Active flow control for boundary layers
Turbulence and the transition to turbulence are recognized as unsolved problems in physics. Likewise, control theorists have hardly ever come across a problem this challenging. The goal of active flow control is to cross these interdisciplinary boundaries by considering the relevant flow physics when designing the control algorithms.
Airfoil Design for a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
With the depletion of fossil fuels, increasing emissions, and the inevitability of global warming, the interest in renewable energy grows. Conventional solutions, like horizontal axis wind turbines, are reaching the limits of their capabilities. Therefore, there is renewed interest in other models, such as the Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT). While there are multiple variations on the VAWT, the most viable one is the Darrieus...
A Floating Wind Farm
With a focus shifting towards global sustainability, more effort is being put into improving the efficiency of renewable energy technologies. Wind energy is a predominant area of interest and now it takes on a new twist. In July 2015, we published an article on the different ways to make a wind turbine float. Many pilot projects have been conducted to test which ones were the most effective. Statoil was the first company to...
CFD in the Nuclear Industry
Bechtel is a large construction company working on one of the largest environmental cleanup projects in history. As an intern, the task at hand was to help ascertain the reliability of a pulsejet mixing system that is used to mix various compositions of nuclear and chemical waste byproducts from Cold War era plutonium enrichment processes.
Formation Flight: The effect of trimmed flight
A flock of birds flies in formation when travelling long distances, due to an energy saving advantage. Research on this phenomenon has been conducted throughout the beginning of the twentieth century, and it focused on how much can be gained using formation flight, where unfavorable effects have only been a topic of research for the last few decades.
Plasma Enhanced Aerodynamics
Active flow control by the use of DBD actuators has been proven to be a promising concept for the delay and even elimination of boundary layer separation. In order to further develop these actuators, the interaction between the plasma and the flow under different operating conditions has to be investigated.