NACA 4415 Aerofoil: Numerical Analysis for Performance in Drag and Lift

The National Advisory Committee for Aerodynamics (NACA) 4415 aerofoil is the most widely used aerodynamic shape in wind turbine blade applications. In this study, a numerical analysis of NACA 4415 airfoil profile is done using ANSYS Software to investigate the performance of NACA 4415 airfoil profile in terms of drag and lift forces. Reynolds number (Re) and Angle of Attack (AOA) for the blade of a wind turbine are the performance parameters considered in this study. The different AOA values used in this analysis are 0°, 15°, 30°, 45°, and 60°. The Reynolds number (Re) values used are ranging from 10,000 to 200,000. The results are represented in terms of Drag coefficient (CD), Lift coefficient (CL), Drag force and Lift force. It is observed that drag and lift force increases with increase in Reynolds Number. Angle of attack is the most important parameter influencing the performance of the aerofoil shape. For 30° AOA the lift and drag is found to be maximum for all values of Reynolds numbers considered in this study. NACA 4415 gives maximum drag force of 209.2039 N and lift force of 777.25 N at 200,000 Reynolds Number for 30° Angle of Attack. A maximum percentage increment of 96.4 is observed in the drag force for Reynolds number value of 200,000 and 30° angle of attack. Similarly, in case of the lift force the maximum percentage increment observed is 70.2 for 50,000 Reynolds number and 30° AOA.