This paper presents the last developments of a three-dimensional numerical tool used to model both the performance and the wake of marine current turbines. The numerical tool developed at the LOMC laboratory (Le Havre, France) consists of a Lagrangian mesh-free particle method (Vortex Method), in which vortical particles are emitted at the trailing edge of the blades and convected in the wake of the turbines. Results on a single turbine are presented and compared to experimental data. In order to point out the interaction effects between turbines, computations on multiple devices are also carried out.
A focus on a twin devices configuration is presented, for which the turbines are aligned with the flow direction and comparable experimental data are available. The last results obtained on this configuration are shown with a particular attention on how the efficiency and the wake of the turbines can be influenced by the interaction effects. These results will be helpful for the future modelling of more complex turbine arrays.
Keywords: Marine current turbines,
