On the role of surface roughness in the aerodynamic performance and energy conversion of horizontal wind turbine blades: a review

Iham F. Zidane*, Khalid M. Saqr, Greg Swadener, Xianghong Ma, Mohamed F. Shehadeh

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Renewable energy is one of the main pillars of sustainable development, especially in developing economies. Increasing energy demand and the limitation of fossil fuel reserves make the use of renewable energy essential for sustainable development. Wind energy is considered to be one of the most important resources of renewable energy. In North African countries, such as Egypt, wind energy has an enormous potential; however, it faces quite a number of technical challenges related to the performance of wind turbines in the Saharan environment. Seasonal sand storms affect the performance of wind turbines in many ways, one of which is increasing the wind turbine aerodynamic resistance through the increase of blade surface roughness. The power loss because of blade surface deterioration is significant in wind turbines. The surface roughness of wind turbine blades deteriorates because of several environmental conditions such as ice or sand. This paper is the first review on the topic of surface roughness effects on the performance of horizontal‐axis wind turbines. The review covers the numerical simulation and experimental studies as well as discussing the present research trends to develop a roadmap for better understanding and improvement of wind turbine performance in deleterious environments.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2054-2077
JournalInternational Journal of Energy Research
Volume40
Issue number15
Early online date22 Jun 2016
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2 Nov 2016

Keywords

  • blade aerodynamics
  • blade erosion
  • surface roughness
  • wind turbine

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