Abstract
A hierarchy of numerical models, Single Rotating Reference Frame (SRF) and Blade Element Model (BEM), were used for numerical investigation of horizontal axis Marine Hydrokinetic (MHK) Turbines. In the initial stage the SRF and BEM were used to simulate the performance and turbulent wake of a flume- and a full-scale MHK turbine reference model. A significant level of understanding and confidence was developed in the implementation of numerical models for simulation of a MHK turbine. This was achieved by simulation of the flume-scale turbine experiments and comparison between numerical and experimental results. Then the developed numerical methodology was applied to simulate the performance and wake of the full-scale MHK reference model (DOE Reference Model 1). In the second stage the BEM was used to simulate the experimental study of two different MHK turbine array configurations (i.e. two and three coaxial turbines). After developing a numerical methodology using the experimental comparison to simulate the flow field of a turbine array, this methodology was applied toward array optimization study of a full-scale model with the goal of proposing an optimized MHK turbine configuration with minimal computational cost and time. In the last stage the BEM was used to investigate one of the potential environmental effects of MHK turbine. A general methodological approach was developed and experimentally validated to investigate the effect of MHK turbine wake on the sedimentation process of suspended particles in a tidal channel.