Tip vortex locations have been measured in the wake of a model rotor in both axial flow and yaw using quantitative flow visualization. For each setting, the axial force coefficient has been derived, as well, from measurements. The results agree well with those previously published on the Delft University of Technology model rotor. The main interest is to determine the tip vortex pitch, wake skew angle, wake expansion, and to physically interpret the data. The results also help to validate and construct models. The tip vortex location data complement the existing skewed wake velocity data from hot-wire anemometry, making it a valuable experimental database.

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An improved physical understanding of the rotor aerodynamics of a horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) is required to reduce the uncertainties associated with today's design codes. Wind tunnel experiments contribute to increased knowledge and enable validation and construction of models. The present study focuses on the near-wake of a model HAWT in both axial and yawed flow conditions. At three downstream planes parallel to the rotor plane, single-sensor hot-film traverses are made. The phase-locked unsteady threedimensional flow velocity vector is determined by a novel data reduction method. A series of two papers discusses the near-wake aerodynamics of a model HAWT. The main goals are to obtain a detailed understanding of the near-wake development and to arrive at a base for model construction and validation. The first paper presents the experimental setup, data reduction and the results for the baseline case (axial flow conditions).In the second paper, the results for the yawed flow cases are presented and the effect of yaw misalignment on the near-wake development is discussed.

Yawed flow conditions introduce unsteady loads in a wind turbine that affect generated power quality and fatigue life. An unsteady phenomenon of special concern is dynamic stall, due to the significant load fluctuations associated with it. Although the assumptions underlying blade element momentum (BEM) models are totally inadequate in yawed flow conditions, these models, modified with engineering models, are still widely used in industry. It is therefore relevant to assess the capabilities of BEM models in predicting the location of dynamic stall on the blade for a rotor in yawed flow conditions. A rotor model is placed in an open jet wind tunnel and tested in yawed flow conditions. The locations of dynamic stall on the blade of a rotor model as a function of the blade position are observed. Two experimental techniques are used; tufts glued to the blade and hot-film anemometry in the near wake. The results from the two techniques are compared and possible causes for differences are identified. Furthermore, the rotor model in yaw is modeled with a simple BEM model, utilizing a Gormont dynamic stall model. The regions of dynamic stall on the blades predicted by the BEM model are compared with the experimental results. The BEM model seems capable of a crude prediction of the dynamic stall locations found for the rotor model in yawed flow conditions.

To reduce the level of uncertainty associated with current rotor aerodynamics codes, improved understanding of rotor aerodynamics is required. Wind tunnel measurements on model rotors contribute to advancing our knowledge on rotor aerodynamics. The combined recording of blade loads and rotor wake is desired, because of the coupled blade and wake aerodynamics. In general, however, the small size of model rotors prohibits detailed blade load measurements; only the rotor wake is recorded. To estimate the experimental blade flow conditions, a measurement analysis tool is developed: the inverse vortex wake model. The rotor wake is approximated by a lifting line model, using rotor wake measurements to reconstruct the vortex wake. Conservation of circulation, combined with the Biot–Savart law, allows the induced velocity to be expressed in terms of the bound circulation. The unknown bound circulation can be solved for, since the velocity is known from rotor wake measurements. The inverse vortex wake model is subsequently applied to measurements on the near wake of a model rotor subject to both axial and yawed flow conditions, performed at a TUDelft open jet wind tunnel. The inverse vortex wake model estimates the unsteady experimental blade flow conditions and loads that otherwise would have remained obscured.