Comparative Numerical Analysis of Flat and Round Tips on Aerodynamic Efficiency and Performance in IEA 10MW Wind Turbine Blades

Wind turbines efficiently convert wind energy into electricity, and the design of the blades plays a crucial role in their performance. Specifically, the blade tip design significantly impacts turbine efficiency. Currently, most turbines numerically studied feature flat tips. Not many high fidelity CFD studies are reported for the inclusion of winglets in the numerical simulations. Winglets are actually helping in good wake recovery and noise reduction. The present study examines the IEA 10MW turbine blade for tip modifications. Initially a flat tip is numerically studied using OpenFOAM v2306 with two different turbulence models such as Spallart Allmaras (SA) and SST k-ω, the results are compared with BEM results. Later, a comparison is made between flat-tip and winglets tip. The rounded tips designed as winglet-like shapes introduced in both upstream and downstream directions at two different heights of 1 % R and 2 % R. The findings reveal that the downstream winglet with 2 % R height tip improved turbine performance by 0.2 % compared to flat tip.