Navier-Stokes Computations of the NREL Airfoil Using a κ — ω Turbulent Model at High Angles of Attack

Abstract

This paper presents a two-dimensional numerical simulation of the turbulent flow fields for the NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) S809 airfoil. The flow is modeled as steady, viscous, turbulent, and incompressible. The pseudo-compressible formulation is used for the time-averaged Navier-Stokes equations so that a time marching scheme developed for the compressible flow can be applied directly. The turbulent flow is simulated using Wilcox’s modified κ — ω model to account for the low Reynolds number effects near a solid wall and the model’s sensitivity to the freestream conditions. The governing equations are solved by an implicit approximate-factorization scheme. To correctly model the convection terms in the mean-flow and turbulence model equations, the symmetric TVD (Total Variational Diminishing) scheme is incorporated. The methodology developed is then applied to analyze the NREL S809 airfoil at various angles of attack (α) from 1 to 45 degrees. The accuracy of the numerical results is compared with the available Delft wind tunnel test data. For comparison, two Eppler code results at low angles of attack are also included. Depending on the value of α, preliminary results show excellent to fairly good agreement with the experimental data. Directions for future work are also discussed.