TY - JOUR
TI - Wind tunnel test of an anti-icing approach by heat pipe for wind turbine bladesunder the rime ice condition
AU - Li Xiao-Juan
AU - Guo Wen-Feng
AU - Li Yan
AU - Xu Zhi
AU - Feng Fang
JN - Thermal Science
PY - 2021
VL - 25
IS - 6
SP - 4485
EP - 4493
PT - Article
AB - The icing events for the wind turbine blade is the key problem in the low  temperature conditions. Heating is considered to be the most efficient  approach to prevent from the ice formation on the turbine blade surface.  However, this kind of method consumes a certain amount of energy. In this  present study, an anti-icing method, using the heat pipe technology, is  proposed to prevent from icing on the blade surface, and the anti-icing  energy is from the waste heat generated during the operation of a wind  turbine, which can reduce the assumption of the energy. The researches on  the anti-icing temperature characteristics of the test model, based on the  heat pipe anti-icing method, are carried out in an icing wind tunnel  combining with the low natural temperature. The effects of the wind speed  and heat source temperature on the heat transfer of heat pipes are  investigated. The icing distribution and the temperature change of the  anti-icing process of an airfoil with NACA0018 are explored, and the  variation of the icing thickness of the airfoil with icing time, under the  different heat source temperature conditions, is analyzed. The results  indicate that the blade surface temperature, which is lower than 0°C, is  more beneficial to the heat transfer of the heat pipe, and the ice  prevention, based on the heat transfer of the heat pipe, can achieve a  better anti-icing effect.