated with exit velocities from 3 m/s to 17 m/s. The characterization of the flow has been carried out with calibrated pitot tubes, cup anemometers, and hot wire anemometers. Two different configurations of the test area, with and without a ceiling, are considered. Measurements in the range of available exit velocities show that the cross section, where the velocity and turbulence intensities show an acceptable level of uniformity, has an area of 0.8 × 0.8 m2 and a streamwise dimension of 2 m from the nozzle exit of the tunnel. In this working section, the maximum turbulence intensity is 4%. The detailed characterization of the flow carried out indicates that the wind tunnel can be used to test small scale models of wind turbines.
AB - Based on the increasing interest in urban environmental technologies, the study of small scale vertical axis wind turbines shows motivating challenges. In this paper, we present the characteristics and potentials of a new open jet wind tunnel. It has a nozzle exit area of 1.5 × 1.5 m2, and it can be operated with exit velocities from 3 m/s to 17 m/s. The characterization of the flow has been carried out with calibrated pitot tubes, cup anemometers, and hot wire anemometers. Two different configurations of the test area, with and without a ceiling, are considered. Measurements in the range of available exit velocities show that the cross section, where the velocity and turbulence intensities show an acceptable level of uniformity, has an area of 0.8 × 0.8 m2 and a streamwise dimension of 2 m from the nozzle exit of the tunnel. In this working section, the maximum turbulence intensity is 4%. The detailed characterization of the flow carried out indicates that the wind tunnel can be used to test small scale models of wind turbines.
U2 - 10.1063/1.4982750
DO - 10.1063/1.4982750
M3 - Journal article
SN - 1941-7012
VL - 9
JO - Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy
JF - Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy
IS - 3
M1 - 033302
ER -