Abstract

State-of-the-art technologies for wind and tidal energy exploitation focus mostly on axial turbines. However, cross-flow hydrokinetic tidal turbines possess interesting features, such as higher area-based power density in array installations and shallow water, as well as a generally simpler design. Up to now, the highly unsteady flow conditions and cyclic blade stall have hindered deployment at large scales because of the resulting low single-turbine efficiency and fatigue failure challenges. Concepts exist which overcome these drawbacks by actively controlling the flow, at the cost of increased mechatronical complexity. Here, we propose a bioinspired approach with hyperflexible turbine blades. The rotor naturally adapts to the flow through deformation, reducing flow separation and stall in a passive manner. This results in higher efficiency and increased turbine lifetime through decreased structural loads, without compromising on the simplicity of the design.

Graphic abstract

中文翻译：

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错流式潮汐涡轮机中具有生物启发性柔性叶片的被动流量控制机构

摘要

最新的风能和潮汐能开发技术主要集中在轴流式涡轮机上。但是，横流式水力潮汐涡轮机具有有趣的功能，例如阵列装置和浅水中的基于区域的功率密度更高，以及总体上更简单的设计。到目前为止，由于产生的低单涡轮效率和疲劳失效的挑战，高度不稳定的流动条件和周期性的叶片失速已经阻碍了大规模的部署。存在通过主动控制流量以增加机电复杂性为代价来克服这些缺点的概念。在这里，我们提出了一种具有超柔性涡轮叶片的生物启发方法。转子通过变形自然地适应了流量，从而以被动的方式减少了流量分离和停转。

图形摘要