Simulation and evaluation of a straight-bladed Darrieus-type cross flow marine turbine

Abstract

This study presents numerical simulations of a cross-flow vertical-axis marine current turbine (straight-bladed Darrieus type) with particular emphasis on rotor-performance prediction and hydrodynamic characteristics. A physical transient-rotor-stator model with a sliding mesh technique was used to capture change in flow field at a particular time step. A shear stress-transport k-ù turbulence model was used to model turbulent features of the flow. Developed model can effectively predict hydrodynamic performance of a vertical-axis marine current turbine.