Change of the flow field around a horizontal axis wind turbine by the plasma airflow control

Abstract

Recently, it is attract rising attention that the plasma actuator technology can suppress a flow separation from airfoil surface. The objective of this study is to investigate the power performance and the flow field characteristics when the plasma actuator is utilized for HAWT's blades. In this study, the wind velocity around the HAWT model flow field is measured by a three-dimensional ultrasonic anemometer. The power performance of the wind turbine is also compared with and without the plasma actuator' excitations. The power coefficient in low tip speed region is improved by the plasma actuator' excitations. The tangential velocity component in the wake of rotor is also increased by the plasma actuator' excitations.