Projects

Vortex Induced Vibration (VIV) arises in bluff bodies placed in a cross-flow when cyclic loads are imparted on the body due to vortices shed from the body. Although VIV is considered a nuisance in engineered structures such as buildings and bridges, recent focus has identified the feasibility of VIV in harnessing energy from hydro-kinetic energy sources such as rivers and oceans. An energy convertor using VIV has the advantage of capturing the abundant hydro-kinetic energy available in low-speed currents such as oceans and rivers without using dams, and can have an increased power density when systems of multiple cylinders are employed.

VIV of a pair of tandem bluff bodies is of interest in this project in order to harness hydro-kinetic energy. The upstream body serves as an energy concentrator and increases the VIV experienced by the downstream body. An optimal coupling of the spatially and temporally concentrated energy from the upstream stationary body and the downstream vibrating body will result in VIV being considered as a viable form of renewable energy. This project aims to further the understanding of spatial and temporal hydro-kinetic energy concentration by bluff bodies, and identify an efficient system configuration capable of harnessing the augmented energy. This research will be accomplished using computational fluid dynamics simulations as well as experiments in the water channel.