Numerical simulation of the viscous flow around duct of tidal turbine

Under the background of global energy shortage, more and more attention is paid to the utilization of tidal energy resource, for it is a safe and clean energy. The energy density of natural tidal flow is usually so low, that if without taking any actions, it is very difficult to utilize it efficiently. The present study focuses on the hydrodynamic performance of different forms of the duct which could accelerate the velocity of tidal flow by solving Reynolds-average Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. Viscous flow field is numerical simulated and some flow features are obtained which is very useful to make evaluation of the performance in duct design.