Investigation of Flow Over an Airfoil Using a Hybrid Detached Eddy Simulation–Algebraic Stress Turbulence Model

Abstract

Turbulent air flow over an NACA 4412 airfoil is investigated computationally. To overcome the near-wall inaccuracies of higher order turbulence models such as large Eddy simulation (LES) and detached Eddy simulation (DES), it is proposed to couple DES with algebraic stress model (ASM). Angles of attack (AoA) of 0 and 14 deg are studied for an airfoil subjected to flow with Re = 1.6 × 106. Distribution of the pressure coefficient at airfoil surface and the chordwise velocity component at four locations near the trailing edge are determined. Results of the baseline DES and hybrid DES–ASM models are compared against published data. It is demonstrated that the proposed hybrid model can slightly improve the flow predictions made by the DES model. Findings of this research can be used for the improvement of the near-wall flow predictions for wind turbine applications.