Expert Details
Wind Energy, Wind Turbine Design, Aircraft Icing and Anti-icing, Wind Turbine Icing, and Aerodynamics
ID: 723608
Canada
• Performance prediction and design purposes
• Numerical simulation of the aircraft and wind turbine icing in conditions specific to the rime and glaze types of accretion, including those related to the Supercooled Large Droplets (SLD), and
• Numerical modeling of the hot-air and electro-thermal based aircraft anti-icing systems.
Expert has also carried out studies in unsteady aerodynamics, focused especially on the dynamic stall phenomenon which occurs on wind turbine and helicopter rotor blades, did research, based on numerical tools, on the stability of the boundary layer flow, including transition prediction and control of the laminar boundary layer on airfoils and finite span wings. Expert has performed CFD research regarding the aircraft drag prediction and reduction at subsonic and transonic speeds.
In connection to his research on wind turbine aerodynamics, Expert studied the flow around airfoils at low Reynolds numbers and large and very large angles of attack (0 to 360 degrees), building a database with the aerodynamic characteristics of some of the airfoils which are widely used in the vertical axis wind turbine design (NACA symmetric series, Sandia Natural Laminar series). In what regards the aerodynamic characteristics of the finite span wings one must mention his expertise in the area of the variable-geometry delta configurations, on which he performed theoretical research and conducted wind tunnel tests. Based on the results of those studies, he applied for and obtained two patents.
Expert coded and used panel-type numerical methods for the computation of the flow around single and multi-element airfoils. He incorporated these aerodynamic analysis tools in the icing simulation code CANICE. Developed in two-dimensional and three-dimensional versions CANICE is one of the five codes accepted worldwide for aircraft icing and anti-icing simulation, being currently used in Canada in the aircraft certification process for flight in icing conditions. One of the most significant results of his work in the flow stability analysis area is the code SCOLIC. This performs numerical analysis of the boundary layer stability for two and three-dimensional flows and predicts the location of the laminar to turbulent transition. A major aeronautical company uses SCOLIC to compute stability characteristics of the flow on lifting surfaces (wings, empennages) and to determine the position where the strips used in forced transition tests should be installed on the wings of their wind tunnel models.
Expert has published 6 books and textbooks on fluid mechanics and subsonic aerodynamics. For over 25 years he has taught courses in fluid mechanics, subsonic aerodynamics and unsteady aerodynamics at undergraduate and graduate levels. These courses include comprehensive chapters on analytical and numerical methods for the computation of the aerodynamic characteristics of airfoils and finite span wings. He also successfully directed a team involved in applied aerodynamic research in collaboration with a prominent partner of the aeronautical industry.
Expert enjoys a good reputation in the wind energy community for his significant contributions to the theory of the aerodynamic performance of the Darrieus vertical-axis wind turbines. For this type of wind energy converters, he proposed the double-multiple streamtube (DMST) model that allows the computation of the energy (and power) extracted from the wind by a VAWT with known geometric and operational characteristics. This model is being used by: Sandia National Laboratories (Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA), FloWind Inc. (San Rafael, California, USA), Atlantic Wind Test Site (Prince Edward Island, Canada), Delft Technical University and Ecofys Engineering Co. (Netherlands) and by Tottori University, Tokai University and Showa Denki Co.(in Japan) in their wind turbine analysis and design studies. Based on the DMST model, Expert developed several versions of the CARDAAV computer code, for the prediction of the aerodynamic characteristics, wind loads on turbine blades and the performances of the Darrieus-type rotor. Starting with the CARDAA version, the code was constantly improved. Following the implementation of several important corrections, including the dynamic stall (four models are now available) and the influence of the main secondary effects (tower wake, struts and aerodynamic brakes drag) CARDAAV has continuously gained in precision and reliability. To its previous options, Expert added recently the possibility to compute the performances of straight bladed H-type rotors provided with variable pitch systems able to reduce the power losses due to the dynamic stall or having inclined blades, for improved self-starting qualities.
For several years, Expert has been carrying on research on the use of the vertical axis wind turbines in built environments. In relation to this work, he conducted numerical simulations to determine the wind characteristics in urban areas, near or on top of buildings and developed a modified version of the DMST model for the analysis of the aerodynamic characteristics and the performances of a H-Darrieus rotor that operates in skewed wind conditions. By coupling CARDAAV to a genetic algorithm optimizer he developed an optimization tool, including geometric and structural constraints, which is very efficient and useful for design purposes.
For many years, Expert acted as a consultant for major companies and research centers in USA and Europe on problems related to wind turbine aerodynamics, performance prediction and optimal design. Rated by one of the most important reviewers in the wind energy domain as being “probably the definitive work on Darrieus technology," his book on the Darrieus wind turbine design, one of the few that exist on this subject, was also translated into Japanese. As a direct consequence of his hands-on experience in the wind energy domain, he is also a respected specialist in the problems concerning the economic, environmental and social aspects of the wind power.
He was invited in 2004 to work for nine months as a consulting scientist in the Renevable Energy Laboratory of the Tottori University in JapanSince 2001, Expert has been a consultant for the design of new vertical axis wind turbines developed by ECOFYS Co. in Utrecht, Netherlands.Starting from 1990, as a Chair holder, he provided technical advice to Bombardier Aerospace Co. in aircraft icing & anti-icing, boundary layer stability and control and aerodynamic drag prediction.For over 15 years (1981 - 1996) he collaborated with SANDIA National Laboratories, Wind Energy Division, as a consultant on vertical axis wind turbine aerodynamics, and participated to periodic technical meetings regarding the ongoing and future research projects in wind energy.
Education
| Year | Degree | Subject | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year: 1974 | Degree: PhD | Subject: Aerodynamics | Institution: Polytechnic University of Bucharest |
| Year: 1965 | Degree: BS | Subject: Aerospace Engineering | Institution: Polytechnic University of Bucharest |
Work History
| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 1984 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: Professor | Department: Mechanical Engineering |
Responsibilities:Bombardier Aeronautical and Chair Professor (1990-2005).Leader of a research group including 2 research associates, 3 graduate students and several undergraduates. Currently teaching undergraduate and graduate courses on Subsonic and Unsteady Aerodynamics, Fluid Dynamics, and Wind Turbines. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1979 to 1984 | Employer: IREQ (Research Institute of Hydro-Quebec) | Title: Senior Scientist | Department: Energy Production |
Responsibilities:Conducted research on the Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT). Developed an original computer code for calculating aerodynamic loads and performance of VAWT. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1984 to 1985 | Employer: IREQ (Research Institute of Hydro-Quebec) | Title: Expert Consulting | Department: Energy Production |
Responsibilities:Provided technical advices on the Wind Energy Projects of the Research Institute of Hydro-Quebec. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1976 to 1979 | Employer: Ecole Polytechnique Montreal | Title: Research Associate | Department: Mechanical Engineering |
Responsibilities:Involved in the research projects on the aircraft wing with variable geometry and wind energy. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1973 to 1976 | Employer: Polytechnic University of Bucharest | Title: Lecturer | Department: Mechanical Engineering |
Responsibilities:Taught undergraduate courses on solid mechanics and fluid mechanics. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1967 to 1973 | Employer: Polytechnic University of Bucharest | Title: Assistant Professor | Department: Mechanical Engineering |
Responsibilities:Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at this university. |
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Government Experience
| Years | Agency | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 1998 to Present | Agency: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) | Role: Reviewer | Description: Since 1998, Expert has been continuously involved in the review of research proposals submitted to NSERC for funding (about 12), in domains related to his main expertise areas. |
| Years: 1999 to 2003 | Agency: FCAR Quebec | Role: Reviewer | Description: He evaluated research proposal submitted for funding to the Quebec Research Agency |
| Years: 1993 to 1995 | Agency: SANDIA National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, USA | Role: Expert consulting | Description: He developed a new 2D dynamic stall model to be used in the aerodynamic analysis of the Vertical Axis Wind Turbines. |
International Experience
| Years | Country / Region | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Years: 2004 to 2005 | Country / Region: Japan | Summary: In 2004 the Expert was invited to perform research work, during a sabbatical leave, in the Laboratories of Tottori University, Japan. Involved research was primarily related to the study of the influence of the periodically varying wind and the blade inclination angle on the performances of straight-bladed vertical axis wind turbines. |
| Years: 2005 to 2005 | Country / Region: Moldova | Summary: For over four months, Expert collaborated with a research team from the Technical University of Moldova to improve the dynamic-stall models which are included in the vertical axis wind turbine computer codes. |
| Years: 1982 to 1990 | Country / Region: France | Summary: For more than eight years, Expert conducted several series of experiments at IMST Marseilles, France, on the structure of the flow through a Darrieus H-type rotor, using LDV measurements and flow visualization techniques. |
| Years: 1981 to 1996 | Country / Region: USA, New Mexico | Summary: SANDIA National Laboratories, Wind Energy Division -- Expert used the aerodynamic and performance prediction computer programs developed by the expert for designing Darrieus wind turbines and invited him to assist with the codes implementation and training. |
Career Accomplishments
| Associations / Societies |
|---|
| AIAA Associate Fellow (1998), CASI (Canadian Aero Space Institute), Order of Engineers of Quebec (1979), American Romanian Academy of Arts and Sciences (ARA) Member (1988) and President (1998) |
| Licenses / Certifications |
|---|
| P.E. (Order of Engineers of Quebec) |
| Professional Appointments |
|---|
| Associate Editor of International Journal of Rotating Machinery; President of the American Romanian Academy of Arts and Sciences (ARA) |
| Awards / Recognition |
|---|
| He holds 6 titles of Doctor Honoris Causa, Prix d'Excelence from Employer Prix du Ministre for his book Prize for Oustanding Collaborative University-Industry Research -- AIAC Aerospace Forum, Ottawa 2000 |
| Publications and Patents Summary |
|---|
| He has published: over 250 journal articles, conference proceedings papers and technical reports, 1 patent and 6 books on Subsonic Aerodynamics, Wind Turbine Design and one book proposal on Aircraft Icing. |
Language Skills
| Language | Proficiency |
|---|---|
| English | Write, read, speak at a conference level |
| French | Write, read, speak at a university teaching and research level |
| Romanian | Mother tongue |
| Russian | Read and write (less fluent in speech) |
Fields of Expertise
fluid dynamics, aerodynamic characteristics, applied aerodynamics, aircraft icing, wind turbine icing, wind energy, wind energy system, wind load, wind, wind turbine design, airflow visualization, air transportation, low surface tension, pressure drop, variable geometry aircraft, fluid behavior, fluid compressibility, fluid system dynamics, gas property, critical speed, laser Doppler anemometer, renewable resource, hydrostatic pressure, aeronautical engineering, fluid compression, home wind energy, airframe design, fluid channel, mass flow quantity, terminal velocity, laminar flow, aircraft design, thin liquid film-gas flow interaction, turbulent boundary layer drag reduction, perturbed turbulent boundary layer, turbulent boundary layer, interfacial tension, wind turbine generator, drag reduction, fluid mechanics mathematical modeling, interfacial fluid mechanics, fluid boundary layer, energy-efficient wind water pumping, wind measurement, internal fluid mechanics, liquid state mechanics, gas mechanics, renewable energy system, Bernoulli equation, water flow, wake, vortex, viscosity, turbulent flow, pneumatics, pipe flow, Newtonian flow, Navier-Stokes equation, liquid flow through a nozzle, liquid flow, hydrostatics, hydromechanics, friction, fluid mechanics modeling, fluid mechanics, fluid flow measurement, energy conservation, drag, Bernoulli theorem, aircraft, air motor, air flow, aerospace engineering