A review on the use of passive flow control devices as performance enhancement of lift-type vertical axis wind turbines

This article provides a comprehensive review about passive flow control devices (PFCDs) implemented in lift-type vertical axis wind turbine (LVAWT), focusing on the underlying flow physics mechanisms and to what extents they can improve the LVAWT performance. In addition, some novel concepts that can be potentially implemented in future are also presented. Based on literature review, it is observed that PFCDs can enhance the power generation of LVAWT up to 172.73% compared with a clean LVAWT. However, this significant improvement still needs to be evaluated carefully by considering the economic feasibility aspect, because PCFDs can increase the design complexity, weight penalty and manufacturing cost of LVAWT. Furthermore, it is essential to design and evaluate the effectiveness of PFCDs using a full VAWT configuration by considering the blade rotating effects and blade-to-blade interactions. Finally, evaluation of PFCDs needs to be performed at all ranges of tip speed ratios (TSRs) operation conditions, as there are clear evidences on the correlation between LVAWT performance and different range of TSRs. This article is categorized under: Sustainable Energy > Wind Energy