Wind tunnel aerodynamic tests of six airfoils for use on small wind turbines

This paper presents detailed wind tunnel tests data taken on six airfoils having application to small wind turbines. In particular, lift, drag and moment measurements were taken at Reynolds numbers of 100,000, 200,000, 350,000 and 500,000 for both clean and rough conditions. In some cases, data was also taken at a Reynolds number of 150,000. The airfoils included the E387, FX 63-137, S822, S834, SD2030, and SH3055. Prior to carrying out the tests, wind tunnel flow quality measurements were taken to document the low Reynolds number test environment, and also oil flow visualization data and performance data were taken on the E387 for comparison with measurements taken at NASA Langley in the Low Turbulence Pressure Tunnel. The new results compare favorably with the benchmark NASA data. Highlights of the performance characteristics of the six airfoils are then discussed.

[1]  Dan M. Somers,et al.  A computer program for the design and analysis of low-speed airfoils, supplement , 1980 .

[2]  Stefan Oerlemans,et al.  Wind Tunnel Aeroacoustic Tests of Six Airfoils for Use on Small Wind Turbines: Preprint , 2003 .

[3]  M. Selig.  Summary of low speed airfoil data , 1995 .

[4]  D. M. Somers,et al.  Theoretical Aerodynamic Analyses of Six Airfoils for Use on Small Wind Turbines: July 11, 2002--October 31, 2002 , 2003 .

[5]  W. Roger Briley,et al.  Numerical prediction of incompressible separation bubbles , 1975, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[6]  J. E. Carter,et al.  Analysis of airfoil transitional separation bubbles , 1984 .

[7]  F. White.  Viscous Fluid Flow , 1974 .

[8]  D. M. Somers.  The S822 and S823 Airfoils , 2004 .

[9]  Michael S. Selig,et al.  Wind Tunnel Aerodynamic Tests of Six Airfoils for Use on Small Wind Turbines; Period of Performance: October 31, 2002--January 31, 2003 , 2004 .

[10]  Dan M. Somers,et al.  The S833, S834, and S835 Airfoils , 2005 .

[11]  Abdollah Khodadoust,et al.  An Experimental Study of the Flowfield on a Semispan Rectangular Wing With a Simulated Glaze Ice Accretion , 1994 .

[12]  Robert J. McGhee,et al.  Correlation of theory to wind-tunnel data at Reynolds numbers below 500,000 , 1989 .

[13]  Wade W. Huebsch,et al.  The effects of small-scale surface roughness on laminar airfoil-scale trailing edge separation bubbles , 1998 .

[14]  Michael S. Selig,et al.  Airfoils at low speeds , 1989 .

[15]  R. J. Mcghee,et al.  Experimental results for the Eppler 387 airfoil at low Reynolds numbers in the Langley low-turbulence pressure tunnel , 1988 .

[16]  Andy P. Broeren,et al.  Summary of Low-Speed Airfoil Data - Vol. 3 , 1996 .

[17]  Hugh W. Coleman,et al.  Experimentation and Uncertainty Analysis for Engineers , 1989 .

[18]  Dan M. Somers,et al.  Subsonic Natural-Laminar-Flow Airfoils , 1992 .

[19]  William H. Rae,et al.  Low-Speed Wind Tunnel Testing , 1966 .

[20]  M. F. Platzer,et al.  Transition Modeling Effects on Viscous/Inviscid Interaction Analysis of Low Reynolds Number Airfoil Flows Involving Laminar Separation Bubbles , 1988 .

[21]  Michael S. Selig,et al.  Spanwise variations in profile drag for airfoils at low Reynolds numbers , 1995 .

[22]  Michael S. Selig,et al.  Freestream Velocity Corrections for Two-Dimensional Testing with Splitter Plates , 1997 .

[23]  Krishnan Mahesh,et al.  Direct numerical simulation , 1998 .

[24]  J. L. Tangler,et al.  NREL airfoil families for HAWTs , 1995 .

[25]  R. Pletcher,et al.  Prediction of Incompressible Separated Boundary Layers Including Viscous-Inviscid Interaction , 1979 .

[26]  Neil D. Sandham,et al.  Direct numerical simulation of ‘short’ laminar separation bubbles with turbulent reattachment , 2000, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[27]  Richard Eppler,et al.  Airfoil design and data , 1990 .

[28]  Kenneth Starcher,et al.  Development and testing of a 2-kilowatt wind turbine for water pumping , 2000 .

[29]  Thomas J. Mueller,et al.  Unsteady Stalling Characteristics of Thin Airfoils at Low Reynolds Number , 2001 .

[30]  Michael B. Bragg,et al.  Turbulence Intensity Measurement Technique for Use in Icing Wind Tunnels , 1999 .

[31]  Laura L. Pauley,et al.  Low-Reynolds-number separation on an airfoil , 1996 .

[32]  Michael B. Bragg,et al.  Experimental investigation of airfoil drag measurement with simulated leading-edge ice using the wake survey method , 2000 .