Dielectric barrier discharge plasma flow control on a vertical axis wind turbine

Abstract

Unsteady flow separation was partially controlled on a double-bladed H-Rotor vertical axis wind turbine model using pulsed dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators at wind speeds between 4.4m/s and 7.1m/s. With pulsations applied in an open-loop manner on the inboard side of the blades, flowfield measurements showed that the development and shedding of the dynamic stall vortex could be modified. Pulsations were then applied in a feed-forward manner by predetermining the plasma-pulsation initiation and termination azimuth angles. These angles were selected on the basis of wind speed and turbine rotational speed, with the objective of maximizing the net turbine output power. Remarkably, a net turbine power increase of more than 10% was measured. For the purposes of power regulation, a hysteresis controller was applied to the turbine subjected to a fluctuating wind profile. Control produced a 7% increase in net power and a reduction from ±6.5% to ±1.3% in power fluctuations.