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ACENET – Computational Fluid Dynamics on Supercomputers: Large Eddy Simulation and Renewable Energy Systems

ETS Program Manager, ACENET

Date: Wednesday 4 October, 2023
Time: 11:00 am to 12:00 pm
Venue: In-Person

Abstract

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a discipline that can be applied far across the engineering spectrum. Whilst it can be challenging to use in practice, it also has the potential for great rewards especially when coupled with supercomputing, also known as high performance computing (HPC). With HPC, simulations can recreate physical systems at a scale far beyond what is practical to model or measure experimentally. These simulations require computing hardware orders of magnitude more powerful than a workstation to run, with specialized numerical solvers and techniques for analysis of results.Z

This talk details work by Dr Creech, who has researching renewable energy systems for almost two decades, using CFD and supercomputing to create the computational models to do so. This starts off with why the realistic simulation of wind farms are essential for understanding the interconnection between performance, reliability and wake effects, before moving on to turbulence modelling techniques such as Large Eddy Simulation, and the two-way coupled torque-controlled turbine models used to simulate the individual response of turbines within array layouts. The talk then finishes on tidal energy, and the engineering challenges that turbines face in such a hostile environment. It shows how supercomputing was used to understand those challenges, and what HPC-scale Large Eddy Simulations of turbine fluid-structure interactions, and the Grand Passage tidal strait, have revealed so far.

Speaker Biography

Dr. Angus Creech joined ACENET as an HPC technical solutions specialist in 2022. He is an adjunct professor at the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Acadia University, and also at the Department of Oceanography, HÂþ»­ University. He holds a PhD in Computational Fluid Dynamics from Heriot-Watt University, an MSc in Image Processing and a BSc(Hons) in Computational Physics, both from the University of Edinburgh. His research interests are in computational fluid dynamics, Large Eddy Simulation turbulence modelling, high performance computing and their application to renewable energy systems and coastal dynamics.

Contact Person:
Prof. Floris Goerlandt
email: floris.goerlandt@dal.ca

General Enquiry:
Ms. Susan Russell McGrath
Tel: 902.494.3125
email: iegrad@dal.ca