Simulation of Aerodynamic Performance of the NREL Phase VI Wind Turbine
Application ID: 150111
The NREL Phase VI wind turbine is a widely recognized standard test case in the study of wind turbine aerodynamics, and its wind tunnel test data have become an important benchmark for validating CFD numerical simulation methods. In this validation case, COMSOL Multiphysics is used to perform aerodynamic simulations on the NREL Phase VI horizontal-axis wind turbine. The turbine has a rotor diameter of 10.058 m and a rated rotational speed of 72 rpm, with the computational cases covering the typical operating range of wind speeds from 5 to 10 m/s. The CFD simulation employs the RANS SST turbulence model to solve the flow field. Tetrahedral mesh and boundary layer mesh are applied on the blade surfaces to accurately resolve the load on the blade surface. The model is solved using the Rotating Domain combined with the Frozen Rotor method. The results show that the simulated torque and power of the wind turbine are in good agreement with the publicly available experimental data of the NREL Phase VI test.
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