Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

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Ocean Engineering
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/oceaneng

Optimization of Wells turbine performance using a hybrid artificial neural

fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) - Genetic algorithm (GA)
Ali Mahrooghi, Esmail Lakzian *
Center of Computational Energy, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, Iran

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Renewable energy resources are considered as alternative sources of energy for future generations. Wells turbines
Wells turbine can be used to convert the reciprocating energy of waves in oceans and seas into rotational energy. Low aero­
Parallel optimization dynamic efficiency is the main drawback of Wells turbines. The present study showed that the addition of the
Artificial neural fuzzy inference system
guide vanes, endplate, or end ring to the base blade significantly enhanced the performance of Wells turbines.
Genetic algorithm
Also, we used ANFIS-GA-CFD for optimization of the several design variables (the blade tip thickness, the blade
form, and the input-output angels of guide vanes) simultaneously. Therefore, artificial neural fuzzy networks
were used to forecast the three benchmark parameters (pressure drop coefficient, torque coefficient, and effi­
ciency) and a genetic algorithm was utilized to approximate the optimized design variables when there are
maximum torque, maximum efficiency, and minimum pressure drop. The optimal blade increased the upper limit
of efficiency up to 18%, torque coefficient up to 8%, and reduced the pressure drop coefficient up to almost
3.45% compared to the best previous models. Moreover, flow separation was delayed.

1. Introduction
According to the United Nations International Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) report on climate change challenges, the status quo
should be quickly changed into using renewable energy resources. Some
policies have been made in China, the European Union (EU), and the US
for a rapid decrease in CO2 emissions.
In March 2007, the EU set a target of increasing the share of
renewable energies to 20% by 2020. The Danish government has
recently proposed the target of 30% renewable energy for 2025. The
Wells turbine is a machine that can be used to harvest the ocean wave
energy as a renewable source of energy, attracting the attention of many
scientists in the past decade; nevertheless, the low efficiency of the Wells
turbine, which is affected by many factors, still remains a major chal­
lenge to be addressed. Methods of increasing efficiency have been well
addressed in literature; nevertheless, few studies have been conducted to
optimize the Wells turbine performance. The turbine blade’s shape is a
design parameter that can be optimized to enhance efficiency and raise
the output power (Lund and Mathiesen, 2009).
Raghunathan et al. (1995) evaluated the Islay Wells turbine perfor­
mance using simple prediction techniques and compared the results
with the measurements. The discrepancy of results was found to be
associated with the rotor entry flow being far from uniform due to the
potential separation at the hub. The results suggested that streamlining
of the flow at the rotor inlet and outlet can be used to optimize the
turbine efficiency by deferring stalling phenomenon. Curran and Gato
(1997) investigated and compared different designs of the Wells turbine
in terms of the overall performance. They found the largest part of the
losses to be related to viscous losses in the rotors and specific operational
ranges to be associated with the recovery techniques. Compared to a
monoplane turbine with guide vanes, the operational range of a
contra-rotating turbine was similar, and its efficiency was at the peak,
while its damping ratio was much higher and its post-stalling perfor­
mance much more improved. Setoguchi et al. (2001) used numerical
simulations and model testing to examine the performance of a fixed
guide vane impulse turbine and an impulse turbine with
self-pitch-controlled guide vanes. They compared the results with those
associated with the Wells turbine. They found that the impulse turbine
with self-pitch controlled linked guide vanes outperforms the fixed
guide vane impulse turbine, which, in turn, outperforms the Wells tur­
bine for irregular flow rates.
Hashem et al. (2018) stated that water flow is preferred to air flow as
a working fluid because the generated torque by water flow is more than
airflow. The efficiency of hydraulic Wells turbine was less dependent on
the shape of airfoil compared to the kind of the working fluid and the

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: e.lakzian@hsu.ac.ir (E. Lakzian).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2021.108861
Received 25 September 2020; Received in revised form 25 January 2021; Accepted 7 March 2021
Available online 23 March 2021
0029-8018/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian
Nomenclature
Symbols
C Blade cord length (m)
P∗ Pressure drop coefficient
ΔP0 Total pressure drop (Pa)
Q Volume flow rate (m3/s)
R Rotor tip radius (m)
T Torque (N.m)
T∗ Torque coefficient
u Velocity in the X-direction (m/s)
v Velocity in the Y-direction (m/s)
V Axial velocity (m/s)
w Velocity in the Z-direction (m/s)
W Relative velocity (m/s)
Superscripts
Fluctuating component
′
()
(− ) Mean component
amount of solidity. The pressure drop coefficient was almost constant for
every flow coefficient. Webster and Gato (1999) studied the impact of
flow type and parameters of design on the efficiency and output power
of the turbine. The power received by the blade was found to be higher
for the suction side-attached flow. Higher values of torque and efficiency
were also found to be associated with a backward swept blade over a
wider range of operation. Cui et al. (2019) stated that the grid density
close to the airfoil and the amount of Y + play a significant role in the
amount of numerical simulation errors. Moreover, Wells turbine effi­
ciency is very dependent on mesh quality compared to the impulse
turbine.
Kim et al. (2002) investigated how the Wells turbine performance is
affected by geometric parameters such as blade geometry. The blade
shape has also been modified to alter its performance and efficiency.
Thakker et al. (2005) improved the efficiency of an impulse turbine
using guide vanes. They also obtained hysteric characteristics with
random and sinusoidal inlet flow conditions from the empirical findings
of the turbine. Moreover, they found the turbine performance to
significantly improve during the inlet flow deceleration compared to the
acceleration occurring in a half cycle of the sinusoidal wave. NACA0015
airfoil has several advantages for Wells turbine blade compared to the
other constant thickness airfoils. Shehata et al. (2016) showed that
NACA0015 airfoil offers less global entropy generation rate and higher
efficiency compared to the other constant thickness airfoils. Moreover,
NACA0015 airfoil generates more torque and efficiency and lower
pressure drop.
Takao et al. (2006) experimentally tested the model under steady
flow conditions. They found out that the Wells turbine equipped with
endplates has better characteristics than those of the original Wells
turbine, and these characteristics depend on both the position and size of
the endplates. Kumar and Samad (2019) added a Gurney flap to the
airfoil. They showed the Gurney flap produced a vortex behind the
trailing edge and increased blade loading, lift, torque, and efficiency;
however, it raised pressure drop when the flap height was less than 1.5%
chord length. Also, Kumar et al. (2019) stated that the relative average
power and the relative operating range of Wells turbine were increased
by variable thickness blade, and extended trailing edge blade, however,
the average efficiency decreased due to an increase in pressure drop.
The solidity of guide vanes and the rotor has been proven to improve
the pneumatic performance of air turbines significantly. The effects of
the solidity of guide vanes and blades on the operation of the Wells
turbine and impulse turbine have been reflected in many reports and
articles. As discussed elsewhere, a summary of the impacts of both the
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Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861
Abbreviations
ANFIS Artificial Neural Fuzzy Inference System
B Simple Blade
ETB End Thickness of Blade
GA Genetic Algorithm
GV Blade with Guide Vane
GVEP Blade with Guide Vane and Endplate
GVER Blade with Guide Vane and End Ring
IAG Inlet Angle of Guide vane
KB Kind of Blade
OAG Outlet Angle of Guide vanes
Greek symbols
α Angle of attack (0)
η Efficiency
μ Dynamic viscosity (Pa.s)
ρ Air density (kg/m3 )
Flow coefficient
ϕ
ω Angular velocity (rad/s)
blade profile and the rotor solidity on the performance of the Wells
turbine was provided in under unsteady unidirectional flow conditions
(Thakker and Abdulhadi, 2007).
Taha et al. (2011) showed that the tip clearance could significantly
affect the turbine operation. Increasing the ratio of the tip clearance to
the chord length lowered the turbine peak efficiency, shifted it toward
higher flow coefficients, and widened the stalling margin. They also
investigated the flow-field surrounding the turbine blades and found the
tip leakage flow to constitute a deciding factor of the boundary layer
separation, later affecting the turbine stalling. The tip leakage flow
produced a vortex with both a positive and a negative effect on the
performance of the turbine. Taha et al. (Taha and SugiyonoSawada,
2010) investigated the leakage flow from the blade tips as well as its
effects on the turbine output with either a non-uniform or uniform tip
clearance. Halder et al. (2018) investigated the role of the grooved
casing, sweep of the blade, the accelerating flow, and the decelerating
flow in the Wells turbine efficiency. They proved the grooved casing,
increased the efficiency, and decreased the flow separation. Moreover,
they showed that the separation phenomenon in the accelerating flow
occurred more than the decelerating flow, and the unsteady flow is
largely dependent upon the amount of groove in comparison with the
change of the blade thickness and blade profile. Mohamed and Shaaban
(2014) explored the impact of the blade pitch angle on enhancing the
turbine efficiency. They numerically optimized the shape of the airfoil to
enhance tangential forces.
Invented in the 1970s, the axial-flow Wells turbine was the most
commonly-used self-rectifying turbine in OWC plants. The configuration
of the Wells turbine has been modernized and improved in literature.
The three-dimensional blade profile was optimized by Takasaki et al.
(2014). They increased the maximum efficiency yet failed to prevent
stalling. Different types of multi-plane and single-plane Wells turbines
have been examined and compared. The overall performance and
aerodynamic losses of these turbines were investigated by presenting
two successful detailed swirl energy recovery methods. The rotor of the
biplane turbine was contra-rotated, while guide vanes were fitted into
the monoplane turbine, and a twin-shaft biplane turbine was examined.
The contra-rotating turbine outperformed in the post-stalling area and
had a much greater pressure-to-flow ratio compared with the mono­
plane turbine with guide vanes, although its operational range and peak
efficiency were similar to that of the other turbine (Gato and Curran,
1996). Also, Mamun et al. (2004) proved that the monoplane turbine
with the hysteretic behavior is contrary to the dynamic stall of the blade.
For the biplane case, the hysteretic behavior was similar to the
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

monoplane at lower attack angles. Table 1

Multi-objective optimization of the blade sweep was performed by Rotor specifications of Wells turbine (Curran and Gato, 1997).
Halder et al. (2017) for the Wells turbine. The selected design variables Outer casing diameter 590 mm
included the blade-sweep parameters at the tip and mid sections. They Hub diameter 400 mm
found out that increasing efficiency is not necessarily associated with Inner/Outer diameter ratio 0.680
Blade NACA 0015
increasing the maximum torque. Torresi et al. (2008) studied the effects
Number of blade 8
of the tip leakage flow and simulated the tip clearance region. They Blade chord 125 mm
showed that the leakage flow decreases the maximum torque coefficient, Tip clearance 1 mm
avoids the separation at the blade tip, and improves the reliability of the
computed turbine performance. Cui et al. (2015) illustrated that the
staggered turbine is better than the conventional one for the asymmet­ Table 2
rical air flows. Moreover, efficiency and output-work in a wave period Meshing and boundary conditions of Wells turbine in present study.
are compared with another unsymmetrical twin impulse turbine system.
Parameter Description
The results show that the staggered turbine shows better performance
than the twin turbine system for more than the high flow coefficient Flow domain Single turbine
Interface Rotational periodic
domain (φ > 0.7). Liu et al. (2016) showed that the several shapes of the Mesh/Nature Structured
duct augmentation developed the turbine performance. The duct Nodes 1.93 million
augmentation significantly increased the power and torque output. Fluid nature Air
Moreover, the elliptic shape enhanced the performance of the turbine. Turbulence model Realizable k-ε
Inlet Uniform inlet velocity
Cui and Hyun (2016) investigated the effect of adding endplate and ring
Outlet Area averaged static pressure
to airfoil on non-dimensional coefficients, input coefficient, torque co­ Hub, tip and blade No-slip
efficient, and efficiency under steady-state conditions. They came to the Residual convergence value 10− 6
conclusion that the ring type is a better type compared to the other ones, Turbine rotational speed 2000 rpm
and efficiency increased up to 16% in comparison with the original case. Mass imbalance 0.001%
The ANFIS technique was developed by Jang (1993), in 1993. This
technique could overcome the shortcomings of the ANNs as well as fuzzy
controlling the dynamic frameworks. Hsiao and Tsai (2005) made the
systems. The fuzzy part of the ANFIS is made by input and output var­
fuzzy neural organization model utilizing genetic algorithms in training
iables, membership functions, fuzzy rules, and inference method. The
the fundamental qualities in the network of Hsiao and Hung-Cheng.
simple forms of the artificial neural networks (ANNs) cannot present any
Different models can be seen in the audit completed by Cordon et al.
explicit knowledge or causal relationships for a system (which is
(2001). Because of unforeseen changes in the speed of wind and the need
considered their major disadvantage) (Mellit et al., 2013). Calp and
for a quick response from the controller, they had to use the
Hanefi (Calp, 2019) offered their findings on the hybrid ANFIS-GA
Sugeno-Takagi method instead of Mamdani. Moreover, the speed of data
model as well as the Artificial Neural Network (ANN). They obviously
analysis was faster in the Sugeno-Takagi method compared to the
demonstrate that ANFIS model shows a high level of predictive perfor­
Mamdani. The Sugeno-Takagi regulator coefficients can be gotten better
mance with a low error level. Hence, it is possible to easily use the
utilizing ANFIS. Nonetheless, an enhancement pattern is required for
hybrid approaches such as ANFIS-GA for the purpose of predicting the
situations where yields are not referred to heretofore as in wind turbine
complicated problems. Ying and Pan (2008) could show that the ANFIS
pitch point control. Utilizing genetic algorithm in optimization, it would
model offers a better forecasting performance in comparison with
be possible to use the great capacity of genetic algorithm for various
regression model, artificial neural network (ANN) model, support vector
variables applied simultaneously. Nonetheless, distributed writing
machines with genetic algorithms (SVMG) model, recurrent support
about the enhancement of the regulators dependent on the problem
vector machines with genetic algorithms (RSVMG) model, and hybrid
prerequisites, being the second significant thing following the regulator
ellipsoidal fuzzy systems for time series forecasting (HEFST) model.
plan, is restricted. Inside this restricted writing, Taher et al. (2013)
Therefore, in terms of forecasting, the ANFIS model could be considered
enhanced direct quadratic Gaussian (LQG) regulator utilizing differen­
a promising choice. The primary papers were about fuzzy neural nets
tial development (DE) calculation. The estimation is very significant to
where the creators summed up the McCulloch Pitts model by utilizing
save time and money in a mining task, which is studied as a test for the
moderate values somewhere in the range of zero and one (Lee and Lee,
geologists. To conquer this issue, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and
1974). One of the main advantages of Evolutionary Computing is that it
Fuzzy Logic (FL) have been utilized with different structures, and a
is thoughtfully straightforward and simple to utilize (Fogel, 1997). The
Genetic Algorithm (GA) is used to optimize the parameters for solving
combination of neural nets was examined by Yamakawa’s fuzzy neuron.
this complex optimization issue. The results showed that the mix method
The creators added fuzzy membership functions to the perceptron
reduced errors (Tahmasebi and Hezarkhani, 2012).
(Keller and Hunt, 1985). Looking for the intelligible cooperative energy
This study has investigated the effect of adding guide vanes, end­
between the preparation limit of artificial neural networks and the
plate, and end ring to reduce the leakage flow, vortex generation, and
chance of illustrating the issues, models that utilize the better of the two
separation. Consequently, the Wells turbine characteristics associated
ideas to frame hybrid models are called fuzzy neural networks or
with simple blades (B), blades with fixed guide vanes (GV), blades with
neuro-fuzzy models (Lin and Lee, 1996). These models have been
fixed guide vanes and an end ring on the blade tip (GVER), and blade
available in the writing since the 1960s and have been acting progres­
with fixed guide vanes and an endplate on the blade tip (GVEP) are
sively and proficiently in tackling different issues in our general public
simulated and evaluated by the benchmark parameters.
(Buckley and Hayashi, 1994). Civelek (2020) studied on the fuzzy
Then, considering four design variables (airfoil tip thickness, guide
controller for nonlinearities systems that were appropriate for the con­
vanes input and output angles, and the kind of airfoil), three artificial
trols of the wind turbine blade. He designed a fuzzy controller and
neural fuzzy networks were used to forecast three benchmark pentam­
optimized it with a genetic algorithm for the pitch angle of the blade,
eters (efficiency, torque coefficient, and pressure drop coefficient), and a
and wind speeds were to obtain the optimal operation and the output
genetic algorithm was utilized to optimize the cost function, in order to
power of the wind turbines. Zhang and Tao (2017) utilized the
gain the most optimal state of design based on the benchmark param­
Takagi-Sugeno (T-S) type fuzzy, and a genetic algorithm creates changes
eters. Thus, the investigation of the results showed that the optimal state
in the model design. Farag et al. (1998) utilized a trained neuro-fuzzy
(the GVER with the special blade ring thickness, and unique input and
methodology with genetic algorithms for demonstrating and

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 1. The Oscillating water column (OWC) (a), the Wells turbine (b) (Shehata et al., 2016).

Fig. 2. Velocity diagrams of the Wells turbine (Falcão and Henriques, 2016).

output angles of guide vanes) increased the efficiency and torque co­
efficients and reduced the pressure drop coefficient significantly.
Moreover, flow separation was delayed (see Fig. 1).
2. Turbine geometry
Table 1 presents the characteristics of the reference turbine geome­
try, and Fig. 3 shows the schematic of the Wells turbine. According to
Fig. 4, a single-blade profile and fixed GV domains cause a decrease in
computational costs and time. The guide vanes were added to the
original turbine to improve the attack angle and enhance the efficiency
of the turbine. To reduce the negative effects of the leakage flow on the
tip blade, endplate or end ring were installed on the tip of rotor blade.
Fig. 5 also shows the turbine with the simple blade and guide vanes
(GV), guide vanes and endplate (GVEP) as well as guide vanes and end
ring (GVER). The reference geometry of the Wells turbine with eight
rotor blades (with/without fixed guide vanes) was shown based on a
study by Curran and Gato (1997). The reference geometry comprises
NACA0015 airfoil as the base blade profile (see Table 2) (see Fig. 2).

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian
Fig. 3. Schematic of the blades and shield of Wells turbine.
Fig. 4. Computational domain of the Wells turbine blade.
3. Numerical simulation
In numerical simulations, adding end ring, endplate, and guide vanes
were performed to decrease the negative impacts of leakage flow on the
tip region of Wells turbines. The present research completed all the
calculations in steady-state conditions by computational fluid dynamics
(CFD). Complex adverse pressure gradient flows and separated flows
were properly calculated using the realizable k − ε turbulence model
based on the finite volume techniques. COUPLED method needs greater
RAM memory compared to the SIMPLE method, and all the three airfoil
models of this study are 3D. Therefore, the COUPLED method increases
the computational cost a lot, and it uses more memory in comparison
with the segregated solver. SIMPLE is a classic segregated solution
method which is utilized for incompressible flows. Moreover, SIMPLE
algorithm enhances the accuracy of the numerical simulations especially
when large time steps are being used in a moving mesh (Falcão and
Henriques, 2016; Patankar and Spalding, 1983). Fig. 9, and Fig. 10 show
the high accuracy of validations among numerical and experimental
data in this study. Furthermore, the SIMPLEC scheme with a higher rate
of convergence compared to that of the SIMPLE model was selected for
the pressure-velocity coupling and a second order upwind model for the
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Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861
spatial discretization. Numerical simulations were performed by
dividing the calculation domain into five areas, namely ring plates,
endplates, downstream guide vanes, upstream guide vanes, and rotor
blades. The mass imbalance was below 0.001%, and the turbulent in­
tensity was 5%. Domains of ring plates, endplates, and rotor blades were
assumed to revolve at a constant speed, whereas, the domain of guide
vanes was assumed to be stationary. According to Fig. 6, the entire
domain is extended for eight times the chord length of blade along the
downstream direction and for four times along the upstream direction to
ensure the adequate development of airflow. The inlet velocity of the
computational domain was considered uniform, whereas, the boundary
condition of the outlet pressure was used at the outlet domain. No-slip
wall conditions were also considered for the shroud, blades, and hub
surfaces. A periodical rotation was assumed for the turbine airflow to
avoid an enormous burden of calculations resulting from modelling all
the guide vanes and blades. Periodic rotational boundaries were
considered to develop the model with two symmetrical guide vanes and
a blade. To ensure an adequate distance between the wall and the cells,
))
Y + = μy√(ρa τw was used as a non-dimensional parameter to locate the
cells lying adjacent to the wall. Y + , which depends on the Reynolds
number and the mesh resolution, was considered approximately equal to
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 5. Geometry of the Wells turbine with the simple blade and Guide Vanes (GV), Guide Vanes and EndPlate (GVEP), and Guide Vanes and End Ring (GVER).

one on the blade surface in the numerical simulations. According to

Fig. 7, three blades passages were meshed to minimize calculation costs.
Moreover, a periodic boundary condition was set on radial boundaries.
The structured mesh was also utilized all over the domain.

4. Grid study

The passage of a blade with endplate (GVEP) was meshed in

Fig. 6. Perspective view of the boundary conditions of the computa­
tional domain.
computational domains, in order to minimize the computational cost,
see Fig. 8. The structured mesh, which was produced over the whole
computational domain, allows for adding the blade tip clearance (TC =
1%). The fine high quality mesh was utilized in the near wall area, and
the blade tip was used to capture the near boundary flow physics. The
number of grids was increased in seven gradual steps from 532,746 to

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 7. Mesh generation of the Wells turbine with the simple blade and Guide Vanes (GV), Guide Vanes and EndPlate (GVEP), and Guide Vanes and End Ring (GVER).

2,130,142 cells for turbine efficiency to ensure the minimum effect of

Tω
grid size on the computational results. The numerical computation with η= (3)
ΔP0 Q
a coarse grid usually has a large deviation from the experimental results.
The grid independence test is investigated at flow coefficient equal to
Where. ϕ = VuTA = tanα
0.157. Table 3 illustrates the mesh details. As is clear, the efficiency is
Also, ρ denotes the air density, T the torque produced, Tω the power,
independent of mesh size in a number of 1.9 million cells, while main­
Q the flow rate volume, and ΔP the total pressure drop between the two
taining the Y + value is less than unity. The no-slip conditions are applied
sides of the turbine. The angular velocity is 2000 rpm. The benchmark
over the solid surfaces.
parameters are based on three dimensionless coefficients: the pressure
drop coefficient, torque coefficient, and efficiency. Several well-known
5. Validation of the numerical model
methods are available to incorporate the effects of turbulence incom­
pressible flows. The more accurate method proposed for predicting
The results are validated and compared with the experimental data
properties of the mixed flow jet is “realizablek − ε” model. This model
of Gato and Curran (Curran and Gato, 1997) and, also, compared with
relies on the Boussinesq hypothesis which is based on an eddy viscosity
others’ numerical results by the benchmark parameters. The benchmark
assumption.
is described in the form of three parameters, which can be written as:
The advantage of this approach is the relatively low computational
cost associated with the determination of the turbulent viscosity, and it
- Torque or Power coefficient:
is suitable for industrial applications. We compared the results of
T* =
T
(1) Standardk − ε, Realizablek − εk − ω, andSSTk − ω models with each
ρω2 R5 other. Finally, the results obtained by Realizablek − ε approach were in a
good agreement with experimental data of torque coefficient in stall
point. In order to get a precise selection, in “validation” section, a
comparison is carried out between different turbulence models, and the
- Pressure drop coefficient: results are presented in Table 4. As seen in Table 4, Realizablek − ε and
ΔP0 SSTk − ω provide more accurate predictions. On the other hand, with
ΔP* = (2) the Realizablek − ε model, less time is spent on the numerical solution
ρω2 R2
process. Hence, this model seems to be adequately accurate and
economic.
Fig. 9 shows the differences between the numerical and experimental
- Efficiency: results of the last studies and the present study results in the efficiency,
torque coefficient, and pressure drop coefficient charts. Although the
results of Shaban and Hafiz (Shaaban and Hafiz, 2012) were very good

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 8. High-quality structured mesh near the edges and corners on all of the computational domains.

in stall point, they did not calculate the after-stall point properly. On the shown in Figs. 11 and 12. Assume that there are four input variables (x,
other hand, Toressi et al. (Torresi et al., 2004) predicted the after-stall (ϕ y, z, and w) and one output (f). For a first-order Sugeno fuzzy model,
>0.25) very well but they could not forecast stall point correctly. Halder four if-then fuzzy rules are defined as follows:
et al. (2015), and Nazeryan and Lakzian (2018) did not figure out the
Rule1:If x is A1 , y is B1 , and z ​ is C1 then f1 = p1 x + q1 y + r1 z + S1 w + t1
whole stall point very well. But we (Mahrooghi and Lakzian) estimated
all of the domains, in stall point and over that, with the highest accuracy Rule2:If x is A2 , y is B2 , and z ​ is C2 then f2 = p2 x + q2 y + r2 z + S2 w + t2
and lowest time of calculations especially. Moreover, we compare our Rule3:If x is A3 , y is B3 , and z ​ is C3 then f3 = p3 x + q3 y + r3 z + S3 w + t3
numerical results with experimental results of Curran and Gato related
to the efficiency and pressure coefficients of Wells turbine with and Rule4:If x is A4 , y is B4 , and z ​ is C4 then f4 = p4 x + q4 y + r4 z + S4 w + t4
without guide vanes in Fig. 10. The high-quality structured mesh with 1, f=
m1 f1 + m2 f2 + m3 f3 + m4 f4
932,700 cells used in the present study caused a high satisfactory m1 + m2 + m3 + m4
coherence to be obtained between the measured and calculated data by (4)
Curran and Gatto with the present study results, especially in the stall The corresponding equivalent ANFIS architecture is as shown in
area. The obtained varying outcomes include below ±0.1% changes in Fig. 13, where nodes of the same layer have a similar function, as
the pressure drop, ±0.8% changes in the turbine efficiency and ±0.3% described next:
changes in the turbine torque.
Layer 1 Each node has a special node function. (Here we present the
6. The artificial neural fuzzy network (ANFIS) and genetic output of ith node in layer l asOl,i .)
algorithm (GA)
Ol,i = μAi (x), for i = 1, 2, or
In this part, the structure used for the steps of process data, and Ol,i = μBi− 2 (y), for i = 3, 4, or
(5)
output of the artificial neural fuzzy network, and genetic algorithm are Ol,i = μCi− 4 (z), for i = 5, 6, or
Ol,i = μDi− 6 (w), for i = 7, 8

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 9. Comparison between experimental and numerical results of Wells turbine simple blade.

Fig. 10. Comparison between experimental and numerical results of B and GV Wells turbine by Curran and Gato (Curran and Gato, 1997).

Table 3
Grid independency test at ϕ = 0.157.
No of cells 532,746 846,532 1,123,254 1,399,076 1,676,698 1,932,700 2,130,142
Efficiency 0.527 0.561 0.576 0.580 0.582 0.584 0.584

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A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Table 4 Layer 3 It includes the fixed node labelled N. The ith node calculates
Comparison between experimental and numerical results of the ratio of the ith rule’s firing strength to the sum of all rules’ firing
torque coefficient in stall point using different turbulence strengths:
models.
mi
Model Error (difference) O3,i = ​ mi = i = 1, 2, 3, 4 (8)
m1 + m2 + m3 + m4
Standardk − ε 0.362
Therefore, the outputs of this layer are named normalized firing
Realizablek − ε 0.335
strengths.
k− ω 0.355
SSTk − ω 0.333
Layer 4 Each node is an adjustable node with a node function in this
layer:

Where μAi (x), μBi (x), μCi (x), and μDi (x) are any appropriate parame­ O4,i = mi fi = mi (pi x + qi y + ri z + si w + ti ) (9)
terized membership function, and Ol,i is the membership grade of a fuzzy
set A= (A1 , A2 , B1 B2 C1 , C2 orD1 D2 ), and it indicates the degree in which Where mi is a normalized firing strength from layer 3 and ( pi , qi , ri , si ) is
the given input x (or y or z or w) satisfied the quantifier. This layer is the parameter set of this node. The parameters in this layer are referred
called ‘‘Premise Parameters’’. to as consequent parameters.
Besides, the membership function for A can be any appropriate ∑
parameterized membership function such as generalized ‘‘bell Layer 5 The single node in this layer is a fixed node labelled which
function’‘: computes the overall output as the summation of all incoming
signals:
1
μA (x) = ( ⃒ ⃒) (6) ∑ ∑
mi fi
⃒(x− Ci )⃒ 2b Overall output = O5,i = mi fi = ∑i (10)
1 + ⃒⃒ ai ⃒⃒ i i mi

In the current study, GA was used to obtain four optimal design

Where {ai , bi , ci } is the parameter(s) set. As the values of these pa­
rameters change, the bell function varies accordingly and shows the
various forms of membership function for fuzzy set, subsequently. In the
present paper, the membership function is also used in this form.
Layer 2 All of the nodes are fixed in this layer; their output is the
product of input signals.
O2,i = mi = μAi (x) μBi (y) μCi (z) μDi (w) i = 1, 2, 3, 4
The firing strength of a rule is represented by every output node.
variables (including the blade tip thickness, the blade form, and the
input-output angles of guide vanes) for Wells turbines on the basis of
evolution mechanisms. These optimum design variables should maxi­
mize efficiency and torque coefficient, and minimize pressure drop co­
efficient. The values of efficiency, torque coefficient, and pressure drop
coefficient are estimated and stored by ANFIS in the result files. The
optimizer checks these values using GA and becomes able to decide how
(7) to change the design variables of the Wells turbine blade before starting
a recent iteration. Iterations are done until the optimal design variables
are obtained. As a result of using evolutionary algorithms, a remarkably
robust procedure could be achieved. Therefore, the evolution results of
GA with iteration for the pressure drop coefficient, torque coefficient,
and efficiency have been shown for the best and mean fitness in Fig. 14.

Fig. 11. Processing steps of data steps, output of the artificial neural fuzzy network, and genetic algorithm.

10
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian
Fig. 12. The output of artificial fuzzy neural networks and genetic algorithm.
The fitness function behavior is reported with 270 iterations. That
number of repetitions could be enough to reach a well-optimized
configuration even beginning from a random distribution.
7. Results and discussion
In this part, the simulation of flow and optimization of Wells turbine
are presented.
7.1. Simulation of flow
In this section, the contours of pressure and tangential velocity and
streamlines pattern are discussed.
7.1.1. Contours of pressure on the pressure and suction surface
Figs. 15 and 16 present the effects of the pressure distribution on the
pressure and suction sides of the blades. As shown in Fig. 15a, the
pressure distribution is similar in the three cases, and a high pressure
zone expands close to the leading edge at the stagnation point with an
increase in the flow coefficient, see Fig. 15b and c. The high-pressure
zone of near the leading edge of GVER is larger than that of GV and
GVEP at flow coefficients over 0.052.
In other words, the blade loading of GVER is higher than that of the
other cases on the pressure side. According to Fig. 16a, the pressure
distribution is similar in the three ones, and a low pressure area develops
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Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861
on the leading edge with an increase in the flow coefficient, see Fig. 16b
and c. The low-pressure region on the leading edge of GVER is more
enlarged in comparison with the GV and GVEP.
7.1.2. Contours of tangential velocity on the suction surface
Fig. 17 illustrates the tangential velocity contours in the vicinity of
the leading edge, at the mid chord and close to the trailing edge for four
flow coefficients: deep stalling condition, the start of stalling, maximum
efficiency, and a low flow coefficient. According to Fig. 17a, given the
low tangential velocity coefficient, there is not any difference among
blades. But with increase in the flow coefficients, the high velocity flow
expanded in the leading edge especially for GVER compared to that of
GV and GVEP because the low-pressure zone on the suction side leading
edge for GVER is larger than GV and GVEP. On the other hand, the high
velocity of flow on leading edge prevents the leakage flow from the
pressure to the suction side and also the vortex generation close to the
blade tip. Thus, the velocity flow on the suction side is higher than the
other blades. Also, GVER postpones the separation more than GV and
even GVEP. Moreover, the separation area gets closer to the blade tip
and gets away from the hub when the flow coefficient increases, see
Fig. 17b. According to Fig. 17c and d, which are associated with stalling
conditions, a vortex is caused by the interaction of leakage flow with the
transient flow from the suction side. The leakage flow plays more sig­
nificant role than the separation phenomenon in the hub in stalling
conditions. The effect of adding endplates and end rings at the blade tip
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian
Fig. 13. Anfis architecture for the Sugeno fuzzy model.
is investigated to reduce the effect of the leakage flow as well as its
interference with the fluid flow in the suction side. According to
Fig. 17b–d, the leakage flow and separation region close to the blade tip
are clearly reduced at every constant flow coefficient for GVER.
7.1.3. Streamlines pattern on the suction surface
Fig. 18 shows the impacts of increasing the airflow coefficient, i.e. a
low flow coefficient of ϕ = 0.052, the flow coefficient at the start of
stalling (ϕ=0.186) and the flow coefficient at deep stalling (ϕ=0.307) as
well as the effect of adding endplates (GVEP) and end rings (GVER) on
the streamline patterns on the suction surface. Fig. 18a shows that the
streamlines on the suction surface are more uniform at a small flow
coefficient compared to the other ones for three cases. According to
Fig. 18b and c, the vortex region is expanded on the near tip region of the
GV and GVEP’s suction surface compared to the GVER’s suction surface
with an increase in the flow coefficient. In addition, GVER, more
significantly, reduces both the leakage flow from the pressure to the
suction side and the vortex generation close to the blade tip and post­
pones the boundary layer separation on the suction side because the
amount of pressure was reduced on the leading edge of the suction side
by adding endplate and end ring. Therefore, it caused an increase in the
flow velocity on the suction side, especially near the leading edge.
Consequently, it prevented the leakage flow and its interference with the
fluid flow on the suction side. It is extremely clear that the vortex caused
on GVER is very limited compared to the other blades.
7.2. The optimization of Wells turbine
In the previous sections, we investigated the effect of the tip shape on
three benchmark variables (consisting of the pressure drop coefficient,
torque coefficient, and efficiency). But, in this section, the effects of the
inlet angle (IAG) and outlet angle (OAG) of guide vanes, the end
thickness of the blade (ETB), and the kind of the blade (KB) on the
benchmark parameters will be studied by artificial neural fuzzy infer­
ence network and genetic algorithm, See Fig. 19. Also, the domain of
variables is shown in Table 5. Every neural network is affected by four
design variables of IAG, OAG, ETB, and KB, but the output of each neural
12
Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861
network is unique. Then, a cost function is derived from them, see
Fig. 12. Afterwards, the cost function will be optimized by a genetic
algorithm. Then, the optimal amount of IAG, OAG, ETB, and KB will be
determined by optimizing the cost function. The most optimum values of
design variables are presented in Table 6. The comparison of the opti­
mum state with the results of the previous sections is shown in Fig. 20.
Although adding each of the guide vanes, endplate, and end ring
increased the performance of Wells turbine blade compared to the
original one, we investigated the changes of benchmark parameters
when the several design variables were altered simultaneously. More­
over, the optimum design variables were obtained by GA when the
pressure drop coefficient was minimum and the torque coefficient and
efficiency were maximum. Therefore, three artificial neural fuzzy net­
works are used to predict these parameters, and GA is utilized to get the
most optimal variables. Fig. 20a illustrates the efficiency of GVER is
more than GV and GVEP, especially before the stall point. But, using the
appropriate angles of guide vanes and the optimal thickness of the blade
tip increased the upper limit of the optimized state efficiency up to 18%
rather than the maximum performance of GVER. The optimal blade is a
particular type of GVER that has an optimum ring thickness. Fig. 20b
indicates that the torque coefficient of GVER is more than GV and GVEP,
in almost all domains. On the other hand, the optimal state boosted the
amount of torque coefficient by 8% in comparison with the GVER before
the stall point. Therefore, it produces the most power for Wells turbine.
In Fig. 20c, the graph shows that the pressure drop coefficient has been
increased with the growth of the flow coefficients in all cases. The
optimal type with the unique tip thickness of end ring was the best, and
it reduced the pressure drop coefficient to almost 3.45% compared to the
GVER.
The investigation of the results indicated the fact that the optimal
state increased the efficiency and torque coefficients and reduced the
pressure drop coefficient significantly, and it mostly delayed flow sep­
aration. Moreover, the use of artificial neural networks and genetic al­
gorithm changed the results of past researches enormously.
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 14. Evolution of the Pressure drop coefficient, Torque coefficient, and Efficiency with iteration. The blue curve is the best-fitness, and the black curve is mean
-fitness. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the Web version of this article.)

Fig. 15. Pressure distribution on pressure side.

13
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 16. Pressure distribution on suction side.

Fig. 17. Contours of tangential velocity on the suction surface of the GV, GVEP, and GVER.

8. Conclusions
In this study, we first investigated the effect of blade deformation on
Wells turbine performance by conventional methods. The low efficiency
is the main drawback of Wells turbines. The structured mesh with very
high quality was also utilized all over the domain. The results indicated a
good agreement between both experimental and numerical results. Also,
the results presented that the use of the guide vanes, endplate, and end
ring had significant effects on the performance of Wells turbine, as
follows:

14
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861

Fig. 18. Streamlines pattern on the suction surface of the GV, GVEP, and GVER.

Fig. 19. Four design variables and three benchmark parameters have been used for optimization.

Table 5 Table 6
The changes range of design variables. The optimal state of variables.
Model Flow Rate IAG OAG ETB Blade Type Variables Abbreviations Optimum amount

Min 0.0385 86.4 132.9 18.32 B, GV, GVEP, GVER Kind of blades KB GVER
Max 0.307 88.1 152.3 18.48 GV, GVEP, GVER End thickness of blade ETB 18.48
Input angle of guide vane IAG 88.1
Output angle of guide vane OAG 132.9
• Adding the guide vanes, endplate, and end ring to the blade of Wells
turbine reduced the impact of leakage flow from the pressure side to
the suction side and declined the vortexes close to the blade tip at the • The high-pressure zone on the pressure side of GVER was larger than
suction side. GV and GVEP at the high flow coefficients. Therefore, the blade
loading of GVER was higher than that of the other cases. The low-
pressure on the suction side of GVER was more expanded

15
A. Mahrooghi and E. Lakzian
Fig. 20. Effect of the optimization of design variables on the performance of Wells turbine.
compared to that of GV and GVEP at high flow coefficients. Thus, the
flow velocity close to the leading edge of GVER was more than that of
GV and GVEP, and it prevented mixing with passing fluid flow from
the suction side.
• At a flow rate of φ = 0.186, the efficiency of GVER was 16.6%,
10.2%, and 5.7% higher than the best case of GV, and GVEP,
respectively.
• The GVER Wells turbine is recommended for future research, based
on the analysis of benchmark parameters.
In the last section, the ANFIS models were trained and the levels of
fitness achieved were showed. Then, we obtained the optimal design
variables by GA when the pressure drop coefficient was minimum, and
the torque coefficient and efficiency were maximum. Hence, the
following conclusion can be drawn:
• The optimal blade increased the upper limit of the efficiency up to
18% rather than the maximum performance of GVER.
• The optimum state boosted the amount of torque coefficient by 8% in
comparison with the GVER. Therefore, it produces the most power
for the Wells turbine.
• The optimized blade reduced the pressure drop coefficient to almost
3.45% compared to the GVER unexpectedly.
As a result, the investigation of the results showed that the optimal
state increased the efficiency and torque coefficients, and, on the other
hand, reduced the pressure drop coefficient significantly. Moreover,
flow separation was delayed.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Ali Mahrooghi: Writing – original draft, Software, Simulation,
16
Ocean Engineering 226 (2021) 108861
Validation, Investigation. Esmail Lakzian: Methodology, Writing – re­
view & editing, Supervision.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors do not have any potential conflict of interest to report.
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