Aerodynamic characteristics of wind turbine blades with a sinusoidal leading edge

The aerodynamic characteristics of a kind of bionic wind turbine blades with a sinusoidal leading edge have been investigated in this paper based on a three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged NavierStokes simulation. The calculated results show that compared with a straight leading-edge blade, the new-type blade has a great improvement in shaft torque at high wind speeds. The localized vortices shedding from the leading-edge tubercles, which can generate a much greater peak of the leading-edge suction pressure than that from the straight leading-edge case, are the physical essentials to enhance the wavy blade's aerodynamic performances as the blade goes into stall. In particular, the outboard segment from the 60%R station to the blade tip is the key region for wavy leading-edge blades to improve the aerodynamic characteristics at high-speed inflows. In this key region, a wavy blade can obtain a greater power output as the wavelength l and the waveheight d increase.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000302618500005&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Energy & FuelsEngineering, MechanicalSCI(E)EI12ARTICLE3407-4241