Tidal turbine performance in the offshore environment

Thesis

A three dimensional computational model of a full scale axial flow tidal turbine has been used to investigate the effects of a range of realistic environmental conditions on turbine performance. The model, which is based on the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations, has been developed using the commercial flow solver ANSYS Fluent.

A 1:30 scale tidal turbine is simulated in an open channel for comparison to existing experimental data. The rotor blades are directly resolved using ...

Expand abstract

Authors: Fleming, C; Conor Fleming

• Publication date: 2014
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: Oxford University, UK
• Language: English
• Keywords: marine energy; axial flow tidal turbine; offshore energy; tidal turbines; computational fluid dynamics; RANS; renewable energy; marine renewable energy; waves; tidal energy; RANS modelling; shear
• Subjects: Mechanical engineering; Aerodynamics and heat transfer; Ocean and coastal engineering; Civil engineering; Engineering & allied sciences