Optimization of Gap-to-Chord Ratio of Wells Turbine with Guide Vanes for Wave Energy Conversion

Wells turbine (WT) used for harnessing wave energy has narrow operating range and poor starting characteristics. To enhance its starting and running characteristics, guide vanes (GV) are installed upstream and downstream of the rotor. This paper studies the effect of the gap-to-chord (\(G/l_{r}\)) ratio of the WT GV on the turbine performance numerically. The work incorporates validation of the numerical simulations with experimental results and application of optimization techniques to find the optimal \(G/l_{r}\) ratio. A range for \(G/l_{r}\) ratio is suitably selected for the analysis and metamodel based on Kriging algorithm is developed. Following this, the optimization algorithm of screening is utilized to find the optimal conditions to achieve the objective function.