A novel two-way coupling method for the study of the aeroelasticity of wind turbines in a Large Eddy Simulation framework

The constant up-scaling of wind turbines encourages researchers to develop innovative aeroelastic models for the study of Fluid-Structure Interaction in wind energy. In this paper, we present a novel two-way coupling method joining a Large-Eddy Simulation fluid solver and a modal beam-like structural solver. The model takes advantage of the Actuator Line Model representing the rotor in the fluid domain, and exploits the superior accuracy of the high-fidelity Computational Fluid Dynamics solver to describe the complex aerodynamics of wind turbines. The comparison for a benchmark turbine between the cases with and without aeroelastic feedback showed how significantly the coupling procedure affects the structural dynamics, especially when the blades pass in front of the tower. Conversely, the coupled fluid field was only slightly altered in the proximity of the turbine. Moreover, the considerable magnitude of the rotational deformations suggest their potential importance in future developments.