Impact of Blade Ice Coverage on Wind Turbine Power Generation Efficiency: A Combined CFD and Wind Tunnel Study

Yang Ji, Jinxiao Wang, Haiming Wen, Chenyang Liu, Yang Liu and Dayong Zhang ()
Additional contact information
Yang Ji: School of Chemical Engineering, Ocean and Life Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin 124224, China
Jinxiao Wang: School of Chemical Engineering, Ocean and Life Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin 124224, China
Haiming Wen: School of Chemical Engineering, Ocean and Life Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin 124224, China
Chenyang Liu: School of Mechanics and Aerospace Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
Yang Liu: School of Chemical Engineering, Ocean and Life Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin 124224, China
Dayong Zhang: School of Chemical Engineering, Ocean and Life Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin 124224, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 13, 1-22

Abstract: This study investigates aerodynamic degradation and power loss mechanisms in iced wind turbine blades using a hybrid methodology integrating high-fidelity CFD simulations (ANSYS Fluent, FENSAP-ICE, STAR-CCM+ with SST k-ω turbulence model and shallow-water icing theory) with controlled wind tunnel experiments (10–15 m/s). Three ice accretion types, glaze, mixed, and rime, on NACA0012 airfoils are quantified. Glaze ice at the leading edge induces the most severe degradation, reducing lift by 34.9% and increasing drag by 97.2% at 10 m/s. STAR-CCM+ analyses reveal critical pressure anomalies and ice morphology-dependent flow separation patterns. These findings inform the optimization of anti-icing strategies for cold-climate wind farms.

Keywords: wind turbine blade; ice cover; aerodynamic performance; model test; numerical simulation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/13/3448/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/13/3448/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:13:p:3448-:d:1691775

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().