Numerical investigations of turbulent natural convection heat transfer within a wind turbine nacelle operating in hot climate

M. A. Mahdi; A. Smaili; Y. Saad

doi:10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2019.106143

Numerical investigations of turbulent natural convection heat transfer within a wind turbine nacelle operating in hot climate

M. A. Mahdi, A. Smaili, Y. Saad

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Abstract

The Algerian Sahara is characterized by severe climate conditions where temperature reaches high levels with large variations during day and season. Nacelles of wind turbines operating in this region are subjected to the overheating problem, in particular the electromechanical components becoming less effective as they heat up during use. In order to maintain an appropriate temperature of the air within the nacelle, an active cooling system has to be set up to reject the generated heat towards the external environment and the resulting heat transfer must be properly controlled. The present work investigates numerically the impact of turbulent natural convection heat transfer on the nacelle thermal behavior. Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes and energy equations have been considered. ANSYS FLUENT code has been employed to solve the resulting mathematical model. Temperature and velocity profiles within the 2D and 3D-configurations of the nacelle have been presented and discussed. Variations of the average temperature inside the nacelle and the required cooling capacity are determined and thoroughly discussed.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	106143
Journal	International Journal of Thermal Sciences
Volume	147
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2019.106143
State	Published - Jan 2020
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573 .

Funding Information:
Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS

Keywords

Cooling system
Numerical simulation
Saharan climate
Turbulent natural convection
Wind turbine nacelle

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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title = "Numerical investigations of turbulent natural convection heat transfer within a wind turbine nacelle operating in hot climate",

abstract = "The Algerian Sahara is characterized by severe climate conditions where temperature reaches high levels with large variations during day and season. Nacelles of wind turbines operating in this region are subjected to the overheating problem, in particular the electromechanical components becoming less effective as they heat up during use. In order to maintain an appropriate temperature of the air within the nacelle, an active cooling system has to be set up to reject the generated heat towards the external environment and the resulting heat transfer must be properly controlled. The present work investigates numerically the impact of turbulent natural convection heat transfer on the nacelle thermal behavior. Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes and energy equations have been considered. ANSYS FLUENT code has been employed to solve the resulting mathematical model. Temperature and velocity profiles within the 2D and 3D-configurations of the nacelle have been presented and discussed. Variations of the average temperature inside the nacelle and the required cooling capacity are determined and thoroughly discussed.",

keywords = "Cooling system, Numerical simulation, Saharan climate, Turbulent natural convection, Wind turbine nacelle",

author = "Mahdi, {M. A.} and A. Smaili and Y. Saad",

note = "Funding Information: Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573 . Funding Information: Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS",

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AU - Saad, Y.

N1 - Funding Information: Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573 . Funding Information: Computer Science and Engineering Department of University of Minnesota, USA and the Algerian Government are gratefully acknowledged for their sponsorship and resources. The work of Yousef Saad was supported by National Science Foundation, USA under grant 1521573. Publisher Copyright: © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS

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N2 - The Algerian Sahara is characterized by severe climate conditions where temperature reaches high levels with large variations during day and season. Nacelles of wind turbines operating in this region are subjected to the overheating problem, in particular the electromechanical components becoming less effective as they heat up during use. In order to maintain an appropriate temperature of the air within the nacelle, an active cooling system has to be set up to reject the generated heat towards the external environment and the resulting heat transfer must be properly controlled. The present work investigates numerically the impact of turbulent natural convection heat transfer on the nacelle thermal behavior. Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes and energy equations have been considered. ANSYS FLUENT code has been employed to solve the resulting mathematical model. Temperature and velocity profiles within the 2D and 3D-configurations of the nacelle have been presented and discussed. Variations of the average temperature inside the nacelle and the required cooling capacity are determined and thoroughly discussed.

AB - The Algerian Sahara is characterized by severe climate conditions where temperature reaches high levels with large variations during day and season. Nacelles of wind turbines operating in this region are subjected to the overheating problem, in particular the electromechanical components becoming less effective as they heat up during use. In order to maintain an appropriate temperature of the air within the nacelle, an active cooling system has to be set up to reject the generated heat towards the external environment and the resulting heat transfer must be properly controlled. The present work investigates numerically the impact of turbulent natural convection heat transfer on the nacelle thermal behavior. Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes and energy equations have been considered. ANSYS FLUENT code has been employed to solve the resulting mathematical model. Temperature and velocity profiles within the 2D and 3D-configurations of the nacelle have been presented and discussed. Variations of the average temperature inside the nacelle and the required cooling capacity are determined and thoroughly discussed.

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Numerical investigations of turbulent natural convection heat transfer within a wind turbine nacelle operating in hot climate

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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