Passive flow separation control with vortex generators (VG) is actively used over the wind turbine blade. In this paper, the effect of vortex generators is simulated on a full-scale 2-blade wind-turbine tested at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The simulation is performed using Very-Large-Eddy/Lattice-Boltzmann method (VLES/LBM). The analysis focuses on the effect of vortex generators on the aerodynamic performance and far-field noise. The simulation results without vortex generators are compared with the experimental results, reaching good agreement. The vortex generators produce counter-rotating vortices in the wake which effectively delay flow separation, leading to better aerodynamic performance. The acoustic analysis indicates that the dominant noise sources are the tonal noise produced by the flow separation and the turbulent-boundary-layer trailing-edge noise. Similar noise levels are obtained for the configurations with and without vortex generators.

Aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of the turbulent flow developing over a fuselage on fan noise for BLI embedded propulsion systems. Such configurations can suffer from inlet flow distortions and ingestion of turbulence at the fan plane with consequent impact on both broadband and tonal fan noise. The analysis is performed on a modified version of the Low-Noise NASA SDT fan-stage integrated into the ONERA NOVA fuselage in order to reproduce the NOVA BLI configuration. The numerical flow solution is obtained by solving the explicit, transient and compressible lattice-Boltzmann equation implemented in the high-fidelity CFD/CAA solver Simulia PowerFLOW®. The acoustic far-field is computed by using the Ffowcs-Williams & Hawkings integral solution applied to a permeable surface. All simulations are performed for an operating condition representative of a take-off with power cut-back. Installation effects due to the BLI configuration are quantified by comparison with an isolated configuration of the modified Low-Noise SDT fan-stage at the same operating condition. It is found that the BLI fan-stage, which is not optimal, is characterized by strong azimuthal fan blade loading unsteadiness, less axisymmetric and coherent rotor wake tangential velocity variations and higher levels of in-plane velocity fluctuations compared to the isolated engine. This resulted in no distinct tonal components and higher broadband levels in the far-field noise spectra, as well as in an increment of cumulative noise levels up to 18 EPNdB. This study, which represents the first high-fidelity CFD/CAA simulation of a full-scale aircraft geometry comprehensive of a BLI fan/OGV, provides with a clear understanding of the change of the noise sources in BLI integrated configurations.

The characteristics of turbulent boundary layer over streamwise aligned drag reducing riblet surface under zero-pressure gradient are investigated using particle image velocimetry. The formation and distribution of large-scale coherent structures and their effect on momentum partition are analyzed using two-point correlation and probability density function. Compared with smooth surface, the streamwise riblets reduce the friction velocity and Reynolds stress in the turbulent boundary layer, indicating the drag reduction effect. Strong correlation has been found between the occurrence of hairpin vortices and the momentum distribution. The number and streamwise length scale of hairpin vortices decrease over streamwise riblet surface. The correlation between number of uniform momentum zones and Reynolds number remains the same as smooth surface.

The effects of a finite, spanwise-periodic array of cylindrical roughness elements on boundary layer transition over a NACA 0012 airfoil are investigated at a chord-based Reynolds number of 1.44×10⁵ by using hotwire anemometry and infrared thermography. Both the number and the spanwise spacing of roughness elements in the array are varied in order to study their effect on the wake flow topology. Spanwise interaction between the roughness elements has an effect on the connection and the merging of neighbouring low-speed regions, which results in the formation of merged low-speed blobs (MLSs) that modify the spatial distribution and the amplitudes of the velocity streaks. When the spanwise distance between adjacent roughness elements equals 1.5 times the cylinder diameter, the transition location moves rapidly upstream. In this case, the two neighbouring low-speed regions overlap with each other in the near wake of the roughness, leading to the maximum growth in the velocity streak amplitude and the velocity fluctuations. The number of roughness elements affects the total number of MLSs within the boundary layer. For a single MLS behind a pair of cylinders, the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability dominates the growth of velocity fluctuations around the three-dimensional shear layers. When three cylinders are placed in the array, two MLSs appear in the near wake, which coalesce in to one low-speed blob downstream before the onset of transition, revealing the importance of Kelvin-Helmholtz instability.

Micro-ramps are popular passive flow control devices which can delay flow separation by re-energising the lower portion of the boundary layer. We compute the laminar base flow, the instantaneous transitional flow, and the mean flow around a micro-ramp immersed in a quasi-incompressible boundary layer at supercritical roughness Reynolds number. Results of our Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) are compared with results of BiLocal stability analysis on the DNS base flow and independent tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry (tomo-PIV) experiments. We analyse relevant flow structures developing in the micro-ramp wake and assess their role in the micro-ramp functionality, i.e., in increasing the near-wall momentum. The main flow feature of the base flow is a pair of streamwise counter-rotating vortices induced by the micro-ramp, the so-called primary vortex pair. In the instantaneous transitional flow, the primary vortex pair breaks up into large-scale hairpin vortices, which arise due to linear varicose instability of the base flow, and unsteady secondary vortices develop. Instantaneous vortical structures obtained by DNS and experiments are in good agreement. Matching linear disturbance growth rates from DNS and linear stability analysis are obtained until eight micro-ramp heights downstream of the micro-ramp. For the setup considered in this article, we show that the working principle of the micro-ramp is different from that of classical vortex generators; we find that transitional perturbations are more efficient in increasing the near-wall momentum in the mean flow than the laminar primary vortices in the base flow.

Aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of the turbulent flow developing over a fuselage on fan noise for Boundary Layer Ingestion (BLI) embedded propulsion systems. Such engine configurations can suffer from inlet flow distortions and ingestion of turbulence at the fan plane with consequent impact on both broadband and tonal fan noise. The analysis is performed by considering a modified version of the Low-Noise configuration of the NASA Source Diagnostic Test (SDT) integrated into the Nextgen ONERA Versatile Aircraft (NOVA) fuselage in order to reproduce the NOVA BLI configuration. The numerical flow solution is obtained by solving the explicit, transient and compressible lattice-Boltzmann equation implemented in the high-fidelity CFD/CAA solver Simulia PowerFLOW ^R®. The acoustic far-field is computed by using the Ffwocs-Williams & Hawkings integral solution applied to a permeable surface encompassing the fan-stage. Simulations are performed for an operating condition representative of a take-off with power cutback. Installation effects due to the BLI configuration are quantified by comparison with an isolated configuration of the modified Low-Noise SDT fan-stage geometry at same operating conditions. Comparisons are carried out in terms of fan-stage intake/interstage velocity fields, fan blades section air-loads and far-field noise; correlations between the fan-stage velocity field and noise emission for the BLI configuration are outlined. It is found that the BLI fan-stage is characterized by strong azimuthal fan blade loading unsteadiness, less periodic and coherent rotor wake tangential velocity variations and higher levels of in-plane velocity fluctuations compared to the isolated engine, resulting in far-field noise spectra with no distinct tonal components and higher broadband levels. This study represents the first high-fidelity CFD/CAA simulation of a full-scale aircraft geometry comprehensive of a BLI fan/Outlet Guide Vane (OGV) stage.

The variation of transitional flow features past a micro-ramp is investigated when the Reynolds number is decreased approaching the critical regime. Experiments are conducted in the incompressible flow spanning from supercritical to subcritical roughness-height-based Reynolds number ( , 730, 460 and 320) with tomographic particle image velocimetry. The effect of on three-dimensional flow behaviour is analysed in a domain encompassing 73 ramp heights in the streamwise direction. Above the critical , the primary vortex pair and induced central low-speed region in the mean flow field are active over longer range when decreasing. In the instantaneous flow, at <![CDATA[Re_h, the hairpin vortices induced by Kelvin-Helmholtz (K-H) instability progress gradually from close to the micro-ramp into the region where the overall shear layer is destabilized, indicating the correlation between the K-H instability and the onset of transition. The breakdown of K-H vortices as observed at , does not occur at lower. Decreasing , the secondary vortex structures make their first appearance significantly downstream, postponing the formation of sideward disturbances, which destabilize the local shear layer by ejection events. Two major types of eigenmodes with symmetric and asymmetric spatial distribution of velocity fluctuations in the near wake are clearly identified by proper orthogonal decomposition. The symmetric and asymmetric modes correspond to the presence of vortex shedding and a sinuous wiggling motion respectively. It is found that is the key factor determining the importance of the symmetric mode. At , the disturbance energy of the symmetric mode decays before the onset of transition, suggesting that it is relatively insignificant in the process. However, decreasing to 730 and 460, the symmetric mode produces continuous growth of high level disturbance energy, leading to transition.