DESIGN OF A WIND TURBINE

Abstract

The project in hand deals with the designing, feasibility and cost
effectiveness study of a wind turbine which may preferably be installed at
agricultural farms and open areas where there are no major hindrances to
the wind current or tower height limitations. This type of wind turbine
system is used to fulfill the local electricity power requirements of the site.
The project is done by three students and each student’s report emphasizes
on a particular area in addition to the overall design brief. In this report, the
detailed discussion on types of wind turbines as well as the detailed design
of turbine blade is discussed.

PLANNING AND ORGANIZING YOUR PROJECT

The goal of the project is to come up with an optimum design of wind
turbine which is suitable for the power requirements of an average
agricultural form in USA in particular and worldwide in general. Following
breakdown was selected to achieve the objectives:

(a) Selection of wind turbine type

(b) Selecting Vital parameters of the system based on requirement and
cost comparison
(c) Finalizing the details of

(i) Blade design

(ii) Gearbox design
(iii) Yaw and steering system
(iv) Transmission system
(v) Number of blades
(vi) Generator
(vii) Tower
(viii) Hydraulic System
(ix) Brake System

(d) Making performance and cost comparison

(1)
 (e) Incorporating safeties in design
(f) Estimating the cost of project

THE ITERATIVE NATURE OF DESIGN

Selection of Type of Wind Turbine

There are two basic types of turbines: -

Drag Type Turbines These are the types of turbine which are sent into
motion due to the drag effect of the media (either air or water). Figure No 1
and 2 shows some basic shapes and arrangements for drag type turbines.
These turbines were mostly used in the early history in Persia and China.
These may be classified as:

(i) Persian Windmill

(ii) Chinese Windmill
(iii) Saviounus

Figure No 1 Different types of Drag Type Wind Turbines

(2)
 (b) Lift Type Turbines These types of turbines have airfoil type
geometry of blades and use the concept of lift generation to extract
energy from air. These wind turbines are most common now a
days. Followings are the subcategories of these turbines.

(i) Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) This is the

most common type of wind turbine. These have their main rotor
shaft and electrical generator at the top of a tower. These rotor
must be pointed into the wind.

(ii) Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) In this type, the

main rotor shaft is installed vertically. The blades need not be
steered to keep in wind direction.

Figure No 2 Different Arrangements in Drag Type Wind Turbines

HAWTs

Disadvantage The greatest design complexity faced in case of

Horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWT) is that these must be pointed into the
wind in order to work efficiently. For steering small turbines, a simple wind
vane is used, while large turbines generally use a wind sensor coupled with a
servo motor.

(3)
Advantages This type of turbines has following advantages due to
which it suites our requirements: -

(a) The blade pitch angle can be varied to give the turbine blades an
optimum angle of attack. This feature enables the turbine to
collects the maximum amount of wind energy for any time of the
day and during any season.

(b) The tall tower base allows access to stronger wind in sites with wind
shear. In some wind shear sites, every ten meters up, the wind
speed can increase by 20% and the power output by 34%.

(c) Since the blades always move perpendicular to the wind, they
receive power through the whole rotation and hence are more
efficient. In contrast, all vertical axis wind turbines involve various
types of reciprocating actions, requiring airfoil surfaces to backtrack
against the wind for part of the cycle. Backtracking against the wind
leads to inherently lower efficiency.

(d) The face of a horizontal axis blade is struck by the wind at a

consistent angle regardless of the position in its rotation. These
results in a consistent lateral wind loading over the course of a
rotation, reducing vibration and audible noise coupled to the tower
or mount.

Figure No 3 Typical Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines

(4)
VAWTs

It is difficult to mount vertical-axis turbines on towers. These are often

installed nearer to the base on which they rest, such as the ground or a
building rooftop. This attribute of VAWTs make them more suitable for
installation in populated areas, inside the cities (mounted on building
rooftops) or at places where there is a restriction on maximum height of the
building structures. Moreover, due to less height of the blades, they do not
get sufficient wind speed and hence are not as effective (in general) as
HAWTs.

Figure No 4 Typical Vertical Axis Wind Turbines

Keeping in view the above discussion, Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

(HAWT) was selected as most suitable option for type of wind turbine to be
installed on farm lands.

(5)
 Figure No 5 Different Arrangements in Lift Type Wind Turbines

IDEAS GENERATION
Optimum Locations for Installation

The installed location of wind turbine is one of the most important factors
dictating the design of the system. As mentioned in the basic design
requirements, the current system is being designed for large agricultural
farms. So, followings design features may readily be concluded as these are
the most feasible options for intended installation locations: -

(a) Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine may be installed without any major
limitations of tower height or area requirements.

(b) Power requirements generally remain uniform throughout the year

(c) Wind changes its speed and direction smoothly. So the turbine may
not experience frequent variation of wind speed or directions. The
chances of wind gusting are also less frequent.

(6)
 (d) As most of the farms are generally far off from cities where major
maintenance facilities are established; the design should call for
minimum maintenance requirement and a reliable operation.

Wind Power Density

Wind Power Density or WPD is defined as the effective force of the

wind at a particular location. It is a yardstick which frequently used to
determine good locations for installation of wind turbines. Mathematically,
wind power may be expressed as:

1
2
1 1
2 2

1
2

1
2

Figure No 6. A Typical Wind Speed Distribution Chart

(7)
 The above relation shows that the wind power increases with the cube
of the wind velocity. So, wind speed is the most influential variable defining
the wind power density. Figure 6 shows a typical wind speed distribution
chart for a typical location. This chart provides the most important data for
installation of wind turbine.

However, it is not possible to capture 100% of the wind power.

Generally, the most efficient systems have efficiency not more than 55 to
60%.

Rated Power of the System

The system to be designed is required to have a rated output from 800

KW to 1000 KW. This is the power output which can fulfill the requirements
of most of the agricultural farms worldwide thus enhancing the chances of
acceptability for the users all over the world. The wind turbines of this
capacity fall under the category of Medium Sized Turbine Systems.

Finalization of Basic Design Features

Base on the discussion made above, the basic design features for the
Wind Turbine are estimated. The design process will be started based on this
design feature and further refinement will be carried out subsequently.

Wind Turbine Type Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

Rated Power Range 800-1000 KW
Rotor Diameter 40 – 60 m
Hub Height 60 – 80 m
Sweep Area 1800 m2
Number of Blades 3
Brake System Yes
Yaw Control Yes (Preferably an active control system)

NEGOTIATION OF A DESIGN BRIEF

Blade design

Blades can be made from simple objects as barrels. New generation

wind turbine designs are pushing power generation from the single
megawatt range to upwards of 10 megawatts. The common trend of these

(8)
larger capacity designs are larger and larger turbine blades. Thus they cover
a larger area and effectively increase the tip speed ratio of turbine at a given
wind speed. In this way, the energy extraction capability may be enhanced
many times. A blade size of 25 meter was selected to fulfill the design
requirements.

Tip Speed Ratio

The ratio between the speed of the wind and the speed the blade tips
is called Tip speed ratio. High efficiency 3-blade-turbines have tip
speed/wind speed ratios of 6 to 7.

Figure No 7 Blades of Wind Turbine

(9)
Blade materials

Following options were considered to finalize the material for blade

manufacturing.

Option-1 Aluminum, Wood or Canvas Smaller blades can be

made from light metals such as aluminum. Wood and canvas sails were
originally used on early windmills due to their low price, availability, and
ease of manufacture. These materials, however, require frequent
maintenance during their lifetime. Also, wood and canvas have a relatively
high drag (low aerodynamic efficiency) as compared to the force they
capture. For these reasons these materials are not opted for current design.

Option-2 Composite Material Option Use of fiber reinforced

composites is increasing in wind turbine industry. In 2001, an estimated 50
million kilograms of fiberglass laminate were used in wind turbine blades.
New materials and manufacturing methods provide the opportunity to
improve wind turbine efficiency by allowing for larger, stronger blades.

In case of composites there are three main types which may used in
blade manufacturing. These are:

(a) Preimpregnated Composites

(b) Epoxy based Composites
(c) Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites

Figure No 8 A Typical Wind Turbine Blade

(10)
Preimpregnated Composites Preimpregnated composites are an
option for blade design. However, they come with following limitation:

(a) Production of thick laminates necessary for structural components

becomes difficult.
(b) Bleeding is required to eliminate voids and insure proper resin
distribution.
(c) Manual fabrication process lacks standardization.

Epoxy based Composites Epoxy-based composites are of greatest

interest to wind turbine manufacturers because they deliver a key
combination of environmental, production, and cost advantages over other
resin systems. Epoxies also improve wind turbine blade composite
manufacturing due to the followings:

(a) Shorter cure cycles

(b) Enhanced durability
(c) Improved surface finish.

Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites Carbon fiber-reinforced load-

bearing spars have recently been identified as a cost-effective means for
reducing weight and increasing stiffness. However, they have the inherent
limitations of fabrications difficulty and relatively high cost of material.

Keeping in view the above discussion, Epoxy Based Glass Reinforced

composite material was used as the material for blade. Moreover, an
integrated wire meshing was provided inside the composite layer which
provides lightening protection besides giving an extra strength to the blade.

COSTING OF PRODUCTS
Cost of the system was estimated to be $ 0.25 million for each unit.
The cost contains material and labor cost of all the individual components
and systems. The detailed cost calculations are done by the other student’s
report.

(11)
 BALANCING DESIGN/PERFORMANCE NEEDS
Following is the summary of other design features incorporated in the
system based on the operational requirements. A detailed discussion is
made in the other student’s report.

Operating Temp Range -2 to 40 degree C

Turbine Diameter 50 m
Tower Height 80 m
Twisted rotor Blade Yes
Blade Count 3
Power Control Active
Speed Control System Yes
Brake System Hydraulic Brake with redundancy
Sweep Area 1800 m2
Rated Power Output 1 MW
Yaw Control Passive

DESIGN FOR SAFETY

The design of wind turbine is incorporated with various safeties. The brake
system is made redundant to prevent the turbine from moving freely in case
of brake failure. Moreover, the factor of safety in blade strength is kept on
higher side to avoid blade failure. A wire mesh in blade material provides
extra strength to the blade as well as provides lightening protection. Aircraft
anti-collision arrangements have been made. In addition to this active speed
control systems and pitch control systems are incorporated to avoid blade
stall or over speeding which may cause rupturing of blades.

(12)
 LITERATURE SEARCH
1. A Wind Energy Pioneer: Charles F. Brush, Danish Wind Industry
Association
2. http://www.windpower.org/en/pictures/brush.htm
3. "Part 1 — Early History Through 1875".
4. http://www.telosnet.com/wind/early.html.
5. A.G. Drachmann, "Heron's Windmill", Centaurus, 7 (1961), pp. 145-
151
6. Dietrich Lohrmann, "Von der östlichen zur westlichen Windmühle",
Archiv für Kulturgeschichte, Vol. 77, Issue 1 (1995), pp.1-30 (10f.)
7. Ahmad Y Hassan, Donald Routledge Hill (1986). Islamic Technology:
An illustrated history, p. 54. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-
42239-6.
8. Donald Routledge Hill, "Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near
East", Scientific American, May 1991, p. 64-69. (cf. Donald Routledge
Hill, Mechanical Engineering)
9. "James Blyth". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford
University Press.
10. http://www.oxforddnb.com/public/dnb/100957.html.
11. a b Quirky old-style contraptions make water from wind on the
mesas of West Texas.
12. Alan Wyatt: Electric Power: Challenges and Choices. Book Press
Ltd., Toronto 1986, ISBN 0-920650-00-7
13. Kansas Wind Energy Project, Affiliated Atlantic & Western Group
Inc, 5250 W 94th Terrace, Prairie Village, Kansas 66207
14. "Wind Energy Basics". American Wind Energy Association.
15. http://www.awea.org/faq/wwt_basics.html.

(13)