ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We acknowledge, with deep gratitude and appreciation, the inspiration,

encouragement, valuable time and continuous guidance given to us by Dr. Rizwan Saeed
without whose support, the work would be only a dream. We also acknowledge the
support of Dr. Chi Zang for guiding us at different stages of the research.

Contents
1

Introduction ............................................................................................................. 7
1.1 The Global Energy Scenario ................................................................................. 7
1.2 Wind Energy Outlook 2012 .................................................................................. 8
1.3 Motivation and Aims of Research ...................................................................... 11
1.4 Methodology ..................................................................................................... 12

Aerodynamics of Wind Turbines ............................................................................ 13

2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 13
2.2 One-Dimensional Momentum Theory and Betz Limit [16] ................................ 13
2.2.1

Analysis and Results ................................................................................. 15

2.3 Ideal Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine with Wake Rotation [16] ........................... 16
2.3.1

Analysis & Results ..................................................................................... 18

2.4 Airfoils and General Concepts of an Airfoil ........................................................ 20

2.5 Effect of Reynolds Number on Lift and Drag forces .......................................... 23
2.6 Blade Element Theory ........................................................................................ 24
2.7 Design Methodology .......................................................................................... 27
2.7.1

Iterative Method Explained in Detail ........................................................ 29

2.8 Case Study.......................................................................................................... 31

2.8.1

Graphical explanation of results ............................................................... 32

2.8.2

Induction factor vs. r/R ............................................................................. 32

2.8.3

Chord length c Vs r/R .............................................................................. 33

The Blade Design .................................................................................................... 34

3.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 34
3.2 Adopted Methodology ....................................................................................... 34
3.2.1

Isotropic metal model (First Iteration) ..................................................... 34

3.3 Designing CAD model on Solid Works 2012 ....................................................... 35

3.3.1

Shortcomings of Model ............................................................................ 35

3.4 3-D Modeling of the blade in Abaqus 6.10 ........................................................ 36

2

3.4.1

Description of Abaqus 6.10 Code ............................................................. 37

3.4.2

Features of Structural Analysis ................................................................. 37

3.4.3

Results of the Structural Analysis ............................................................. 39

Analytical Modeling ................................................................................................ 42

4.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 42
4.2 Description of the Analytical Model .................................................................. 42
4.2.1

Theory....................................................................................................... 44

4.2.2

Procedure ................................................................................................. 44

4.2.3

Expression for Izz ...................................................................................... 48

4.2.4

Calculation of Tip Deflection of Beam ...................................................... 51

4.3 Discussion .......................................................................................................... 52

5

Designing Composite HAWT Rotor Blade ............................................................... 54

5.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 54
5.2 Composite HAWT rotor blade model ................................................................. 55
5.3 CAD Model ......................................................................................................... 56
5.4 Composite Layup ............................................................................................... 56
5.4.1

Symmetric laminate Layup ....................................................................... 56

5.4.2

Balanced laminated composite layup....................................................... 56

5.4.3

Use of carpet Plots ................................................................................... 57

5.4.4

10 percent rule ......................................................................................... 58

5.4.5

Avoiding excessive expansion of thermal coefficient ............................... 58

5.4.6

Limit the layer thickness to 0.02 inches.................................................... 58

5.4.7

Increase in Number of +45,-45 plies in shear carrying components ........ 59

5.5 Materials Assigned ............................................................................................. 59

5.6 FEA Specifications .............................................................................................. 59
5.6.1

Analysis Type ............................................................................................ 59

5.6.2

Meshing .................................................................................................... 59

5.6.3

Element Types .......................................................................................... 59

3

5.6.4

Boundary Condition .................................................................................. 60

5.7 Loadings ............................................................................................................. 60

5.7.1

Lift force ................................................................................................... 60

5.7.2

Centrifugal Forces ..................................................................................... 61

5.7.3

Gravity force ............................................................................................. 61

5.7.4

Drag Force ................................................................................................ 61

5.8 Results and Discussion ....................................................................................... 62

5.9 Analysis at various mesh densities..................................................................... 68
5.10

Conclusions ..................................................................................................... 69

5.11

Recommendations .......................................................................................... 70

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 71

Appendix ................................................................................................................ 73
7.1 Aerodynamic calculations in Matlab code: ........................................................ 73

Figure 1: The Rio do Fogo wind farm in Brazil [11]........................................................... 8

Figure 2: Wind farm near the city of Masdar (Abu Dabi). ................................................ 9
Figure 3: Turbines from Chinas largest wind farm dot a windswept plain in the remote
northwest Xinjiang ......................................................................................................... 10
Figure 4: Research Methodology flow chart .................................................................. 12
Figure 5: One-dimensional Actuator-Disk Model [16] .................................................... 14
Figure 6: CP and CT vs. a [16] ....................................................................................... 16
Figure 7: 2-D analysis of the actuator disk model which considers wake rotation [16] . 17
Figure 8: CP vs. [16] ..................................................................................................... 19
Figure 9: Variation of Induction Factors along the length of the blade for a constant tip
speed ratio [16] .............................................................................................................. 20
Figure 10: Terminologies for airfoils based on their geometry. These terminologies help
in recognizing different kinds of Airfoils. [16] ................................................................ 20
Figure 11: Figure 11: Forces experienced by the Airfoil. [16] ......................................... 21
Figure 12: How directions are termed for a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) and
some more force related terminology with respect to the plane of rotation of the wind
turbine [16] .................................................................................................................... 22
Figure 13: Effect of Reynolds number on the lift coefficients. [16] ............................... 23
Figure 14: Effect of Reynolds number on the drag coefficients [16]. ............................ 23
Figure 15: Element considered in the Blade Element Theory. [16] ................................ 24
Figure 16: Section of the rotor blade and the angles relating these forces to the direction
of the incident air. A cross-section of the rotor blade is in fact an airfoil with a certain
depth dr. [16] ............................................................................................................... 25
Figure 17: Iterative procedure used to determine the values of and c ...................... 29
Figure 18: Table for detailed results of iteration process .............................................. 31
Figure 19: Pitch angle p vs. r/R ..................................................................................... 32
Figure 20: Pitch angle p vs. r/R ..................................................................................... 33
Figure 21: CAD Model of HAWT drawn on Abaqus 6.10 ................................................ 36
Figure 22: Pressure loads acting on surfaces of HAWT rotor blade ............................... 38
Figure 23: Flap-wise tip deflections in the blade ............................................................ 39
Figure 24: Von misses stresses for the blade ................................................................. 40
Figure 25: Flap-wise component of stresses .................................................................. 41
Figure 26: Airfoil Nomenclature for use in Analytical model ......................................... 43
Figure 27: Box section nomenclature for analytical model ............................................ 43
Figure 28: Linearly tapered hollow box section beam ................................................... 43
Figure 29: height of the outside box section curve fitted against length of the beam .. 46
5

Figure 30: height of the inside box section curve fitted against length of the beam ..... 46
Figure 31: width of the outside box section curve fitted against length of the beam ... 47
Figure 32: width of the inside box section curve fitted against length of the beam ...... 47
Figure 33: Moment of inertia of the box section interpolated with an exponential
function .......................................................................................................................... 49
Figure 34: Graph of IzzVs x for Case2 ........................................................................... 50
Figure 35: Airfoil cross section ( Sketch drawn on Abaqus 6.10).................................... 54
Figure 36: Loadings induced in cross section of airfoil [21]............................................ 55
Figure 37: Figure showing difference between balanced and unbalanced layup sequence
....................................................................................................................................... 57
Figure 38: Room temperature ultimate tension strength for high strength graphite epoxy
laminates ........................................................................................................................ 57
Figure 39: Room temperature ultimate shear strength for high strength graphite epoxy
laminates ........................................................................................................................ 58
Figure 40: Pressure Loads on Various Cross-Sections of the Blade ................................ 60
Figure 41: Drag Force on Various Cross-Sections of the Blade....................................... 62
Figure 42: Maximum deflections in the blade ................................................................ 63
Figure 43: Flap-wise deflections of the blade................................................................. 64
Figure 44: Span-wise deflections of the blade ............................................................... 64
Figure 45: Von misses stress distribution for the blade, viewing from the low pressure
surface ............................................................................................................................ 65
Figure 46: Maximum principal stresses in the blade ...................................................... 66
Figure 47: Cutaway section of the blade viewing from the blade root end ................... 67
Figure 48: Maximum principal strains distribution within the blade ............................. 67
Figure 49: Cut-away section viewed from the root end showing Maximum in plane
Principal stresses ............................................................................................................ 68
Figure 50: Tip Deflections and various Mesh Sizes......................................................... 69

1 Introduction
1.1 The Global Energy Scenario
Secure, reliable and abundant energy reserves are vital to the economic stability of the
world. Industrialization of countries like China, India and Brazil has increased the
consumption of energy reserves like petrol and coal. The worlds primary energy needs
are projected to grow by 56% between 2005 and 2030, by an average annual rate of 1.8%
per year [1]. Moreover, worlds energy supply and demand is subjected to many
uncertainties due to insufficient energy supplies, global politics, technological advances,
government policies, and customers behavior. Fluctuation of crude oil prices and global
warming has forced various countries to find energy solutions in terms of abundant and
non-depleting energy supplies.
Alternative or renewable energy is one of the solutions to ensure energy security in
world. Basic idea of renewable energy is to harness energy from the non-depleting
energy reserves like wind, water, solar, geo-thermal and bio-mass. Today the world is
investing in this sector to ensure a stable and prosperous economic growth. Total
investment of world in clean energy reached $211 billion in 2010, up from $160 billion
in 2009. Top countries to invest were Germany, the United States, Brazil and Italy [2].
Third world countries like India is investing $2.6 billion in wind energy sector [3]. By the
end of 2015, China will complete total offshore wind installed capacity of 5GW, and will
complete about 30 GW before the end of 2020 [4].
Being a third world country Pakistan needs to develop its clean energy sector, which has
remained quite underdeveloped in recent years due to lack of funding and poor
government policies. Pakistan is the 31st largest emitter of carbon-dioxide in the world
with annual carbon-dioxide emissions totaling up to 163,178 thousand of metric tons
(2008)[5]. Pakistan's energy requirement is increasing manifold every year. The primary
energy consumption in Pakistan grew by almost 80% in the past 15 years from 34 million
tons oil equivalent (TOE) in 1994-95 to 61 million TOE in 2009-10.[6]
The countrys energy supplies is extracted primarily from local natural gas which is 45%
of the energy mix and oil imports at 35% of the energy mix, hydel at 12%, coal at 6% and
nuclear at 2% of the mix respectively. So current investment of Pakistan is clean energy
sector is quite less which needs to be increased manifold in coming years. [7]
7

1.2 Wind Energy Outlook 2012

Today the world is racing to construct onshore and offshore wind farms due to
abundance of high currents of wind in hilly, coastal and desert areas of world. A quick
overview of future government policies of various countries pertaining to wind energy
development is as follow,
North America: Currently in 2012 America has an installed wind energy capacity of
48,611 MW and out of this total 1695 MW was installed in first quarter of 2012. U.S.
Department of Energys targets 20% Wind Energy by year 2030 which means that wind
power will supply 20% of total U.S. electricity, that includes 4% contribution
from offshore wind power.[8]
As far as Canada is concerned, according to Wind Vision 2025: Powering Canada's
Future, Canada will build wind farms to satisfy its 20% energy needs. [9]
South America: With few wind projects prior to 2009, Latin America has now emerged
onto the global stage attracting players from Europe. Latin America as a region installed
750 MW of wind power through 2009, but due to recent surge in wind farm projects,
5.7%penetration on 46 GW will be made possible by 2025. Markets are developing at
different paces: Brazil, Mexico, and Chile are the regional leaders. These three countries
are expected to add over 3.7 GW from 2010 through 2012 [10]. Figure 1 shows Rio do
Fogo wind farm in Brazil. This is a wind farm capable of producing 80MW of electricity
from wind energy.

Figure 1: The Rio do Fogo wind farm in Brazil [11]

Europe: Wind energy will play an integral role in meeting the future energy requirements
of Europe. So wind energy in on the forefront of European Union (EU) energy policy The
modeling scenario used for the Second Strategic Energy Review suggests that wind will
represent more than one third of all electricity production from renewable energy
sources by 2020 and almost 40% by 2030, representing an accumulated investment of
at least 200-300 billion Euros (or about a quarter of all power plant investments) by 2030
[12].
Australia: Australian government is subsidizing wind energy market at large scale. It is
expected that wind energy will provide the largest share of Australias targeted 20%
renewable energy by 2020.
Middle East: Wind energy market hasnt shown robust growth in Middle East due to
abundance of oil and other fossil fuel reserves. Vestas has installed 600 megawatts (MW)
of wind farms from Morocco to the Arabian Peninsula. Abu Dhabi's clean energy
company, is considering building a US$200 million (Dh734.6m) wind farm near the Saudi
Arabian border that would be the first of its kind in the region .This plant will have a
generating capacity of 20-30MW. Figure 2 shows a landscape of this wind farm [13].

Figure 2: Wind farm near the city of Masdar (Abu Dabi).

Asia: New wind energy road map of china foresees wind power capacity reaching
200 GW by 2020, 400 GW by 2030 and 1 000 GW by 2050. [14]. Figure 3 shows one of
the wind farm located in remote area of Xinxiang province. Moreover 3rd largest
economy of Asia ie. India has an installed capacity of 14158.00 MW (as on March 31,
2011). In terms of wind power installed capacity, India is ranked 5th in the World. Asias
largest wind farm of 207 MW is being built in central Thailand.
Pakistan: The wind map developed by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL),
USA in collaboration with USAID, has indicated a potential of 346,000 MW in Pakistan.
The Gharo-Keti Bandar wind corridor spreading 60 KM along the coastline of Sind
Province and more than 170 km deep towards the land alone has a potential of
approximately 50,000 MW. By 2030 government plans to generate 5% of the energy
from alternate resources this proves Asia is on forefront of wind energy business. [15]

Figure 3: Turbines from Chinas largest wind farm dot a windswept plain in the remote northwest
Xinjiang

10

1.3 Motivation and Aims of Research

Wind energy can play an integral role in current energy scenario of Pakistan. Installing
large scale wind turbines (1MW to 1.8MW) can reduce the energy deficit of Pakistan
and can ensure a cheap and carbon free source of energy. In this regard, Department of
Mechanical Engineering, College of EME decided to initiate an undergraduate research
on Horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT).
This research is titled as Linear Elastic Response of a 1.2MW Horizontal Axis Wind
Turbine (HAWT). Main aim and focus of this research is to carry out linear elastic
structural analysis of 1.2MW wind turbine rotor blade in Finite element softwares like
Abaqus 6.10.
Following are the deliverables of this research

Calculating aerodynamic parameters and loadings

Designing 3D CAD model of 1.2 MW rotor blade on Abaqus 6.10.
Building sectional properties and configuration of composite lay-up of the blade.
Carrying out linear structural analysis on Abaqus 6.10
Interpretation of results of simulations
Building analytical model of rotor blade and determining its tip deflection.
Comparing results of Abaqus 6.10 and analytical model.

11

1.4 Methodology
Following is the flow chart which highlights the methodology to carry out this research:

Figure 4: Research Methodology flow chart

First step to carry out aerodynamic loading calculations on each section of wind
turbine blade with the help of blade element and blade momentum theory.
Consequently drawing a CAD model of wind turbine blade on Abaqus 6.10 or
Solid Works 2012.
Then structural loadings will be estimated and structural analysis will be carried
out in Abaqus 6.10. In structural model, aerodynamic and structural loadings will
be used as input parameters.
A simplified analytical model of wind turbine blade will be formulated under
similar aerodynamic and structural loading conditions.
At the end FE structural and analytical model will be compared and validated.

12

2 Aerodynamics of Wind Turbines

2.1 Introduction
The aerodynamic design of the blade not only governs the aerodynamic performance of
the blade but also accounts for the aerodynamic forces experienced by the blade. The
best aerodynamic design of a rotor blade is the one that provides the best aerodynamic
performance for a loading that the blade material can withstand. There are many factors
besides aerodynamics which govern the blade design (which result is performance
reduction). Two of the main factors are: material constraints and manufacturability. For
this reason, the ideal blade design has to be modified.
For the aerodynamic design part of the study, we have based our blade profile on the
ideal blade design considerations only i.e. manufacturability and material limitations
have not been taken into account. The blade design is also limited by complexity of the
considered flows: effects of complex flows and flow separation, among other advanced
aerodynamic phenomenon, have been ignored.
This section deals with some of the aerodynamic principles which will be used in the
blade design in the later sections. The section starts with some of the basic simplified
analysis which provides the foundation for more advanced analysis. It is important to
note that the simplification of the model under analysis does not affect the validity of
the results drawn from them.
2.2 One-Dimensional Momentum Theory and Betz Limit [16]
This section deals with the most simplified aerodynamic model for the wind turbine
rotor. This model is also known as the Actuator-Disk Model. The model simplifies the
wind turbine rotor to an actuator disk. This model assumes that the rotor to be a very
thin disk which creates a pressure difference in the air flow. It is important to note that
this model does not assume that the disk is 100% efficient (absolute vacuum is created
behind the actuator disk). The model is based on the linear momentum theory. A onedimensional control volume analysis of this model provides us with some useful results.
The boundaries of this control volume are the surface of a stream tube and the two crosssections of the stream tube.

13

Figure 5: One-dimensional Actuator-Disk Model [16]

Where:
U1 = Far up-stream wind velocity
U2 = Wind velocity just before the rotor
U3 = Wind velocity just after the rotor
U4 = Far down-stream wind velocity
Following assumptions were made,
Below is the list of the assumptions that have been made to simplify the actual wind
turbine model to the Actuator-Disk Model.

One-Dimensional flow analysis

Homogenous, Incompressible, steady state fluid flow
An infinite number of blades
Uniform thrust over the disk area
A non-rotating wake
Pressure at 1 is equal to pressure at 2 i.e. Pressure far up-stream and far downstream are equal i.e. P1 = P4
Wind Velocities at 2 and 3 are equal ( in both magnitude and direction) i.e. V2
= V3
14

2.2.1 Analysis and Results

By applying Conservation of Momentum and Bernoullis Principle and using the
Continuity Equation some useful expressions are obtained:
i.

ii.

[( )]
( )

Where

= Density of Air
A = Area of actuator disk
T = Thrust force on the actuator disk
P = Power produced by the actuator disk

And
iii.

( )

The axial induction factor a is a measure of how much the wind slows down at the rotor.
Equation (ii) assumes that all the thrust force experienced by the actuator disk is
converted to useful power of the rotor. Ideally for the simplifications presented in this
analysis this would be the case, however aerodynamic phenomenon prevent this from
happening and as a result the aerodynamic performance of the rotor decreases.
However, this kind of simplified analysis can tell us of the limit of efficiency of the rotor.
The assumptions help us determine the efficiency limit of an ideal rotor in ideal wind
conditions. This limit is called Betz limit.
The Coefficient of Power CP is defined as the ratio of the rotor power to the maximum
power in the wind
iv.

The Coefficient of Thrust is defined as the ratio of the thrust force on the rotor to the
dynamic force of the wind
v.

15

The maximum value of CP = 0.59occurs at = 13. This means that an ideal rotor can
only be up to 59% efficient. For a> 12 , U4 becomes negative. This indicates the
occurrence of complicated flow patterns for which the Betz theory does not hold.

Figure 6: CP and CT vs. a [16]

2.3 Ideal Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine with Wake Rotation [16]
This section builds on the previous section and extends the analysis to a 2-D analysis. The
added dimension in this analysis is along the length of the blade. Wake rotation is also
considered in this analysis. Wake rotation occurs due to the torque of the blade. As the air
particles hit the blade they bounce off at an angle in a direction opposite to the rotation
of the blade due to angular momentum of the air particles. As a result the wake that
leaves the blade has a higher kinetic energy than a non-rotating wake which reduces the
performance of the blade.

16

Figure 7: 2-D analysis of the actuator disk model which considers wake rotation [16]

Figure 7. shows a 2 D analysis of actuator disc model. In this figure,

r is the distance of the annulus under consideration from the center of the rotor
dr is the thickness of the annulus under consideration.
U is the free stream velocity
a is the axial induction factor.

The control volume remains the same but analysis in this section will be done on an
annulus which is at a distance r from the center of the rotor and has a thickness dr
Following assumptions were made,
Following is a list of simplifying assumptions which will be used for the analysis:
Two-Dimensional flow analysis
Homogenous, Incompressible, steady state fluid flow
An infinite number of blades
Uniform thrust over the disk area
A rotating wake is considered
Pressure at 1 is equal to pressure at 2 i.e. Pressure far up-stream and far down-stream
are equal
Wind Velocities at 2 and 3 are equal (in both, magnitude and direction)
17

2.3.1 Analysis & Results

The differential thrust force dT on an annulus can be obtained with the product of
pressure difference across the disk and the area of the annulus. Written in terms of the
axial induction factor a
vi.

= ( + )

Where the axial induction factor a, which is the measure of how much the wake rotates
behind the rotor, is defined as
vii.

^ = /

Where
is the rotational speed of the wake relative to the rotor
is the rotational speed of the rotor
The Tip Speed Ratio is defined as the tangential speed of the tip of the blade to the
speed of the free stream of air.
viii.

= /

The local speed ratio r is defined as the ratio of the tangential speed of any point on the
blade to the speed of the free stream of air
ix.

_( =) /

The equation for the differential torque on the annulus can be determined by applying
the equation for the conservation of angular momentum i.e. the moment of the blade is
equal to the change in angular momentum of the wake (written in terms of induction
factors).
x.

= ( )

The expression for CP in terms of the induction factors, local speed ratio and the tip speed
ratio comes out to be
xi.

= ( )

18

By expressing a, r and in terms in terms of a the expression of CP can be differentiated

with respect to a to obtain the expression for CP max.

xii.

()()()
]

With the corresponding values of a substituted in the above equation for the start and
end of the blade (.i.e. r = 0 and r = , a = 0.25 and 1 = 0.33 respectively) and performing
the integration the expression is ready for some parametric studies.

Figure 8: CP vs. [16]

Note: The values of CP that lie on the dotted or the solid line represent the maximum
value of CP which can be obtained for that particular tip speed ratio i.e. CP max values.
As expected, the faster the wind turbine rotates for a particular speed of the wind, the
more efficient it will be. This is because for a particular power of the wind turbine rotor,
a higher rotational speed obtained for a particular wind speed means a lower torque of
the blade and hence lower wake rotation.

19

Figure 9: Variation of Induction Factors along the length of the blade for a constant tip speed ratio [16]

As we move along the length of the blade, the angular induction factor decreases
because the force required in turning the blade decreases due to a longer moment
arm. This means that less torque has to be applied by the wind to rotate the blade and
hence less wake rotation.

2.4 Airfoils and General Concepts of an Airfoil

Figure 10: Terminologies for airfoils based on their geometry. These terminologies help in recognizing
different kinds of Airfoils. [16]

20

Figure 11: Figure 11: Forces experienced by the Airfoil. [16]

The Lift and the Drag forces are shown on the geometrical center of the Airfoil in
Figure.11. However, in reality these forces act at the center of pressure of the airfoil.
When the point of application of these forces is changed from the center of pressure to
the center of gravity, a balancing moment needs to be applied so the static equilibrium
of the Airfoil is not disturbed. This balancing moment is called Pitching Moment and is
responsible for the chord-wise bending of the blade.

21

Figure 12: How directions are termed for a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) and some more force
related terminology with respect to the plane of rotation of the wind turbine [16]

The Coefficient of Lift, Drag and Pitching Moment are defined as follows:

xiii.

xiv.

xv.

Where

Cl, Cd, Cm = Coefficient of Lift, Drag and Pitching moment respectively

L, D, M = Lift force, Drag force and Pitching moment respectively
U = Free stream velocity of air
c = chord length

22

2.5 Effect of Reynolds Number on Lift and Drag forces

Figure 13: Effect of Reynolds number on the lift coefficients. [16]

Figure 14: Effect of Reynolds number on the drag coefficients [16].

It can be seen in Figure.14 that value of lift coefficient increases with an increase in the
value of the Reynolds number. This is due to formation of the turbulent boundary layer
which sticks better to the surface; less flow separation is experienced. A decrease in the
magnitude of the Drag force is seen because of the same reason.

23

2.6 Blade Element Theory

In Section 2.1 and 2.2, principles of conservation of linear and angular momentum were
used to derive the equations for the forces and moments acting on the rotor. These
include the thrust force (Equation VI) and the useful torque (Equation x) developed by
an annular element of a rotor with an infinite number of blades. Blade Momentum
Theory deals with this type of study.
This section considers the behavior of an airfoil when it interacts with the incident air. It
is useful to see what forces are acting on the airfoil due its interaction with the wind. The
Blade Element Theory deals with this type of study. The results from the Blade Element
Theory and the Blade Momentum Theory can be combined to devise a designing
procedure for the actual rotor blade.

Figure 15: Element considered in the Blade Element Theory. [16]

Where
R = Length of the blade
r = Distance of the element from the center of the rotor
dr = Thickness of the element

24

Figure 16: Section of the rotor blade and the angles relating these forces to the direction of the
incident air. A cross-section of the rotor blade is in fact an airfoil with a certain depth dr. [16]

Note:p,ois the blade pitch angle at the tip

Firstly, it is important to get a sense of direction of the rotor element considered in
Figure.16. The rotor can be imagined as a ceiling fan (hanging upside down from the
ceiling) at the same level of the line of sight of the viewer. If the fan is rotating counterclockwise the blade will enter the viewers sight from the left and move towards their
right. The Plane of blade rotation shows the path which the fan blade follows with an
arrow showing its direction from left to right.
dFN (Normal Force) is what was previously defined as the thrust force on an
element, but since the shape of the element now considered is different from the
one considered in the previous sections, it cannot be referred to as dT. The thrust
force is the useless force in the blade as it is perpendicular to the plane of rotation
and causes flap-wise bending. It is the sum of the components of the Lift and Drag
forces in a direction normal to the plane of rotation.

25

 dFT (Tangential Force) is the useful force as it is responsible for the blade torque.
It too is a sum of the components of the Lift and Drag forces but in the direction
of the plane of rotation.
Urel (Relative Velocity of the Wind on the rotor) is the vector sum of the incident
velocity of air on the blade [U (1-a)] and the tangential velocity of the blade section
[r (1+a)]. Since the magnitude of the tangential velocity is different for every
section of the blade (different r) the magnitude and the direction of Urel will be
different for every section of the blade. It is the reason why a twist is required in
the blade i.e. subsequent blade elements are at a slight angle to each other so that
an optimum angle of attack can be maintained to get the maximum Lift force.
Urel is, in effect, the wind that appears to interact with blade as the rotor is
rotating. If the blade were stationary, the direction and magnitude of the Urel
would be the same as the incident velocity of the air.
p (Section Pitch Angle) is the angle between the chord line of the section under
consideration and the plane of rotation. p, o is the angle between the chord line
of the section of the blade at the blade tip (r = R) and the plane of rotation. The
difference in these two angles is because of the twist in the blade as mentioned
earlier. t is then a measure of the twist in the section under consideration.
Equations Derived from Figure.16 are as follow:
By using geometrical relationships and vector algebra the following equations can be
derived from Figure.16

xvi.
xvii.
xviii.

=
= +
= ( )

xix.

()
(+ )

(+ )

Re-writing the equations for the Lift and Drag forces for the element under
consideration:

xx.

26

xxi.

Substituting (xx) and (xxi) into (xvii) and calculating dFN for the same blade section for all
the blades by multiplying it with the number of blades B we get:

=
( + )

xxii.

Similarly substituting (xx) and (xxi) into (xvii) and since

=
Then,

xxiii.

=
( ) )

2.7 Design Methodology

Following are the features of the employed design methodology,
Three dimensional analysis
Wake rotations is considered in the design
Aerodynamic tip loses are considered in the design
Before starting the design procedure it is important to outline the requirements of the
design. Following are the requirements of the design in their respective order.
The blade chord length and twist angle is needed to construct the profile of the
blade
The blade chord length and twist angle are a function of the axial and angular
induction factor so their variation along the length of the blade needs to be
calculated
The axial and the angular induction factors are implicitly related so an iterative
procedure will have to be used to study their variation along the blade length.
The design starts with determining the approximate length of the blade which would be
needed to produce the required power from (iv) which can be rewritten as:
27

 =
The value of Cp can be approximated as a little less than 0.59 and is the efficiency
combined efficiency of the gearbox and the generator.
Once the approximate length of the blade has been determined, a reasonable tip speed
ratio should be selected based on the application. For example; for power generation a
tip speed ratio of 4 to 10 should be selected [16]. After selecting the tip speed ratio the
desired number of blades for the turbine should be selected based on the tip speed ratio.
For example; if the tip speed ratio is greater than 4, three or less blades should be used
on the rotor.
The next step is to define the shape of the blade which requires the values of and the
chord length.
As explained in the beginning of this section an iterative approach needs to be used for
this part of the design.
Since the iterative procedure does not apply to a continuous domain of length of the
blade, the blade needs to be divided into different sections. The procedure need to be
repeated on each section of the blade to determine the values on those air-foil sections.
Generally around 12 to 20 sections are needed for an accurate design [16]. It is a good
idea to make smaller sections along the length of the blade closer to the root as these
are the sections that experience the most dramatic change of twist and chord length.
Once the sections of the blade have been decided the iterative procedure can be used.
Following flow chart explicitly shows the procedure:

28

Figure 17: Iterative procedure used to determine the values of and c

Note:
Subscript i refers to the guess values of the parameters and j refers to the
iteration number.
Subscript 1 points out that the procedure is being carried out for the first
section of the blade.

2.7.1 Iterative Method Explained in Detail

To begin this procedure guess values of a and a are needed. For section other than the
first section, the values of the previous sections can be used. However, in the above flow
chart, since the first section is under consideration, a guess value of a=1/3 and a=0 is
used to initiate the procedure in using (equation xix). A value of is obtained from this
step.
The next equation evolves from realizing that the lift force is actually a component of the
Normal and Tangential forces. Evaluating equations (xvi) (xvii) and (xx) can yield an
expression for a in terms of , and Cl ( is defined as the local solidity factor and can
29

be determined by = 2). The drag force in this case is taken to be zero which is a
reasonable estimate since most airfoils are made to have very low values of Cd. This
procedure is done to refine the value of a by evaluating it for the known design
parameters Cl,design and l,design.
The consequent value of a for a given value of a can be found by equation mentioned
in the third step of the flow chart. This equation is obtained for maximum value of Cp by
solving (Equation xi) and replacing with its definition in terms of the induction factors.
This value of a insures that maximum aerodynamic efficiency is obtained from the rotor.
This completes the process for obtaining the guess values for a and a.
The next procedure (starting from 4th box) is to refine the values of a and a. Firstly a
value for is obtained from the new values of a a and r for the section.
The new value of is used to calculate the tip loss factor and the coefficient of Thrust
force CT. This expression for CT is derived from the fact that the normal force and the
thrust force are the same for a HAWT so (Equation xvii) can be used in (Equation v) by
substituting an expression for the area of the rotor and expression for the lift and drag
forces. The drag force in this case is again taken to be zero.
The new values of a can then be found using Glauert empirical relation [16] for both
windmill state (CT<0.96) and turbulent wake state (CT>0.96). The discussion of how these
equations are derived is beyond the scope of this work.
When the values of pitch angular, angular induction factor and linear induction factor
are converged to a satisfactory level then the value of chord length is evaluated from the
following equation
=

And the pitch angle is evaluated by following equation:

= +

= (

(
)

)[

)
(
) ]

Repeat the procedure if the power output turns out to be less than the expected.

30

2.8 Case Study

Following are the input parameters for the case study,

Length of blade was set to be (guess value) = 36

Blade was divided in 18 segments
Air foil employed was NACA 64-618_900 [17]
The value of lift coefficient Cl is 1.4 at an angle of attack 10o[18]
Mean wind velocity of 10m/s [19]
Effect of Reynolds Number on Cl and optimum value of has been ignored due
to lack of data. We predict an error of 0.1 in values of Cl.
=7
Following is a table for detailed results of iteration process:
Radius
(m)

Chord
Length
(m)

0.50
1.50
2.50
3.50
4.50
5.50
6.50
7.75
9.25
11.00
13.00
15.50
18.50
21.50
24.50
27.50
30.50
33.50

2.0000
3.4000
3.8933
4.1455
4.0939
3.9020
3.6574
3.3923
2.9933
2.6445
2.3190
1.9997
1.7097
1.4898
1.3184
1.1815
1.0313
0.5723

Pitch
Angle
(degree)

Normal Lift Force

Force(N) N)

Tip
Speed
Ratio

Relative
Drag Force Fd
velocity(m/x) (N)

52.4602
418.9
255.2412
0.1000
10.0499
45.4658
1320.0
923.6587
0.3000
10.4403
42.2900
2260.0
1671.8327 0.5000
11.1803
36.6720
3220.0
2583.7816 0.7000
12.2066
32.0000
4200.0
3561.8031 0.9000
13.4536
28.1825
5160.0
4548.2714 1.1000
14.8661
25.0457
6130.0
5553.5996 1.3000
16.4012
21.8852
7340.0
6811.0259 1.5500
18.4459
18.9300
8800.0
8324.0583 1.8500
21.0297
16.3000
10500.0 10077.9563 2.2000
24.1661
14.0300
12400.0 12030.0953 2.6000
27.8568
11.9200
14800.0 14480.8674 3.1000
32.5730
10.1000
17700.0 17425.7068 3.7000
38.3275
8.7279
20600.0 20361.4547 4.3000
44.1475
7.6898
23400.0 23189.5650 4.9000
50.0100
6.8699
26100.0 25912.6106 5.5000
55.9017
6.0938
27500.0 27379.7501 6.1000
61.8142
4.3305
18000.0 17948.6115 6.7000
67.7422
Figure 18: Table for detailed results of iteration process

31

4.6278
8.4904
11.1494
14.1510
16.9762
19.7563
22.5398
26.4434
30.3280
35.3819
41.2276
48.6077
57.5396
66.5219
75.5416
84.5880
90.2791
60.1682

2.8.1 Graphical explanation of results

Following are the graphical demonstration of results

2.8.2 Induction factor vs. r/R

Figure 19: Pitch angle p vs. r/R

32

2.8.3 Chord length c Vs r/R

Following figure shows the trend of chord length along the span of the blade. Initially the
chord length increase till r/R reached to 0.18 then falls with increasing radius of the
blade.

Figure 20: Pitch angle p vs. r/R

33

3 The Blade Design

3.1 Introduction
Designing a structurally feasible HAWT rotor blade is an integral part to ensure longevity
and safety of blade. Structural analysis has many design challenges. Few of them are as
follow,
Sufficient strength to ensure high wind loadings up to a period of at least 25 years
Sufficient flap wise and chord wise stiffness in order to minimize blade tip
deflection and stresses
Minimizing the weight of HAWT rotor blade
Ensure the prevention of buckling which can cause catastrophic failure
20 years fatigue life ( corresponding to 10^8 cycles) in presence of fluctuating wind
loadings
Note: This work does not deal with the wind speed fluctuation. So fatigue analysis
hasnt been carried out due to the limitations of research scope.

3.2 Adopted Methodology

The primary purpose of making isotropic blade was to validate the loadings and the
boundary conditions by comparing the results of FE model with analytical model. In
addition the secondary purpose of conducting the analysis using an isotropic material
before moving to a more complex composite design is to outline the critical areas for the
composite design. These include stress concentrations and unwanted deflections. The
aim is to highlight the areas which require certain material properties for the best
structural performance and differentiating them from areas which do not require those
properties. This enables us to tailor the composite material for the given loading
conditions which acts as a weight saving tool.

3.2.1 Isotropic metal model (First Iteration)

In first iteration, HAWT rotor blade model has the following assumptions,
Rotor blade is made up of an isotropic material i.e. steel ( with elasticity modulus
of 200E9 and poison ratio of 0.3)
34

 Thickness of upper skin , lower skin , spar caps , and the shear web is assumed to
be 7mm throughout the span of the blade
Wind loadings and other aerodynamic parameters have been determined from
the aerodynamic model ( as described in last chapter)

3.3 Designing CAD model on Solid Works 2012

Solid Works is used for building the Cad profile of the wind turbine blade. The
appropriate airfoil profile for a 1.2 MW Wind turbine blade would be NACA 64-618.
Hence NACA 64-618 is used to build the blade. The coordinate file of the NACA 64-618
is taken from online source as mentioned in previous chapter .Arbitrarily the profile is
built in a total of 19 planes along the axis the blade with planes placed closer to each
other near the root as the twist is maximum in that area. This particular placing of planes
ensured a more accurate trajectory of the blade. The airfoil sections are built in such a
way that the chord length of each section is different and each section is rotated around
its centroid by the angles calculated from the wind load calculations. After that the
Surface Loft command is used to join the sections. Hence the basic profile of the blade
is generated.
After the basic profile is complete the blade is built in more detail spar caps are built
inside the hollow blade. Spar caps are the supporting structure for the hollow blade. Two
spars are built at approximately 15 percent and 50 percent of the chord length starting
from the zero of the x axis and then these caps are lofted throughout the axis of the
blade. Thus the whole profile of the blade is now complete. The file is saved as an IGES
file and then exported to the ABAQUS.

3.3.1 Shortcomings of Model

CAD model drawn on Solid works 2012 had the following limitations,
A lot of imperfection occurred in CAD model geometry by importing it in Abaqus
6.10. These imperfections caused a lot of errors in meshing.
Contact problems started to occur in spar caps and outer skin of the blade
Unlike Abaqus 6.10 and other FEA softwares, the design procedure in Solid
Works cannot be automated by a computer program
Due to the above mentioned reasons, CAD model was also made on Abaqus 6.10.
35

3.4 3-D Modeling of the blade in Abaqus 6.10

In Abaqus 6.10, HAWT wind turbine rotor blade was designed by developing a Python
script code. This code automates the designing of blade. This code was developed by Dr.
Chi Zang (The University of Manchester) and was provided to us for research work.
Following are the steps that describes the procedure of designing rotor blade,
I.

II.

III.
IV.

V.

Initially, 18 XY planes were created at different locations along the span of the
blade. Following table shows the name of blade (as specified in Abaqus model)
and its distance from origin.
18 airfoils of varying chord length were created on their respective planes (values
of chord lengths were taken from the aerodynamic module). Each airfoil was
drawn by plotting 100 points. Afterwards they were connecting by a spline
command.
Two shear webs were drawn at each cross section at 15% and 50 % of chord length
respectively.
Each cross section was rotated by Rotate sketch up tool in Abaqus 6.10. Rotations
are given according to blade pitch angle calculated previously in aerodynamic
model.
After wards each section is joined by Shell lofting feature in Abaqus 6.10

Figure 21: CAD Model of HAWT drawn on Abaqus 6.10

36

3.4.1 Description of Abaqus 6.10 Code

All of these tasks have been automated out by a Python script code. In python code user
needs to input the parameters and then CAD model is drawn automatically in Abaqus
6.10.
Following parameters are needed to be inserted in the python code:
Defining Chord values: Chord values are needed to be given at every segment of the
blade.
Defining extra planes: Distance of planes from the origin is given in input parameters.
Defining Twist : Twist angle is defined in degrees and radians for every cross section of
the blade
Defining Pitch Axis: Location of centroid of airfoil in percentage of chord length
Defining Twist Axis: It is defined as the ratio of horizontal projection of centroid position
of twisted airfoil on horizontal axis to length of chord.
Define BTHICK: For any given airfoil, BTHICK is the ratio of Major axis and minor axis.

3.4.2 Features of Structural Analysis

Following are some features of the Structural analysis
Material Assignment: As explained earlier material assigned to CAD model of HAWT is
steel with elasticity modulus of 200E9 and poison ratio of 0.3
Section Assignment Section is assumed to be homogenous shell with a thickness of 7
mm
Surfaces 18 surfaces are created along the span of the blade in order to apply
aerodynamic loadings (Names of these surfaces are mentioned in Table 2)
Analysis Type (Step): Linear static analysis has been carried out.
Boundary Conditions: Fixed. All rotational and translational degree of freedom are 0

37

Load: Since Lift force is varying along the span of the blade so different Pressure loads
are applied on 18 different segments of the blade. Values of these loads are given in the
following table:
Surface
Name

Pressure load (kg(mm^-1)/s^2)

Surf 1
0.151
Surf 2
0.36
Surf 3
0.528
Surf 4
0.737
Surf 5
0.99
Surf 6
1.29
Surf 7
1.3
Surf 8
1.4
Surf 9
1.69
Surf 10
2
Surf 11
2.19
Surf 12
2.5
Surf 13
3.9
Surf 14
4.65
Surf15
5.94
Surf 16
7.47
Surf17
9.016
Surf18
8.03
Figure 22: Pressure loads acting on surfaces of HAWT rotor blade

Values of pressure loads have been calculated by the following formula

=
Where,
= Pressure acting on ith surface
= Lift force acting on ith surface
= Area of the ith surface
Element assignment:

38

Elements used in meshing are S8R: An 8-node doubly curved thick shell, reduced
integration. These elements account for shear flexibility in laminated composites and
are suitable for thick shells.
Meshing:
Meshing has been carried out on seed size of 500 mm, assigned along the span of the
blade.

3.4.3 Results of the Structural Analysis

As a result of simulation on this model of HAWT Rotor blade, tip deflection was found
out to be 4.138 meters as shown in following figure:

Figure 23: Flap-wise tip deflections in the blade

Note that the negative sign in this case shows the blade deflects downwards as the
pressure force is applied on the upper surface of the blade.
The next part of the post processing is highly important. The figure above shows only the
contours along the length of the blade. This is because the differences in the chord-wise
39

deflections are small compared to the flap-wise deflections. This deflection information
cannot be directly obtained from the diagram so another approach will have to be taken.
For an isotropic material model with uniform material thickness the stresses in the blade
can serve as a tool for predicting the critical areas of deflection. Since the material is
assumed to be show a linear relationship between the stress and strain, we can imply
that the areas with the highest stresses will directly cause the greatest deflections. The
following figure shows the Von misses stresses for the blade:

Figure 24: Von misses stresses for the blade

The first observation that can be made from the diagram is the stress concentrations
around the areas where the skin contacts the shear webs make contact with the skin.
The shear webs being the main load bearing members keep the skin from deforming.
The aerodynamic lift force which is the main load acting on the blade tends to compress
the shear webs. The shear webs also bear the loading which causes the flap-wise tip
deflections. This defines the goal for the composite design. The shear webs being the
main load bearing components of the blade should have the greatest strength and it will
experience compressive and shear loading.
The area near the root of the blade has higher stresses as compared to the areas away
from the root. Hence, the areas closer to the root should have higher strength.
The spar caps transmit the loads to the shear webs hence they need to be stronger than
the remaining skin of the blade.

40

The skin is the part which bears the least stresses and so it requires the least structural
performance. However, the skin should be strong enough to maintain an aerodynamic
shape and should not flutter due the turbulence of the wind.
A better idea of the stresses which are directly related to the flap-wise tip deflections
can be had from the S-22 stresses. The figure below shows the variation of the stresses.

Figure 25: Flap-wise component of stresses

The figure above shows almost the same trend as Figure.24. The stress concentrations
are again in the root sections and along the regions where the shear webs are connected.
One anomaly in the trend which is quite visible in Figure.25 occurs at z=6500mm where
the stresses are reasonably low at the point where the spar at 15% of the chord length
meets the skin. This is due to a geometric anomaly which occurs while creating the CAD
model of the blade. The spar at 15% chord length in the 7th section occurs at the 14 point
used to create the airfoil and in the 8th section the spar created joins the skin at the 15th
point and continues for the subsequent sections. This could very well be the reason for
the anomaly.
With the goals defined for the composite layup and the critical areas identified, the next
step in FEA would be to design the composite layup.

41

4 Analytical Modeling
4.1 Introduction
The objective of this section is to analytically model the behavior of the blade under the
lift force experienced by it. The limiting parameter for this study is the tip deflection of
the blade. The agreement of the results of this model with those of the FE model is of
significant importance as well.
Analytical formulation requires the actual solution of the governing equations in a
continuous domain; however, some discrete mathematics may be required to
approximate certain parameters for which the actual information is not available.
The purpose of this analytical model is not to serve as a substantial design aid for the
blade but to confirm, with a reasonable level of certainty, the accuracy of the FE model.
The analytical model can also be used as a first guess to study the behavior of the blade
to narrow down the design parameters in an acceptable range for FE modeling in the
case where parametric study is not an objective.
The results obtained from the analytical model may be inaccurate, to some extent, due
to the lack of complexity that can be incorporated in the model. The complexity,
however, is a subject to the requirement of the designer and the object of designing.

4.2 Description of the Analytical Model

The geometrical profile used to build the model is a simplification of the actual designed
blade with the following characteristics:
A hollow rectangular cross-section
The width and the height of the cross-section were made to replicate the variation
of the maximum height of the airfoil and the distance between the shear webs
respectively for the first attempt. In the 2nd attempt the height and the width of
the box were tapered linearly, with the dimensions of the bigger section being the
average of the largest airfoil section and its preceding airfoil sections and the
smaller section having the dimensions of the last airfoil section from the root.
The length of the blade model is 36m.
The thickness of the box section is 0.007m.
42

 The root section of the blade is fixed forming a cantilever beam.

A distributed line load is applied on the beam which varies along the length of the
beam.
The nomenclature for the modeling is show in the following figures:

Figure 26: Airfoil Nomenclature for use in Analytical model

Figure 27: Box section nomenclature for analytical model

Figure 28: Linearly tapered hollow box section beam

43

4.2.1 Theory
The basic equation for finding the tip deflection is derived from the expression for the
curvature of a cantilever beam:
2
= 2

Where
= Internal moment experienced by the beam as a force is applied on the beam
= Youngs Modulus
= Moment of Inertia about an axis transverse to length of the beam
In this case the internal moment and moment of inertia are both functions of x so the
equation can be written as:
2
() = () 2

Integrating the expression twice will yield the expression for the transverse deflection of
the beam at any point along the length of the beam.
This happens to be an initial value problem with the two conditions observed at the fixed
end of the beam such that:

(0 ) = 0

(0 ) = 0

4.2.2 Procedure
The construction of the analytical model consists of the following steps:
Construction of expression for the variation of internal moment along the length of the
beam
As only the aerodynamic loading is considered for this section, the significant internal
moment will be only be caused by the lift force on the blade. To obtain the equation for
the internal moment, the lift force experiences was plotted on 19 airfoil sections and
44

then curve fitted. The moment equation is obtained by integrating the force equation
and calculating the constant of integration on any of the 19 known points of the curve.
The equation obtained is:
= 31.036767 3 1337.985 2 + 214095 7.9 107
Construction of expression for the width and height of the section
The data for the width and height of the box section is taken from the existing CAD model
in ABAQUS for 19 airfoil sections which were interpolated using EES.
A box section will consist of two sets of equation for the distribution of height and two
sets of equations for the width owing to the thickness of the box section i.e.0 .007m. The
reason for doing so is that these equations will later be used to calculate the moment of
inertia which will be obtained from subtracting the moment of inertia of the inside box (
consisting of hollow space) from the outside box.
As mentioned previously, two cases for the distribution of the height and width have
been considered which are as follows

4.2.2.1

Case1: Polynomial interpolation

In this case the data from the 19 airfoil sections was interpolated using a 5th degree
polynomial.
The equations obtained are:
= 0.460302 + 0.27071 0.0455494 2 + 0.002785 3 0.000074 4
+ 7.2 107 5
= 0.449974 + 0.26965 0.0454459 2 + 0.002781 3 0.000074 4
+ 7.2 107 5
= 0.7005 + 0.4289 0.07410 2 + 4.6 103 3 1.24 104 4
+ 1.22 106 5
= 0.68555 + 0.4293 0.07416 + 4.6 103 3 1.24 104 4
+ 1.22 106 5

45

Following figures show the curve fit for the dimensions of the box:

Figure 29: height of the outside box section curve fitted against length of the beam

Figure 30: height of the inside box section curve fitted against length of the beam

46

Figure 31: width of the outside box section curve fitted against length of the beam

Figure 32: width of the inside box section curve fitted against length of the beam

47

4.2.2.2

Case2: Linear Interpolation

While making the equations for the analytical model, it is important to realize the effects
and sensitivity of different parameters on the desired parameter.
The object of making equations of height and width of the box is to use them in the
expression for calculating the variation of the moment of inertia (Izz) of the box section
along the length of the beam, about a transverse axis z. While making the equations for
the width and height of the box section in terms of x, the following should be noted:
The height of the box section h is much more sensitive than the width w of the
box section in the expression for Izz.
An overestimation of Izz will result in less tip deflections of the beam and the
opposite is true as well.
An underestimation of Izz closer to the root will result in more deflections as
compared to the same level of underestimation closer to the tip region.
Underestimation in regions of high forces will result in more deflections.

4.2.3 Expression for Izz

The expression for Izz is :
= 112 3
The equations from both the cases can be substituted in the expression to form an
equation in terms of x

4.2.3.1

Case1: Polynomial interpolation

The expression formed from the 5th degree polynomial interpolation of the parameters
gives a significant 20-degree polynomial expression for the moment of inertia which is
not mentioned here because it is not directly related to any actual calculations.
Since this expressions is a result of an interpolation it is not necessary that it will the
required number of real roots needed to make the expression. It is indeed the case the
expression does not have a root in the range that we are interested in i.e. 0-36 m. To
avoid imaginary roots the expression for Izz was interpolated using an exponential
function.
48

Figure below shows the graph for the actual expression obtained and the graph for the
interpolated exponential function overlapped.

Figure 33: Moment of inertia of the box section interpolated with an exponential function

It can be seen from the graph that there is an overestimation of results from 0 - 3m and
an underestimation from 3 - 12.5 m. The large moment of inertia at the root will result
in under estimation of tip deflections and over prediction of beam strength.
The equation of the exponential interpolation is shown below:
= 6.84261 103 .144501

4.2.3.2

Case2: Linear Interpolation

As discussed above the equations for the width w and the height h of the box section
were determined by taking the average of the first four airfoil section dimensions and
using it for the initial section for the beam in the analytical model. The last section of the
beam corresponds to the dimensions of the last airfoil section.

49

The width and the height of the section were interpolated linearly which has its
advantages; Using a higher order might increase an R2 percentage for the particular
curve fit but it does not account for the sensitivity of the curve sections to errors. As
discussed earlier, errors in the values of parameters closer to the root section will
account for a larger error in obtaining the tip deflection of the beam. One should choose
the more conservative approach when such errors are plausible.
The second advantage for choosing a linear function to interpolate the parameters is
that a function close to a negative exponential function is obtained for the moment of
inertia which is favorable for interpolation.
The figure below shows the graph of Izz and its interpolation with exponential function.
Again, the choice of exponential function is obvious in this case as the function for Izz
does not have a root in the required range of values of x

Figure 34: Graph of IzzVs x for Case2

50

The graph highlights one of the shortcomings of EES as a tool for interpolation. EES does
not provide the user with the option of specifying the starting point of interpolation. The
region closer to the root is in this case an over estimation but since the height and the
width were underestimated to begin with, this model would produce reasonable results.
The original equation for Izz is as follows:

3.48139 1065 4 8.51033 1055 3 2.4981 1055 2

=

+

1.02844 1077
2.70432 1063
5.0706 1045
1.41771 1026
2.11405 1012

+
6.7554 1029
6.4 1014

The equation for Izz interpolated with an exponential function is as follows

= 4.6896 103 .114802
The factor multiplied with the exponential term corresponds to the maximum value of
the function. For Case1 it is much higher than the one obtained for case2 i.e. 6.84261
103 compared to 4.6896 103 respectively. Unfortunately there is no way to
account for the validity of these values at this stage.

4.2.4 Calculation of Tip Deflection of Beam

As mentioned in the start of this section, the governing equation for the tip deflection
for a cantilevered beam is
2
= 2

The boundary conditions for the equation are

(0) = 0

(0 ) = 0
Izz and Mz are functions and E is a constant. The equation can be integrated twice to
obtain an expression an equation for y in terms of x, where y is a measure of tip
deflection of the beam.
The values of the constants of integration can be obtained by employing the boundary
conditions.
51

The final tedious equations for the tip deflection are not mentioned for both cases in this
report but they can be obtained from following the procedure and using an equation
solver. MATLAB was used for this purpose.
Material used in this case is steel (E=200x109)
The values of the tip deflection can be found out by using a value of 36 for x for both
the cases
The value of the tip deflection obtained for Case1 is 85.626cm
The value of tip deflection obtained for Case2 is 1.45m
The value of tip deflection obtained from the CAE model is 4.138m

4.3 Discussion
As it can be seen, the tip deflections from the analytical model are in agreement with
the CAE model. However the analytical model under predicts the tip deflections for the
blade. There are a number of reasons for this;
Firstly, analytical calculations which involve curve fitting and involvement of higher
power of those equations will have an amplifying effect on the errors. The calculation of
the moment of inertia is one of those quantities which are very sensitive to this kind of
error.
The over prediction of the moment of inertia in the root region is a source of the under
prediction of tip deflections as the area closer to the root decreases deflections a lot
more than the area near the tip of the blade with the same level of increase in stiffness.
The difference in the loadings for the analytical model and the CAE model also has an
effect on the tip deflections obtained. For the CAE model the aerodynamic forces are
applied as pressure forces while in the analytical model the aerodynamic forces are
assumed to be line forces. Abaqus takes different boundary conditions for the two
loadings applied. A more fair comparison with the analytical model would be to apply
the line force on the CAE model in Abaqus with the equation of the force defined but
since in Abaqus the mesh is made on an area for shells, concentrated forces produce
stress concentrations and produce results far from the actual when the area are big and
the mesh is fine.
52

The equation used to predict the deflections of the blade is actually an approximated
equation which originated from a Taylor series expansion. The differential terms have
been truncated so the equation can be integrated.

53

5 Designing Composite HAWT Rotor Blade

5.1 Introduction
Designing a light weight and high strength HAWT rotor blade is a major challenge which
requires use of light weight and high stiffness composite materials. Due to high modulus
and low density, E Glass, S glass epoxy composites and woven fabric composites are good
options for HAWT rotor blade. Moreover Glass fiber is preferred over carbon fiber
composites because of their economic feasibility, wide availability, good handleablity
and ease of processing.
A structurally sound HAWT wind rotor blade should have good flap wise and edge wise
stiffness, an appropriate composite layup and large spar cap width. Main purpose of
composite structural analysis is to minimize stresses up to a linear range and tip
deflections so that tip of the wind turbine blade may not collide with the tower of HAWT.
A typical section of the airfoil is as follow:

Figure 35: Airfoil cross section ( Sketch drawn on Abaqus 6.10)

In above figure, spar caps and the shear webs is the main load bearing components. So
spar caps and the shear webs are always the regions with greater thickness as compared
to upper and lower skin. Spar caps are placed at 15% and 50% of the chord length from
the leading edge to give an appropriate stiffness values [20].
On a typical HAWT rotor blade, following are some forces acting on it,

Lift force
Drag Force
Gravity loadings
Centrifugal Forces

54

Following is the figure showing loadings induced in a typical cross sectional blade as a
result of above mentioned forces:

Figure 36: Loadings induced in cross section of airfoil [21]

5.2 Composite HAWT rotor blade model

A HAWT rotor blade model with composite layup sequence is built in Abaqus. Main
assumptions of this model is as follow,
Blade has been made by orthotropic composite materials with varying cross
section in different sections of an airfoil
Aerodynamic forces have been applied as calculated in aerodynamic model ( given
in chapter 2)
Lift force has been applied uniformly on the upper cross section of the blade
Appropriate assumptions of the drag force have been explained section 5.5.
Value of gravity has been assumed 9800mm/s^2.
Centrifugal forces has been calculate at an angular speed of 2 rad/s
Boundary conditions of Encastre (all translational and rotational degree of
freedoms are 0 ) at the root of the blade

55

5.3 CAD Model

A CAD model has been developed in Abaqus 6.10 by the same procedure as explained in
previous chapter. Moreover this model has few added features, explained as follow,
19 rectangular cross sections have been created at every cross section of the
blade. These rectangular cross sections have been created by 3 point datum CSYS
tools in part module of Abaqus 6.10.
Various sets have been created in order to assign composite layup and to apply
drag force to rotor blade.

5.4 Composite Layup

A composite layup has been built by following design guidelines for unidirectional tape,
laminated composite panels. Purpose of following these guide lines is to build a
composite lay-up that gives acceptable range of maximum stress and deflections
(particularly tip deflection). Few of the guidelines are as follow [23]

5.4.1 Symmetric laminate Layup

In symmetric composite layup, laminates are symmetric about a mid-surface. For
example composite layup [90/0/45/-45/0/-45/45/0/90] is symmetric about mid
laminate which is [0].
Composite layup is used in order to uncouple axial and bending stresses and to prevent
warping in case of thermal stresses.

5.4.2 Balanced laminated composite layup

A balanced laminated composite layup refers that orientation of the angles plies (plies
other than 90 and 0) should occur in pairs. i.e. For any +45 there should exist -45 layer.
For instance 90/+45/-45/0 is a balanced laminate composite layup

56

Figure 37: Figure showing difference between balanced and unbalanced layup sequence

Due to such layup coupling between in plane normal and shear behavior is removed.

5.4.3 Use of carpet Plots

Carpet plots are used in order to determine the effect of layup on laminate strength and
stiffness. Carpet plots shows that with increase in +45/-45 plies, axial strength decreases
significantly and shear strength increases. This trend has been shown in following graphs:

Figure 38: Room temperature ultimate tension strength for high strength graphite epoxy laminates

57

Figure 39: Room temperature ultimate shear strength for high strength graphite epoxy laminates

5.4.4 10 percent rule

10 percent rule states that laminates will be fiber dominated if 10 % of the laminates will
be in 0, 90, 45 and -45 direction. Fiber domination gives durability to composite layup.

5.4.5 Avoiding excessive expansion of thermal coefficient

Interlaminate stresses are reasons why the laminates fail at lower stresses. Experiments
have shown that limiting layer thickness to a value of 0.02 inches reduces that interlaminar stresses and hence increases the ultimate strength of the laminate.

5.4.6 Limit the layer thickness to 0.02 inches

Interlaminate stresses are reasons why the laminates fail at lower stresses. Experiments
have shown that limiting layer thickness to a value of 0.02 inches reduces that interlaminar stresses and hence increases the ultimate strength of the laminate.

58

5.4.7 Increase in Number of +45,-45 plies in shear carrying components

+45 and -45 degree plies should be increased in components where shear forces are
more dominant. In first iteration (in earlier chapter) we concluded that shear stresses
are more dominated in region of shear webs. So in the layup, +45 and -45 plies were
dominated in shear web regions.
Note that upper and lower skin is in experiencing flap wise and edge wise bending, so in
those regions 0 and 90 degree plies were more dominant.

5.5 Materials Assigned

Material used in composite HAWT blade is S-Glass composite with following properties,
E1 = 59E9 Pa (Elasticity modulus in longitudinal direction)
E2 = 20E9 Pa (Elasticity modulus in transverse direction)
V12 = 0.28
G12= 20E9 Pa

5.6 FEA Specifications

5.6.1 Analysis Type
A static linear analysis is carried out on Abaqus 6.10

5.6.2 Meshing
Meshing has been carried out on seed size of 500, 700 and 830 mm mesh sizes.

5.6.3 Element Types

Elements used in meshing are S8R: An 8-node doubly curved thick shell, reduced
integration. These elements account for shear flexibility in laminated composites and
are suitable for thick shells
59

5.6.4 Boundary Condition

All rotational and translational degree of freedom equal to 0) are applied on the first
cross section of the blade.

5.7 Loadings
5.7.1 Lift force
Lift force has been applied by the same procedure as described in previous chapter.
Following are the values of normal pressure forces:
Surface
Name

Pressure load ( kg(mm^-1)/s^2)

0.09706
0.253
0.391
0.59112
0.84
1.14
1.18
1.27
1.57
1.902
2.105
2.43
3.43
4.58
5.87
7.41
8.965
8.03

Surf 1
Surf 2
Surf 3
Surf 4
Surf 5
Surf 6
Surf 7
Surf 8
Surf 9
Surf 10
Surf 11
Surf 12
Surf 13
Surf 14
Surf15
Surf 16
Surf17

Surf18
Figure 40: Pressure Loads on Various Cross-Sections of the Blade

60

5.7.2 Centrifugal Forces

Rotational body force load has been applied in order to account for centrifugal forces.
Centrifugal force are applied about X axis. Rotational rpm has been assumed to be 2
rad/s.

5.7.3 Gravity force

Gravity force has been applied along y axis to account for weight of the blade. Value of
g is assumed to be 9800mm/s

5.7.4 Drag Force

Drag equation is calculated by following equation,
/ = 0.5 2
Where,

Cd = Coefficient of Drag
P = density of air assumed to be 1.1433 kg/m^3
U = Relative velocity of air
C = Chord length
Fd/l = Drag force per unit length

For chosen airfoil ie. NACA 64-618 coefficient of drag is 0.03 [24]. Values of relative
velocity are calculated in aerodynamic modal for every cross section of blade. On
average drag force has been applied after every 2 meters so value of length has assumed
to be 2000mm.
After calculating drag force, it has been decomposed in vertical component and
horizontal component. Following are the equation used,
=
=
Where is the angle of relative velocity.
Drag force has been applied in terms of concentrated force in Abaqus 6.10
61

Following is the table showing drag force acting on the blade.

Drag Force (as
named in
Abaqus 6.10)

Horizontal
Component
F dx

Vertical
Component
F dy

Drag1

4200

-5400

Drag2

8920

-9000

Drag3

12200

-11200

Drag4

17000

-12660

Drag5

21600

-13400

Drag6

26120

-13980

Drag7

30620

-14300

Drag8

36800

-14780

Drag9

43020

-14740

Drag10

50920

-14880

Drag11

59980

-14980

Drag12

71330.9

-15060

Drag13

84960

-15120

Drag14

98620

-15140

Drag15

125960

-15160

Drag16

134640

-14360

Drag17

90000

-6800

Drag18

78560

-5400

Figure 41: Drag Force on Various Cross-Sections of the Blade

5.8 Results and Discussion

Note: The approximate mesh size used for this section is 500 mm
The first result to be discussed is the tip deflection. The tip deflections for a 1.2MW
HAWT is around 6m [25]. The maximum deflection for the blade turns out to be 4.485m.
The figure that follows shows the comparison of the deflected blade with the undeflected blade and a contour plot of the maximum deflections encountered in the blade

62

Figure 42: Maximum deflections in the blade

At this point it is important to note that the sections closer to the root have almost no
deflections while the sections closer to the root have larger deflections. However, this
result should not be misinterpreted, as the less deflections near the root are section a
result of the boundary condition applied. A better macroscopic observation at this point
would be the curvature of the blade. A uniform curvature shows that the different
sections of the blade have deflected uniformly if the deflections of the previous sections
are ignored.
The next result to be displayed is the flap-wise deflections of the blade. This is the limiting
factor in the elastic response of the blade. The flap-wise deflections should be less than
the length of the nacelle for the blade to avoid making contact with the supporting
tower. The figure below shows the distribution of the flap-wise deflections of the blade.

63

Figure 43: Flap-wise deflections of the blade

The maximum flap-wise deflections for the blade are 4.165m. This is well within the safe
range for the blade of a 1.2MW HAWT which is [25]. A negative sign shows the downward
deflection of the blade in the global y-axis as the aerodynamic lift force (which is
responsible for the deflection) has been applied on the low pressure-top surface of the
blade. This is a conservative approach as the area of the low pressure surface is less than
the high-pressure bottom surface of the blade.
Another important result to consider is the span-wise deflections of the blade to ensure
that the shape of the airfoil has not distorted due to the application of drag force on the
airfoil. The following figure shows the span-wise deflections of Blade in the edge-wise
direction.

Figure 44: Span-wise deflections of the blade

64

It can be seen from the figure that the maximum deflections are of the order of 6.9cm
on the leading edge of the blade in the sections closer to the root which is reasonable
for a section with a minimum chord length of about 800cm. There are two trends that
can be seen in the above figure. The first trend is the increase in the span-wise
deflections from root to tip. This is because of the centrifugal forces applied to the blade.
As we move away from the root of the blade the magnitude of the centrifugal force
increases. Since the direction of the centrifugal forces is along the global-z direction
(along the length of the blade) the sections closer to the root region tend to be the most
affected by these forces. The 2nd trend to observe is the variation of the edge-wise
deflections. The trend is governed by the application of drag force which causes a
bending about the global x-axis (along the chord). Since the drag force is applied in the
x-direction, it generates a bending moment about the x-axis so the leading edge is under
tension and the trailing edge is under compression.
With all the deflections in reasonable range, the next step would be to study the stress
distribution within the blade.
The figure below shows the contour plot for the Von misses stresses in the blade:

Figure 45: Von misses stress distribution for the blade, viewing from the low pressure surface

The first verification from the plot is the range of stresses experienced in the blade to
validate the assumption of the linear elastic response. The maximum stresses
experienced are of the order of 0.3162GPa which is within the linear range [26]
65

The maximum stress occurs in the shear webs which act as the main load bearing
components in the blade.
Another important observation is the distribution of stresses within the skin. Note that
there is an improvement in this regard compared to the case where the isotropic
material is used. This is due the greater thickness of the spar caps and an excess of plies
which 0-degree fibers.
The principal stresses are in the linear behavior range as well. Figure.5 shows the
maximum principal stresses in the blade.

Figure 46: Maximum principal stresses in the blade

The trend is quite close to that of the Von misses stress distribution with the maximum
stresses acting on the shear webs. A cutaway section will reveal the stresses in the shear
webs.

66

Figure 47: Cutaway section of the blade viewing from the blade root end

As can be seen from the Figure.6 the maximum stresses occur in the shear webs at the
root section. This is the result of the applied boundary condition.
The next step would be analyzing the strains in the blade. Determination of strains serves
as a good tool for the initial prediction of fatigue based failure for the wind turbine blade
[27].

Figure 48: Maximum principal strains distribution within the blade

In the above figure, the maximum stresses are of the order of 6.092E-3. If we refer to
[27] this gives us a life cycle of above 10,000,000 cycles.

67

A cutaway section when viewed from the root end reveals that maximum strains occur
at the root section of the blade. The maximum strains are shared equally by the spar
caps and the shear webs alike.
The compressive strains are much lower than the tensile strains which are a good result
as composites are weaker in compression as compared to when they are loaded in
tension.

Figure 49: Cut-away section viewed from the root end showing Maximum in plane Principal stresses

The trend is quite similar to those obtained for stress distribution.

5.9 Analysis at various mesh densities

Analysis of this composite HAWT model has been carried out at seed sizes of 500, 700
and 830. Following results were obtained as a result of carrying analysis at various mesh
densities.

68

4.15
4.1
4.05
500

700

830

3.95
3.9
3.85

Tip deflections (m)

Figure 50: Tip Deflections and various Mesh Sizes

5.10 Conclusions
The linear elastic response gives an idea about the stress, strain and deflections
distributions of the model. It is a very useful analysis in determining the critical areas of
a structure and the load bearing members of a part or an assembly.
Designing a composite layup is a not trivial task. An in-depth understanding of the forces
is required for weight saving. Some guidelines are necessary to make a long-lasting and
durable composite in addition to one that satisfies the loading conditions. These
guidelines can only be developed with experience and real world thinking. A poorly
designed composite material for the job would not be of much help in reducing the
weight of the component.
The aim of designing a composite layup is to analyze the elastic response of the blade
and to satisfy the loading conditions with the material properties in the most material
saving manner.
In case of a wind turbine blade it is important to take into account the various types of
loadings and the result of these forces. It is also important to realize the purpose of the
different components in the blade: The skin should be stiff enough to maintain the
69

aerodynamic profile; the spar caps channel the forces to the shear webs, the shear webs
provide the bending stiffness to the structure and hence are the main load bearing
component of the blade. Evidently, the shear webs are the most effected component
from the in plane shear stresses so they need to be strong in shear as well.
As far as the direction along the length of the blade is concerned the root is the most
critical area as it bears the most loading as well as it is the most sensitive area in terms
of deflections. Varying the composite thickness along the length of the blade can also act
as a weight saving tool.
For the edge-wise deflections of the blade, the leading edge is the most critical area as
it bears the most drag forces and its frontal deformation can greatly affect the shape of
the airfoil.

5.11 Recommendations
Following are the recommendations for future work:
Incorporation of turbulent flows while calculating the performance parameters for
the blade with the help from CFD analysis
Calculation of wind loads distribution along the chord of the airfoil. This will help
in determining the effects of the chord-wise bending
Wind load calculations should be done with the help of computational software
as it is less time taking and a more accurate approach.
Analytical model should be developed for the composite material.
Analysis for prevention of buckling and fatigue should be done.
On the basis of developed model a parametric model of the blade may be
prepared to
Investigate the effect of changing Spar configurations, Lamina configuration and
Airfoil shape

70

6 REFERENCES
[1] Presentation to the press London (2011), International Energy agency World Energy
outlook 2011
[2]Parker, J.G. (2011).Renewables 2011: Global Status Report, pp. 35
[3]Guhptha, R.G.(2009). Indias solar mission, how it is harnessing unlimited energy.
[4] Information retrieved from http://www.owdcc.org/
[5] United Nations Statistics Division, Millennium Development Goals indicators,
collected
by
CDIAC.
Information
retrieved
from
http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/SeriesDetail.aspx?srid=749&crid=,

[6], [7] Government and private sector role in energy crisis .Information retrieved from:
http://www.pakistanenergyconference.com/

[8]Strengthening Americas Energy Security with Offshore Wind. U.S. Department of Energy.
February 2011.
[9] Wind Vision 2025: Powering Canada's
fromhttp://www.canwea.ca/windvision_e.php

Future

(2008).Information

retrieved

[10] Latin America wind power market and strategies: 20102025 (2011). Information
Retrieved
fromhttp://www.emergingnergy.com/uploadDocs/LatinAmericaWindPowerMarketsandStrategies.pdf

[11] Massive interest shown in Brazil wind energy tender (2009). Retrieved from:
http://www.rechargenews.com/business_area/politics/article183932.ece

[12] Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the
European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Offshore
Wind Energy: Action needed to deliver on the Energy Policy Objectives for 2020 and
beyond.
Information
retrieved
from:
http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52008DC0768:EN:NOT
[13] Masdar plan for $200m pioneering wind farm. Information retrieved from:
http://www.thenational.ae/business/energy/masdar-plan-for-200m-pioneering-windfarm

71

[14] Technology Roadmap China Wind Energy Development Roadmap 2050

International
Energy
Agency
(IEA).
Retrieved
from:
http://www.iea.org/papers/roadmaps/china_wind.pdf

[15] Government of Pakistan: Energy sector goals. Information retrieved from;

http://www.aedb.org/wind.htm

[16] Manwell J.F. McGowan J.G. Rojers A.L.(2002). Wind Energy Explained: Theory Design
and Application
[17] Liu Wenzhi, Wu Jianxin, ZHangFuhai and Liu Changzeng (2009) 3D Modeling
Methods of Aerodynamic Shape for Large-Scale Wind Turbine Blades in 200. In
precedence of International Conference on Information Technology and Computer
Science 2009
[18] Peter Fuglsang, Stefano Bove and LM Glasfiber(2000). WindTunnel Testing Of
Airfoils Involves More Than Just Wall Corrections.
[19] NaeemMemon ( 2002). Analysis of Data of AEDB-UNDP (WEP) Wind Masts Installed
in Gharo-Keti Bandar Wind Corridor
[20] Parametric Study for Large Wind Turbine Blades Sand2002-2519 TPI Composites. Inc
[21] M. Grujicic, G. Arakere, E. Subramanian, V. Sellappan, A. Vallejo, and M. Ozen [2009].
Structural-Response Analysis, Fatigue-Life Prediction,and Material Selection for 1 MW
Horizontal-AxisWind-Turbine Blades , Journal ASM International.
[22] Hogg P. ( 2010) Manufacturing challenges for wind turbines, pp. 23
[23] J. A. Bailie,A. Pasricha, A. Pasricha ( 1997) A summary and review of composite
laminate design guidelines
[24] Peter Fuglsang, Stefano Bove and LM Glasfiber(2000). WindTunnel Testing Of
Airfoils Involves More Than Just Wall Corrections
[25] Parametric Study for Large Wind Turbine Blades Sand2002-2519 TPI Composites. Inc
[26] Ilan Juran and Uri Komornik (2006). Behavior of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (FRP)
Composite Piles under Vertical Loads Geotechnical Engineering U.S Department of
transportation
[27] Teresa Wagner (2008). High Performance Reinforcements for the Wind Energy
Market.
72

7 Appendix
7.1 Aerodynamic calculations in Matlab code:
clear
omega=2; % Angular Velocity in rad/s
r= 0.5;
U=10; % Wind velocity
B=3; % Number of blades in wind turbine
i=1;
R=36; % Radius of Blade
N=18; % Number of Sections of Blade
lambda=(omega)*(R)/U; % Tip speed Velocity
lambda_r=(omega)*r/U % local tip speed ratio
phi=(2/3)*atand(1/lambda_r); % Angle of relative wind
C_l=1.4;
% Lift Coefficient
phi_1=phi*3.14159/180;
% Angle of relative wind in radians
c=(8*3.14159*r/(B*C_l))*(1-cos(phi_1)); % Chord length
solidity=(B*c)/(2*3.14159*r);
% solidity of wind turbine
a(i)=1/(1+((4*(sin(phi_1))^2)/(solidity*C_l*cos(phi_1)))); % axial induction factor
a_o(i)=(1-3*a(i))/((4*a(i))-1); % Angular induction factor
i=2;
j=1;
density=1.1455; % Density of air
while(j<100)
phi=atand((1-a(i-1))/((1+a_o(i-1))*lambda_r));
phi=phi*(3.14159/180);
F=(2/3.14159)*(3.14159 /180)*acosd(exp((-1.5*(1-r/36))/((r/36)*sin(phi))));
a_o(i)=1/((4*F*cos(phi)/(solidity*C_l))-1);
a(i)=1/((4*F*(sin(phi))^2/(solidity*C_l*cos(phi)))+1);
if (a(i)-a(i-1)<.01)
j=1000;
end
i=i+1;
j=j+1;
end
U_relative=(U*(1-a(i-1))/(sin(phi))) % Relative wind magnitude
c=(8*3.14159*r/(B*C_l))*(1-cos(phi))
73

a(i-1) %linear induction factor

a_o(i-1) %angular induction factor
Phi =phi*(180/3.14159) % Relative velocity angle
F %tip loss factor
Cp=(8/(lambda*N))*(F*(sin(phi))^2*(cos(phi)lambda_r*sin(phi))*(sin(phi)+lambda_r*cos(phi))*(lambda_r)^2)
C_t= (solidity*(1-a(i-1))^2*(C_l*cos(phi)))/(sin(phi))^2
Coefficient
F_N=(B/2)*density*(U_relative)^2*C_l*cos(phi)*c*3
Normal Force

74

%power coefficient
%Thrust
%