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DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF WIND
TURBINE FOR WIND ENERGY HARVESTING
BY
MIR MUJTABA ALI
Session 2019/2020
The project report is prepared for

Faculty of Engineering and Technology
Multimedia University
in partial fulfilment for
Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) Mechanical
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

MULTIMEDIA UNIVERSITY
September 2019
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ii
DECLARATION
I hereby declare that this work has been done by myself and no portion of the work
contained in this report has been submitted in support of any application for any other
degree or qualification of this or any other university or institute of learning.
I also declare that pursuant to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1987, I have not
engaged in any unauthorised act of copying or reproducing or attempt to copy /
reproduce or cause to copy / reproduce or permit the copying / reproducing or the
sharing and / or downloading of any copyrighted material or an attempt to do so
whether by use of the University’s facilities or outside networks / facilities whether in
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sections 3 and 7 of the Act whether for payment or otherwise save as specifically
provided for therein. This shall include but not be limited to any lecture notes, course
packs, thesis, text books, exam questions, any works of authorship fixed in any
tangible medium of expression whether provided by the University or otherwise.
I hereby further declare that in the event of any infringement of the provisions of the
Act whether knowingly or unknowingly the University shall not be liable for the same
in any manner whatsoever and undertake to indemnify and keep indemnified the
University against all such claims and actions.
Signature: __________________________
Name:
Student ID:
Date:
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude towards the lecturers of

Multimedia University for developing my knowledge over the years, helping me to get
to this stage. I would especially like to thank Associate Professor, Dr. Lee Tian Soon
for his consistent support and guidance that helped me greatly in the completion of this
project. I also would like to Thank Mr. Lim Boon Kian for the knowledge he imparted
during Integrated Design Project course regarding Design Methodology and Project
Management. Also, I would like to thank Mr Kang Chi Keng, my FYP moderator, for
his useful recommendations regarding the project.
Secondly, I would like to thank my Father, Brother and sister for their support
through all the years that I stayed abroad to complete my education. I also would like
to thank all my friends, especially, Nur Shahira Binti Shahrun, Asem Mohammed Al-
Baseer and Ahmed Murtada for their continuous help and support through my tough
time during the project. Also, I would like to thank my friend Al-Quza Ghaleb for his
assistance in CFD analysis of the project.
Lastly, yet most importantly, I would like to dedicate all the success of this
project to my Mother who passed away a month before the completion of this project.
All my achievements have been a result of her hard work and desire to see me succeed
in life. I hope to achieve more and better to fulfil her dream and make her proud.
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ABSTRACT
The objective of this project is to design a small size Horizontal-axis Wind

Turbine that generate electricity with great efficiency. The design is an innovative
Non-conventional design that mainly comprises of a Nozzle, Duct and vortex
generators around the rotor of the wind turbine. The Nozzle, Duct and vortex
generators are designed to enhance the wind velocity at the rotor face to enhance the
efficiency of the wind turbine. The Problem of generating electricity with wind turbine
in areas with low wind velocity and low Reynold’s number has been considered strictly
throughout the designing phase. The design has been analysed with various computer-
aided software to determine the effects of the components in the design. The analyses
were performed to determine both Aerodynamic and Structural performance of the
design of the wind turbine. The results obtained showed an increase of 56.38% in
power output of the turbine compared to a conventional wind turbine design. It has
also been shown that the design power output was greater by 90.21% compared to a
published design of a conventional wind turbine. Stable structural results have also
been showed of the design. In conclusion, a small size Horizontal-axis Wind turbine
was successfully designed, analysed and fabricated. The innovative wind turbine
design can be used for residential scale usage.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
COPYRIGHT ............................................................................................................. ii
DECLARATION ....................................................................................................... iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ........................................................................................ iv
ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ v
TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................... vi
LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................. ix
LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................... xii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................. 1

1.1 Overview ....................................................................................................... 1
1.1.1 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine ................................................................... 2

1.1.2 Horizontal Axis Wind turbine ................................................................ 2
1.1.3 Types of Wind Turbines......................................................................... 3
1.1.4 Key Components of a Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT)........... 9
1.2 Problem Statement and Motivation ............................................................. 11
1.3 Objectives .................................................................................................... 11
1.4 Gantt Charts ................................................................................................. 12
1.4.1 FYP Part 1 ............................................................................................ 12

1.4.2 FYP Part 2 ............................................................................................ 13
1.5 Modern Tool Usage ..................................................................................... 14
1.5 Thesis Organization ............................................................................. 15
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................... 17

2.1 Theoretical Review ...................................................................................... 17
2.1.1 Power in Wind ..................................................................................... 18

2.1.2 The Betz’s Limit .................................................................................. 18
2.1.3 Acting Forces ....................................................................................... 20
2.1.4 Tip Speed Ratio (TSR) ......................................................................... 22
2.1.5 Twist and Taper.................................................................................... 22
vi
2.1.6 Blade Theories ..................................................................................... 24
2.2 Design Review (Considerations) ................................................................. 24
2.2.1 Non-Conventional Wind Turbines (NCWT) ....................................... 24

2.2.3 Vortex Generators ................................................................................ 27
2.2.4 3D Printed Parts ................................................................................... 28
2.2.5 Airfoil Selection ......................................................................................... 29
2.2.6 Blade Structural Design ....................................................................... 30
3.3 Summary of Literature Review ................................................................... 33
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY .......................................................................... 34
3.1 Problem Statement Analysis ....................................................................... 35
3.2 Design and Development of Considerations ............................................... 37
3.2.1 Airfoil Selection ......................................................................................... 37

3.2.2 Turbine Blades ..................................................................................... 39
3.2.3 Nozzle-Duct ......................................................................................... 41
3.2.4 3D Parts ................................................................................................ 41
3.2.5 Linkage System .................................................................................... 42
3.3 Preliminary Design Ideas ............................................................................ 43
3.3.1 Preliminary Design Combination Idea 1 .............................................. 43

3.4 Finalised Design .......................................................................................... 45
3.5 Conceptual Design ...................................................................................... 46
3.6 Material Selection ........................................................................................ 48
3.6.1 Base Frame ........................................................................................... 48

3.6.2 Nozzle & Duct...................................................................................... 50
3.6.3 Turbine Blades ..................................................................................... 52
3.6.4 Rotor Hub ............................................................................................. 54
3.6.5 Welding Technique .............................................................................. 55
3.6.6 Transmission System ........................................................................... 57
vii
3.6.7 Generator .............................................................................................. 58
3.7 Design Analysis and Theoretical Formulation ............................................ 59
3.7.1 CFD Analysis (ANSYS) ...................................................................... 59

3.7.2 Aerodynamic Analysis (Qblade) .......................................................... 61
3.7.3 Stress Analysis ..................................................................................... 64
3.8 Fabrication ................................................................................................... 68
3.8.1 First Stage of Fabrication ..................................................................... 69

3.8.2 Second Stage of Fabrication ................................................................ 72
3.8.2 Third Stage of Fabrication ................................................................... 73
3.9 Cost Summary ............................................................................................. 75
3.10 Prototype Testing ........................................................................................ 77
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ..................................................... 78

4.1 Analyses Results.......................................................................................... 78
4.1.1 Aerodynamic Analyses Results ........................................................... 78

4.1.2 Structural Analysis ............................................................................... 84
4.2 Prototype Results ......................................................................................... 88
4.2.1 Nozzle, Duct and Vortex generators: ................................................... 88

4.2.2 Rotor..................................................................................................... 90
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS .......................... 91

5.1 Design Conclusion ...................................................................................... 91
5.2 Future Works and Recommendations ......................................................... 92
REFERENCES ......................................................................................................... 94
APPENDIX A ........................................................................................................... 99
APPENDIX B ......................................................................................................... 106
APPENDIX C ......................................................................................................... 110
viii
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. 1: A Darrieus Wind Turbine. [8] .................................................................. 4

Figure 1. 2: A Savonius Wind Turbine. [10] ............................................................... 5
Figure 1. 3: A Giromill Wind Turbine. [11] ................................................................ 6
Figure 1. 4: A farm with few upwind turbines. [12] .................................................... 7
Figure 1. 5: Shrouded Turbines. [11] ........................................................................... 8
Figure 1. 6: The Key parts of a horizontal axis wind turbine. [14] .............................. 9
Figure 1. 7: Flowchart of frequency conversion for a wind turbine. [5] .................... 10
Figure 2. 1: A plot of Performance coefficient against interference ratio……………19
Figure 2. 2: Airfoil Nomenclature. [17] ..................................................................... 20
Figure 2. 3: Forces developed due to relative motion of fluid on an airfoil. [17] ...... 21
Figure 2. 4: An illustration of CP (coefficient of power) Vs. TSR plot. [18] ............. 22
Figure 2. 5: An illustration of the varying chord length and twist angle present along
the span of the blade. [19] ..................................................................... 23
Figure 2. 6: The prototype created by Ohya, Karasudani, Sakurai, Abe, & Inoue, 2008
[20]. ....................................................................................................... 25
Figure 2. 7: Nozzle Nomenclature followed in [21]……………………...………....26
Figure 2. 8: A ducted wind turbine called 'Enflo'. [26] .............................................. 27
Figure 2. 9: A set of vortex generators mounted towards the rear-end of a car. ........ 28
Figure 2. 10: An illustration of the requirements of the blade. [19] .......................... 30
Figure 2. 11: Aerodynamic loadings on individual blade element. [19] .................... 31
Figure 2. 12: An illustration of the blade modelled as a cantilever beam (flap-wise
bending). [19]........................................................................................ 32
Figure 2. 13: A summarized flow-chart of the literature review................................ 33
Figure 3. 1: Project overview of design and development of wind turbine for wind
energy harvesting…………………………………………………...…34
Figure 3. 2: A depiction of elements of the problem statement through Fishbone
diagram. ................................................................................................ 35
Figure 3. 3: 5-whys analysis of the problem statement.............................................. 36
Figure 3. 4: Obtaining the airfoil co-ordinates. .......................................................... 37
ix
Figure 3. 5: BW3 (RED), S822 (GREEN) & S823 (BLUE) co-ordinates imported into
Qblade. .................................................................................................. 38
Figure 3. 6: The Polars of BW3 (BLACK), S823 (BLUE) & S822 (GREEN) obtained
from Qblade analysis. ........................................................................... 38
Figure 3. 7: Qblade dialogue box for blade geometry optimization. ......................... 39
Figure 3. 8: Performance coefficient at various TSRs. .............................................. 40
Figure 3. 9: The 3D representation of the blade divided into elements generated from
Qblade. .................................................................................................. 41
Figure 3. 10: An example of the DFMA methodology in the design of a roll-bar. ... 42
Figure 3. 11: Linkage system design in GIM. ............................................................ 42
Figure 3. 12: A general sketch of the preliminary design combination 1. ................. 43
Figure 3. 13: The desing of the duct with vortex generators towards the downstream
end. ..................................................................................................... 44
Figure 3. 14: The rotor hub (left) and the blade-pitch linkage system (right). .......... 44
Figure 3. 15: Rotor hub with a dome at the face. ....................................................... 45
Figure 3. 16: Conceptual design of the final assembly of the wind turbine design. .. 47
Figure 3. 17: The CAD drawing of the base frame. ................................................... 49
Figure 3. 18: CAD drawings of Duct (left) and nozzle (right)................................... 51
Figure 3. 19: CAD drawing of the turbine blade. ...................................................... 52
Figure 3. 20: CAD drawing of the rotor hub part. ..................................................... 54
Figure 3. 21: Spur gears used in the wind turbine. .................................................... 57
Figure 3. 22: Platform incorporated with the bearings for transmission.................... 58
Figure 3. 23: Analysis methodology used for Qblade analysis of the blades and the
wind turbine [43]. ................................................................................. 62
Figure 3. 24: Co-ordinal representation of an airfoil bending about xx-axis.[19] ..... 65
Figure 3. 25: An illustration of Edge-wise and Flap-wise bending on blades. .......... 66
Figure 3. 26: Base frame rod modelled as column under compressive loading. ....... 67
Figure 3. 27: A Graphical illustration of the work flow process of fabrication. ........ 68
Figure 3. 28: The rotor hub and the shaft connector fastened as one part. ................ 69
Figure 3. 29: The blade (left) and the cross-section of the blade (right-circled). ...... 70
Figure 3. 30: The blade sub-assembly. ...................................................................... 70
Figure 3. 31: The cutting procedure of stainless-steel sheets..................................... 71
x
Figure 3. 32: Yaw mechanism rod with bearings before mounting into the base frame
rod. ...................................................................................................... 72
Figure 3. 33: Post-weld picture of the base frame. .................................................... 72
Figure 3. 34: Pre (left) and Post (right) finishing condition of the bar end................ 73
Figure 3. 35: Transmission system of the final fabricated prototype. ........................ 74
Figure 3. 36: Complete assembly upon completion of fabrication. ........................... 74
Figure 4. 1: Ansys result of flow through the sole duct represented by flow lines….79
Figure 4. 2: Ansys result of flow through the nozzle, duct and vortex generators
assembly represented by flow lines. ..................................................... 80
Figure 4. 3: Analysis results of power output of a bare wind turbine. ....................... 81
Figure 4. 4: Analysis results of power output of a turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex
generators. ............................................................................................. 81
Figure 4. 5: The key parameters definition into Qblade. ........................................... 84
Figure 4. 6: FEA result of Flap-wise loading on the blade. ....................................... 84
Figure 4. 7: FEA result of Edge-wise bending on the turbine blade. ......................... 85
Figure 4. 8: Result of Von-Mises stress analysis on the base frame. ......................... 87
Figure 4. 9: Displacement analysis results on the base frame.................................... 87
Figure 4. 10: Wind speed that would be faced by the rotor of a bare wind turbine. .. 88
Figure 4. 11: Wind speed faced by a rotor with NDVG. ........................................... 89
xi
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1.1 (a): Types of Wind Turbines ........................................................................ 4

Table 1. 1 (b): Types of Wind Turbines ....................................................................... 5
Table 1. 1 (c): Types of Wind Turbines. ...................................................................... 6
Table 1. 1 (d): Types of Wind Turbines. ...................................................................... 7
Table 1. 1 (e): Types of Wind Turbines. ...................................................................... 8
Table 1. 2: Gantt chart for FYP part 1. ...................................................................... 12
Table 1. 2: Gantt chart for FYP part 2. ...................................................................... 13
Table 2. 1: CFD results of utilising a nozzle in the wind-way of turbine. [21] …….26
Table 2. 2: Result of load test performed by [27] on FDM processed PLA part……29
Table 3. 1: Geometric parameters of the blade obtained from Qblade……………...40
Table 3. 2: Summarized depiction of the Preliminary designs. ................................. 46
Table 3. 3: Concept Screening of the potential materials for the base frame ............ 49
Table 3. 4: Concept Screening of the short-listed materials for the base frame ........ 50
Table 3. 5: Concept screening for the material selection of nozzle and duct............. 51
Table 3. 6: Concept screening for the material selection of the turbine blades. ........ 53
Table 3. 7: Concept scoring for the material selection of turbine blades. .................. 53
Table 3. 8: Concept screening for the material selection of the rotor hub. ................ 55
Table 3. 9: Concept Screening for welding techniques.............................................. 56
Table 3. 10: Concept scoring for the selection of welding technique. ....................... 56
Table 3. 11: Cost list of the full assembly. ................................................................. 75
Table 3. 12: List of Variable costs involved in a workshop....................................... 76
Table 3. 13: Summary of costs involved in production. ............................................ 76
Table 4. 1: Tabular representation of the CFD results………………………………80
Table 4. 2: Tabular representation of the power output obtained through Qblade. ... 82
Table 4. 3: Comparison between the Betz's limit value and the obtained value of power.
................................................................................................................. 82
Table 4. 4: Comparison of power output between published design and design with
NDVG. .................................................................................................... 83
Table 4. 5: Factor of safety result of Flap-wise loading. ........................................... 86
Table 4. 6: Weights of the various parts supported by the base frame. ..................... 86
xii
Table 4. 7: Practical results and percentage difference from analysis results of the wind
velocity. ................................................................................................... 89
xiii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Overview
Through continuous research and development, many advancements have been

achieved that has helped in improving the lifestyle as we know today. Advancements
of science and engineering has led the ways in the development with devices such as
engines, generators and all types of machinery changing the way of how things used
to be done. With the focus on development and innovation, the cost of these
developments was overlooked for a long time until the problem (cost) and its
magnitude was truly realized which, on a general term, was the damage it caused to
the Earth. The solution to the problem lied in sustainable development and renewable
energy sources. Engineers and scientists of today work with the idea of being
sustainable/Eco-friendly in their developments and innovations. Great innovations
have been made with different ways to harvest energy from natural sources. One of
such inventions, Wind turbines, are our topic of interest for this report.
The first practical wind turbine for electricity generation was built in the year
1887-88 By Brush electric in Cleveland, Ohio by Charles F. Brush [1]. The simple
concept is, that the turbine rotates when wind glides over the turbine blades, converting
its kinetic energy into electrical energy. Wind turbines are classified into mainly two
design orientations, vertical axis (VAWT) and horizontal axis (HAWT). The size of
the wind turbine is a variable that depends only on the application of the wind turbine,
small turbines may be used for applications such as battery recharging or for traffic
signals, whereas, large sized turbines are mainly used to power a domestic areas’
power needs. Wind turbines are clean, efficient, and sustainable method for energy
generation.
The two different classifications of the wind turbine stated above (HAWT &
VAWT), are classified depending on the shaft orientation and its rotational axis. The
turbine that has the shaft normal to the ground that the turbine is mounted is called
VAWT, alternatively, when the shaft is mounted horizontally corresponding to the
1
ground it is classified as a HAWT. Both types of turbine have easily differentiable
rotor designed according to the characteristics of each classification [3]. Generally,
both the classification (HAWT and VAWT) have advantages and disadvantages of
their own, which basically leaves it to the requirement of the application to choose the
more compatible design.
1.1.1 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
VAWT comes in many different shapes but generally have two type Savonius
and the Darrieus [4]. The Savonius design uses a drag to rotate the turbine meaning
the turbine cannot rotate at high speeds but produce high torque, making it suitable for
application such as pumps [4]. The Darrieus, alternatively, utilises lift to rotate and
consist of blades shaped like HAWT. Darrieus design requires an initial push as the
starting torque is very low [4]. VAWTs commonly function near the ground giving the
advantage of mounting the required equipment on the ground itself unlike certain
HAWTs that require a nacelle (housing for equipment such as gearbox, generators
etc.). Another benefit of a VAWT over HAWT is that a VAWT can harvest wind
energy from all directions.
1.1.2 Horizontal Axis Wind turbine
The design of the HAWT has been improved over the traditional HAWT
windmill, as discussed by Faizan [5], the modern design mainly consists: [5]
• The main rotor shafts

• An electrical generator
• A gearbox
• The turbine blades
HAWTs also require a yaw mechanism to function. Kim & Dalhoff [9], in their
paper, describe yaw mechanism to be a device designed with the task to rotate the
nacelle around the tower axis [9] to face the direction of the most efficient flow at all
2
times. The nacelle, that is installed perpendicularly to the turbine tower, is a housing
used in HAWTs for the required equipment and has to be designed in an aerodynamic
shape [9]. HAWT, normally the most common design choice for wind turbines, offer
many advantages [6]. To obtain maximum efficiency out of a HAWT, they need to be
directed in the right direction (based on the type, away or into the wind). In today’s
time, modern robotics and electronic devices are used to ensure that the turbines are
always pointing in the direction that offers the maximum efficiency [7]. Mishra [8],
specifies the types of HAWT as two, upwind turbine and downwind turbine. Turbines
in which the flow of the wind sees the tower first and then sees the rotor are called
downwind turbine, inversely, turbines where the rotor sees the flow first are called
upwind turbines [8]. Unlike VAWTs, HAWTs do not require an initial push to start
the system and are comparatively more efficient [8].
1.1.3 Types of Wind Turbines
As already mentioned earlier, there are mainly two types of wind turbines,
horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) and vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT). The
HAWTs and VAWTs widely used in application are often the conventional design of
the wind turbines. The non-conventional design of wind turbines is usually small-sized
and rarely used. The non-conventional designs are often claimed by researchers to
produce much more power than their conventional equivalent. Although the
conventional designs of wind turbine of today’s time are capable to produce energy in
Megawatts, they are massive in size and only good enough in fields away from
residential areas. For small sized wind turbines, according to claims, non-conventional
designs are more suitable. Both VAWT and HAWT have various designs, in this
section, we shall look at the various types of HAWT and VAWT in detail with
graphical images and description. Table 1.1(a) – Table 1.1(e) shows the type, picture,
and description of various type of Conventional and Non-conventional HAWTs and
VAWTs.
3
Table 1. 1 (a): Types of Wind Turbines
Type Description
A very common type of vertical axis wind turbines,

Darrieus design comprises of two “C” symmetrical
about the central vertical axis that rotates when wind
I. Darrieus Turbine
flows across it but require an initial “push” to start.
(VAWT)
This design is small so it comes with the benefit of
less noise. Figure 1.1 shows a large sized Darrieus
Wind Turbine.
Figure 1. 1: A Darrieus Wind Turbine. [8]
4
Table 1. 1 (b): Types of Wind Turbines
Type Description
Another common type of wind turbine, it has “S”

shaped cross-section from the top-view, it consists
II. Savonius Turbine of scoops instead of blades. It is a drag type device
(VAWT) and curvature of the scoops ensure less drag moving
against instead of with the flow. Figure 1.2 shows a
residential sized Savonius Wind Turbine.
Figure 1. 2: A Savonius Wind Turbine. [10]
5
Table 1. 1 (c): Types of Wind Turbines.
Type Description
Uses horizontal support for three vertical air-foils

and works great in turbulent wind conditions. A
III. Giromill Turbine
great point about Giromill Turbines is that it is a
(VAWT)
very inexpensive design to build. Figure 1.3 shows
a Giromill Wind Turbine.
Figure 1. 3: A Giromill Wind Turbine. [11]
6
Table 1. 1 (d): Types of Wind Turbines.
Type Description
The most common and extensively-used type of

wind turbine. The main difference between an
upwind and downwind turbine is that an upwind
IV. Upwind and
turbine faces the flow from front and in a
downwind Turbine
downwind turbine the wind comes in from behind.
(HAWT)
This is widely considered to be the most efficient
method of wind energy extraction [11]. Figure 1.4
shows a farm of Upwind Wind Turbines.
Figure 1. 4: A farm with few upwind turbines. [12]
7
Table 1. 1 (e): Types of Wind Turbines.
Type Description
Also referred to as diffuser augmented wind turbine,

consist of turbine placed inside a ring-shaped
aerofoil which increases the airflow into the system.
V. Shrouded Turbine
A shrouded turbine is proofed to be able to increase
(HAWT)
the outcome of a HAWT by 2-5 times [13]. Figure
1.5 shows few Shrouded Wind Turbines in an open
area.
Figure 1. 5: Shrouded Turbines. [11]
8
1.1.4 Key Components of a Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT)
Figure 1. 6: The Key parts of a horizontal axis wind turbine. [14]
Below, let us describe each individual key component in a listed manner:
• Nacelle: As can be seen from the Figure 1.6, the Nacelle in HAWT is the
Mechanical housing, normally made of corrosion resistant and cheap material. The
Nacelle is also designed with an aerodynamic shape. The Nacelle normally consists
of the following components: [15]
- Outer frame to cover or protect the internal machinery

- Internal frame to support machinery and provide structural strength
- A gear train to transmit energy and to multiply the rotational speed of the shaft
- A generator to output electrical energy from the mechanical energy of the rotor
- A yaw mechanism to rotate the nacelle around the tower axis
- Electronics to monitor and control the system’s operations.
• Low-speed & High-speed Shafts: The shaft is used to transmit power from the rotor
end to the generator. The slow-rotating shaft is present between the rotor and the
gearbox and has the rotational speed that is caused directly due to the wind. The
fast-rotating shaft is present between the gearbox and the electric generator and
has the desired/modified rotational speed based on the gear ratios.
9
• The Gear-box: The gearbox is used to alter the shaft speed to a desired value. In
this case, the rotational speed caused by the wind is not sufficient which is why a
gearbox is used to utilise gear ratios to output a faster rotation from a slower input
rotation.
• Brake: Brake in wind turbines, like all its other applications, is used to stop motion.
In wind turbines, Disk brakes are often used as they occupy small volume, are
efficient and are easy to assemble. The need to stop the motion comes during
maintenance.
• Generator: Generator in wind turbines is used to convert mechanical energy into

electrical energy. Babu & Divya discusses that, any type of three-phase generator
can work with a wind turbine. Synchronous and asynchronous (induction) both
types of generator can be used to work with a wind turbine [16].
• Yaw Mechanism: This is to ensure that the turbine faces the most efficient wind
direction at all times. It requires a Yaw motor that act as an actuator and rotate the
turbine.
• Electronic components: The output frequency from a wind turbine is not constant
due to varying winds. One of the ways to control this frequency is to use a set of
electrical and electronic components to convert the varying output frequency into
a desired constant frequency. Figure 1.7 shows the frequency conversion
procedure.
Figure 1. 7: Flowchart of frequency conversion for a wind turbine. [5]
10
1.2 Problem Statement and Motivation
The implementation of sustainability has become a necessity in today’s time as

the majority of current energy sources involve damaging factors both economically
and environmentally. A complete elimination of these damaging energy sources
instantly, may seem impossible, but implementation of more sustainable energy
sources can be seen as a worthwhile effort in mitigating the harmful and destructive
effects caused by these energy sources. Wind turbines can be seen as an efficient
renewable method for electricity generation that fulfils the requirement of
sustainability of today’s engineering. Knowing such sustainable method of energy
production is possible, the problem, why not many individual residents prefer small
wind turbines, led to the design and development of this project.
A motivational point for this project was, with many existing wind turbines
being massive in size and only good when located far from residential areas, can a
compact yet powerful wind turbine be designed for individual houses? The aim focuses
on designing a small size system (wind turbine) which, with design manipulations, can
give a power output higher than other wind turbines of similar size.
The problems faced in the proposed design of a wind turbine powered

generation include airfoil selection for low Reynold’s number, aerodynamically
designed blades, selection of material with good structural capabilities, a converging
nozzle, a geometrical device increases the velocity of the incoming flow, shafts, a
YAW mechanism to automatically change the turbine’s direction to face the wind at
all times, a generator for energy conversion, electrical and electronic circuitry to
convert the varying frequency of the turbine-generator system into a smooth DC
outcome and a battery to store the outcome from the turbine-generator. The design
should also be good enough to perform well in areas with low wind velocities.
1.3 Objectives
1) To manipulate the conventional wind turbine design to achieve better efficiency
11
2) To analyse the design to ensure an aerodynamically and structurally stable design
3) To fabricate a Horizontal-axis Wind Turbine satisfying the other objectives.
1.4 Gantt Charts
Gantt Chart is a representation that illustrates the schedule of a Project. This

Project involved two Gantt Charts, one for each FYP part. The Gantt Chart of each
FYP part can be seen in a sectioned manner, with each section featuring the Gannt
Chart and description of the respective FYP part.
1.4.1 FYP Part 1
Table 1. 2: Gantt chart for FYP part 1

Final Year Project Part 1
Week (Trimester 1 2019/20120)
Plan/
No. Task Actual
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
progress
1 Plan
History
research Actual
Research on Plan
2
wind turbines Actual
Literature Plan
3
Review
Actual
Idea &Design Plan

4
generation
Actual
Concept Plan
screening &
5
Concept
scoring Actual
Conceptual Plan
6
design Actual
Plan
7 Report writing
Actual
12
Among the set of activities performed, shown in Table 1.6, the key activity was
literature review. Literature review involved theoretical and design review to
understand the physics involved in wind turbines and to develop ideas for the design
of the wind turbine. Next, Idea generation was carried out to come up with potential
final design which were narrowed down through concept screening and concept
scoring. The finalised idea was then given a Conceptual design.
1.4.2 FYP Part 2
Table 1. 3: Gantt chart for FYP part 2.

Final Year Project Part 2
Week (Trimester 1 2019/20120)

Plan/
No. Task Actual
progress 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Design Plan
1
analysis
Actual
Plan
Fabrication
2
arrangements
Actual
Plan
3 Fabrication
Actual
Plan
4 Assembly
Actual
Plan
5 Thesis writing
Actual
Plan
6 Submission
Actual
Plan
7 Presentation
Actual
The key parts involved in FYP part 2, shown in Table 1.3, were CFD analysis,
Design analysis, Material selection and Fabrication. Design analyses carried out
13
included CFD, aerodynamic and structural analysis of the design. The thesis writing
was carried out throughout the FYP 2 period to ensure addition of all the key elements
was carried out.
1.5 Modern Tool Usage
An advantage that engineers of this generation enjoy over the engineers of

previous generations are the advanced tools that we have at our hands to accomplish
our tasks. Be it IT tools or other engineering tools, they have not just simplified the
way we carry out tasks, but also, assist us in completing the task in a more glamourous
and efficient way. Mostly these tools are unique from one another and each tool require
special knowledge to utilise them with correct methodology. We shall be looking at a
step-by-step methodology to utilise these tools in CHAPTER 3, but, in the next few
paragraphs, let us describe a general picture of the purpose of these modern tools.
The design and development of the wind turbine from obtaining geometric
parameters to designing and analysing the system was accomplished using modern IT
tools. Each tool is a software with algorithm and program to execute a specific task.
Firstly, Qblade software was used to analyse different airfoils and use the preferred
airfoil to design an aerodynamically stable and theoretically optimized wind turbine
blade. Secondly, the geometry of the wind turbine blade from Qblade was then
translated to Autodesk Inventor to design the complete system and perform structural
analysis on each individual part. The structural analysis helps in understanding the
performance of a part or the system under loading and helps in concluding if the system
or the part is under-engineered (weak) or over-engineered (too strong). Autodesk
Inventor also helps in assembling the part together to form an assembly and visualize
the movement of the parts in the assembly. Thirdly, a linkages software, GIM, was
used to design a linkage system that can rotate the turbine blades around its own axis
to maintain optimal position. A linkage system is first designed into the software and
an actuator link is selected, the software then animates the locomotion of the system
and the actuator link. Lastly, the system design’s flow regime was then analysed using
Ansys Fluent. Ansys Fluent allows the user to specify a geometry and the flow
14
conditions (flow velocity, travel length, boundary conditions, etc.), and using these
input variables, the software simulates the flow in and around the geometry which then
can be used to determine where along the geometry the flow is laminar and where it is
turbulent. The purpose of using Ansys Fluent was to determine the flow condition in
and throughout the assembly as turbulent flow can induce vibrations and consequently
inefficiencies into the system.
Apart from IT tools, engineering tools were also used for the project. The
engineering tools were mainly used to accomplish the fabrication tasks of the project.
Namely 3D printer and power machines were used in the fabrication process. Parts
with simple geometry and small loading were fabricated using 3D printer to obtain a
cost-effective product using PLA (Polylactic acid) as the material. Machine tools such
as drill machine, grinding machine, lathe machine and milling machine were used for
the overall fabrication of the assembly. These machine tools were mainly used for
processes such as cutting, drilling, etc., processes that can be done using manual tools
too, but it is the simplicity and finishing these machine tools bring into the final product
that these tools were used for.
1.5 Thesis Organization
The report has been written in a very detailed yet simplistic manner to ensure a
complete exposure of the project to its readers. The format includes clear fonts and
spacing to ease the reader, proper captioning of figures and tables for reference and
mainly a very sequential division of chapters. The sequence of the chapters enables the
readers to get a step-by-step image of the project and the associated reasoning with
further details. The report also gives the readers an insight of the associated fabrication
methodology, costs and complexity.
The thesis is divided into preliminary pages, main body and reference material.
The preliminary pages include the title page, copyright, acknowledgement, abstract,
table of content, list of figure and list of tables. The main body contains five chapters
and the reference material contains the references to the work used for the report.
15
The first chapter gives an insight to the world of wind turbines categorizing the
types with a description of each type of wind turbine. The first chapter also includes
project details such as the Gantt charts, the tools used and a general picture of what
can be expected from the latter chapters.
The second chapter helps in understanding the theoretical aspects of wind

turbines and what parameters effect the performance of a wind turbine. It also reviews
published work and designs of other people for the same field. The second chapters as
a whole, explains the physics involved in wind turbines and what design parameters
can lead to a better outcome with justifications.
The third chapter explains the approach taken for the completion of this specific
project. It shows the methodology that was taken forth to carry out the Conceptual
analysis, material selection, understanding the utilisation of software and other tools
that were used for the completion of this project. Also, the procedure of fabrication
and testing can be seen discussed in this chapter.
The fourth chapter discusses the results obtained from the project and how the
result compares to other published works. The results include CFD, aerodynamic and
structural analyses that was carried out to determine the performance of the design.
Also, results of practical tests that were conducted on the prototype can be seen
detailed in this chapter.
Finally, the fifth chapter concludes the project with a discussion based on the
results and what parameters can changed to obtain better results. Also, this chapter
provides concepts that can be worked on for future improvements of the design. The
chapter also provides recommendations for further enhancement of the design.
16
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter aims to provide the readers with a brief explanation of the theories
involved in horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWT) and to review design specifications
of key components. The design of a wind turbine involves many principles of physics
from the fields of Aerodynamics, Thermodynamics, Solid Mechanics, and Electrical
technology and only with an understanding of these principles, can one grasp a
working understanding of wind turbines. To ensure a proper and complete exposure
of the involved knowledge of these principles to the readers, this chapter has been
organized in a sequential manner. The first section (2.1 Theoretical Review) of this
chapter provide the readers with a brief theoretical review of the physics of HAWTs,
and the equations and derivations of the respective topics under this section can be
found in the Appendices. Secondly, the second section (2.2 Design Review), provides
a review of related published work and journals that were used for idea generation and
design methodology. The design review also provides corresponding justifications and
detail regarding the critical design aspects of key parts or features of the project.
Majority of the concepts of HAWTs have been studied from the text-book, [17], and
most of the Theoretical review section reflects this study. Finally, a summary (2.3
Summary of Literature Review) of the entire chapter can be seen by the means of a
flow-chart for easy visualization of the pattern of topics of literature review.
2.1 Theoretical Review
In design of wind turbines various factors are considered. They include: (The
information in brackets, “()”, specifies the corresponding sub-subtopic number.)
o Power in wind (2.1.1)

o Betz’s limit (2.1.2)
o Lift and Drag Forces (2.1.3)
o Tip speed ratio (2.1.4)
o Twist and Taper (2.1.5)
17
In this subtopic we shall review these parameters in a brief manner.
2.1.1 Power in Wind
The power in an undisturbed and free flowing wind is expressed as followed:
1
P = SV 3 (2.1)
2
Where: S denotes column’s cross-sectional area,  denotes air density & V denotes
air velocity.
Final form of power in the wind, given by Eqn. 2.1, can be observed to see that
the power is a function of the square of radius of the air column and, more significantly,
the cube of the velocity of air, V.
2.1.2 The Betz’s Limit
The efficiencies of engine in thermodynamics follows an ideal cycle called

Carnot cycle. A system can never reach the value of efficiency resulting from the
Carnot cycle but the system can be designed to achieve a value close to the Carnot
cycle value as that is the maximum a system can reach. Likewise, in wind dynamics,
the Betz’s Law gives the maximum achievable efficiency for a Wind Turbine. First
Formulated in 1919 [17], Betz’s limit stands valid for all conventional wind energy
converters’ designs. It is an idealized value of power fraction that is extractable from
an ideal wind stream. Wind Energy Explained 2𝑛𝑑 ed, pg. 96 gives a final shape to eq.
(2.1) with the consideration of Betz’s law & mechanical efficiency as: [17]
1
P = 2 SV 3 (mech Cp ) (2.2)
- Betz’s Assumptions: An ideal wind energy converter is assumed to have a rotor with
the following characteristics: [18]
18
1. It does not occupy a hub.
2. It occupies an infinite number of blades with no drag resistance against the fluid
flowing through them.
Additionally, uniform conditions are assumed over the entire swept area of the
rotor, and the direction of the wind speed downstream to the rotor is assumed axial.
The ideal wind rotor is considered stationery and immersed in a flowing fluid
atmosphere. Figure 2.1 show a plot of Performance Coefficient, Cp, against the ratio
between upstream over downstream velocities, called interference ratio, b.
Figure 2. 1: A plot of Performance coefficient against interference ratio.
Observations: When upstream and downstream velocities are same (i.e. b = 1), it can
be observed that the performance coefficient, Cp, is zero. The performance coefficient
is equal to half (0.5) when upstream velocity is zero (i.e. b = 0) which means the blades
block all the airflow. Most importantly, the maximum performance coefficient of
0.5926 (59.26%) is reached when the interference ratio, b, is around 1/3 (0.333) and
this is known as the Betz’s limit.
19
2.1.3 Acting Forces
The physics of Airfoils is the phenomena that generate mechanical power in

the wind turbines. The geometry of airfoils produce mechanical forces when a certain
fluid moves relative to the airfoil. The blades of wind turbines have several elements
in the geometric shape of airfoils. Wind Energy Explained 2nd ed., pg. 101 describes
that the airfoil blade length and width are determined depending on the desired value
of aerodynamic parameters (lift, drag, etc.), desired maximum rotor power output and
structural requirements [17]. Figure 2.2 can be observed before further discussions, to
see the shape and basic terminologies of airfoils.
Figure 2. 2: Airfoil Nomenclature. [17]
Now moving on from the concepts of Airfoils, let us understand the causes and
the types of forces developed on an airfoil due to the relative flow of the surrounding
fluid. The conservation of mass law explains, when area in the pathway of a flow
reduces, the velocity increases to compensate. The similar action takes place on the
upper side of an airfoil, due to the curvature, the flow from the leading edge sees a
reduction in the area and this causes the flow to speed up. Whereas, the flow
underneath the airfoil does not see much difference in its velocity. From Bernoulli’s
Principle, we know that the pressure and velocity of an incompressible fluid have an
inverse relation, meaning, the faster flow on the upper side or “suction side” of an
20
airfoil has reduced pressure relative to the slower flow side or the bottom side of the
airfoil hence creating a “Lift”. Secondly, the viscous effects between the air and the
airfoil creates a “Drag” on the airfoil. Figure 2.3 shows the resultant Forces caused due
to the pressure difference, the effect of viscous friction and a moment acting at a
1
distance of a quarter of chord (4 𝑐).
Figure 2. 3: Forces developed due to relative motion of fluid on an airfoil. [17]
These concepts of forces in Fluid dynamics are normally considered using non-
dimensional parameters and are more dependent on whether the problem studied is
two-dimensional (2D) or three-dimensional (3D) geometry and the corresponding
coefficients are used. Here, the Reynold’s number determines whether the flow is
Laminar or Turbulent, force and moment are the additional coefficients and are
dependent on Reynold’s number [17]. Coefficients of force and moment for flow
around 2D geometries are usually denoted with a lower-case subscript, as in Cd for the
two-dimensional drag coefficient. Whereas, for three-dimensional problems, the Force
and moment coefficient are designated with upper-case letters [17]. The three-
dimensional form of an airfoil have a finite length and the coefficients of force and
moment are affected by the flow around the sides of the airfoil. The end effects for a
two-dimensional airfoil on the other hand, are assumed to be zero [17]. The airfoils for
rotor design analysis usually uses the 2D coefficient at various angles of attack and
Reynold’s number.
21
2.1.4 Tip Speed Ratio (TSR)
The tip-speed ratio, , or TSR of wind turbines is a ratio of tip ‘Point velocity’
of blade to the actual wind velocity, v. The TSR’s optimum value is a function of blade
design and is a directly related parameter to the efficiency of the turbine. [18]
Blade tip speed

= (2.6)
Wind Speed
Figure 2.4 can be observed to see a plot of performance coefficient, Cp, against the Tip
Speed Ratio of a specific design of wind turbine by [18].
Figure 2. 4: An illustration of CP (coefficient of power) Vs. TSR plot. [18]
If the TSR value is too low, like in the case where the turbine blades are poorly
designed, the rotor will have a tendency to slow down or even stall. Also, too high a
tip speed ratio, causes the wind to perceive the rotor as a wall/obstacle inducing
turbulence and consequently, reducing the power coefficient. High TSR value can also
induce high stresses into the turbine increasing the risk of structural failure. The
optimal value of TSR is around 6-8 based on the Figure 2.4. [18]
2.1.5 Twist and Taper
The wind turbine blade needs specific values of chord and twist along the span
of the blade to perform at optimal conditions which induces Twist and Taper into the
22
blade shape. Observe the Figure 2.5 for an illustration of the twist and varying chord
length characteristics along the length of the blade.
Figure 2. 5: An illustration of the varying chord length and twist angle present
along the span of the blade. [19]
The twist in the blade ensure that the angle of attack of the entire blade remains
constant at the optimal value at all times, whereas, the chord length varies due to
varying point velocities along the span of the blade. The optimal value of Angle of
𝐶
Attack is where the lift to drag ratio, (𝐶 𝑙 ), is maximum, hence, airfoils throughout the
𝑑
span of the blade acting at maximum lift to drag ratio result in a blade with maximum
lift force. [17]
The chord length can be seen reducing with an increase in the length of the
blade. The varying chord is to ensure an even distribution of torque along the blade.
The airfoils nearer to the rotor will result in a lesser torque than the airfoils far from
the rotor if both the airfoils experience a similar magnitude of lift force as torque is a
function of radius. A blade with uneven distribution of torque along the span of the
blade can induce inefficiencies in to the wind turbine [17]. To overcome the issue of
uneven torque distribution, the blade is designed with reducing chord length of airfoils
to ensure the airfoils farther from the rotor (greater radius) generate lesser force than
the airfoils nearer to the rotor (lesser radius) [17].
23
2.1.6 Blade Theories
There are two main governing theories for blade designs, they are as followed:
I. Momentum Theory
II. Blade element Theory
The momentum theory, is a combination of two methods, one where only axial
momentum of the wind across the turbine is considered, called Linear Momentum,
and, one where only the rotation or angular momentum of the wind after passing
through the turbine, called Wake rotation, is considered. These momentum theories
are coupled with Blade Element Theory to form Blade Element Momentum (BEM)
Theory. The Blade element theory is a mathematical process that is used to evaluate
blade performance by dividing the blade in various elements. [17]
2.2 Design Review (Considerations)
After understanding the physics involved in wind turbines, in this section, we

shall take a look at the ideas considered for the design of this project and review
published work and journals to provide justifications for the said ideas. Also, this
section considers the key and critical parts or features of the project and provide details
on the matter. The published work may also be seen used to enhance knowledge
regarding certain aspects of the project. The adaption, analysis methodology and
further specifications regarding these considerations shall be detailed and discussed in
CHAPTER 3, but, the foundational concept and the corresponding justifications and
reasoning will be provided in this chapter.
2.2.1 Non-Conventional Wind Turbines (NCWT)
The Betz’s limit, due to its assumptions, does not apply to wind turbines with
non-conventional designs. Such manipulations to the design of wind turbines have
allowed researchers to overcome the Betz’s limit. Ohya, Karasudani, Sakurai, Abe, &
24
Inoue [20] discuss in their paper, of a shrouded wind turbine, claiming an increase in
output power by a factor of about 4-5 compared to an unshrouded wind turbine of
similar parameters [20]. Figure 2.6 shows the prototype of the shrouded wind turbine.
Figure 2. 6: The prototype created by Ohya, Karasudani, Sakurai, Abe, &

Inoue, 2008 [20].
However, the breakthrough of shrouded wind turbines can only be taken as a

motivation for this project as the design consideration for this project involves using a
nozzle in the wind way of the wind turbine. A nozzle, due to its geometric shape, can
accelerate a flow and increase the velocity of the flow at its exit. The foundation of
this ideas lies with the fact that the power in wind is directly related to the cube of the
wind velocity (see Ch. 2.1.1). Too fast a wind speed can cause a high TSR and result
in inefficiencies as discussed in CH. 2.1.4, but, in areas with low wind speed, a nozzle
can help improve the performance coefficient of a wind turbine and help fight the
bounds of Betz’s limit. Bazgir [21] in his Journal of Applied Mechanical Engineering,
performs a CFD analysis on such design. The analysis involves different shapes of
nozzles and a comparison of results is shown [21]. Figure 2.7 shows the nomenclature
of nozzle followed in [21], and Table 2.1 shows the results of different types of nozzles
used in [21] obtained through CFD analysis.
25
Figure 2. 7: Nozzle Nomenclature followed in [21].
Table 2. 1: CFD results of utilising a nozzle in the wind-way of turbine. [21]

Outlet
Inlet Outlet Inlet Electrical
Nozzle Length, Veloctiy,
Diameter, Diameter, Veloctiy, Power
Type L (m) V2 (m/s)
D1 (m) D2 (m) V1 (m/s) (KW)
- CFD
A 3 4 1 3 47.38 20.297
B 3 3 1 3 26.75 3.618
C 3 2.5 1 3 18.7 1.209
D 3 2 0.5 3 46.99 5.074
E 3 1.5 0.5 3 26.75 0.903
Table 2.1 shows the significance of inlet to outlet diameter ratio, on the outlet
velocity of the nozzle. Nozzle Type A displayed the highest power output as it featured
the largest value of inlet to outlet diameter ratio. Bazgir [21] concludes his study with
a recommendation of utilising a nozzle in front of wind turbine as all the shapes used
in the analysis provided better results than a bare wind turbine [21].
26
Moreover, [22] also shows a study of utilizing a “Nozzle Lens” with wind
turbines and present promising results to back their argument [22]. [23] discusses of
such design and even goes on to calling the design as a “highly profitable idea” due to
the design’s promising results and wide range of capabilities [23].
2.2.2 Duct
A wind turbine with a duct around it, is an interesting topic for many with many
researchers providing positive reviews [24]-[27]. [24] presents a research on how
ducted wind turbine can have improved efficiencies for wind energy generation. [24]
shows comparison of a conventional turbine with a ducted turbine, and provides results
showing a difference factor of 17 in the theoretical power in wind values of both the
turbines. Bontempo and Manna [25] has shown a reasearch about the effect of duct
thrust on wind turbine, and with analysis and results, shows significant improvement
in the power output due to the enclosure (duct) around the wind turbine. An example
of a wind turbine with a duct around the turbine is shown in Figure 2.8.
Figure 2. 8: A ducted wind turbine called 'Enflo'. [26]
2.2.3 Vortex Generators
The base idea leading to the consideration of vortex generators is their ability
to decrease pressure of a flowing fluid. The idea is to utilise vortex generators towards
the end of a duct to obtain a lower downstream stream pressure, creating a vacuum
27
effect for the upstream air. Kumar et al. [27] has shown an increase in flow velocity
resulting in delayed flow-separation, by utilising vortex generators near the rear-end
of a car. Moreover, [27], shows CFD analyses of air-flow over cars with and without
vortex generators, and present results showing an improvement in the overall
aerodynamics of the car due to the vacuum effect created by the vortex generators near
the rear-end of the car. Figure 2.9 shows a car with vortex generators near the rear-end
of the car.
Figure 2. 9: A set of vortex generators mounted towards the rear-end of a car.
A more related and motivating scenario was seen in a numerical and

experimental study by Al-Khishali et al. [28]. Although the objective of [28] differ
from the study of this project, the aim of obtaining an increase in pressure drop at the
downstream flow, is common. The design used by [28] involved utilisation of a
rectangular duct with vortex generators placed near the end of the duct. The results of
[27] showed an increase in pressure drop of a percentage difference of 66.7%–300%
at the end of the duct due to the utilisation of vortex generators.
2.2.4 3D Printed Parts
As an effort for sustainability in the project, fabrication of some parts using 3D

printer was considered. Using Polylactic acid (PLA) as the material, 3D printed parts
offer adequate strength with great sustainability feature. [29] presents an experimental
study performed on Fixed-deposition method (FDM) processed PLA part and provide
28
results of tensile and cyclic tests performed on the part [29]. The values of the
experiment result shall be analysed later in CH. 3, but let us observe the result in Table
2.2.
Table 2. 2: Result of load test performed by [27] on FDM processed PLA part.
[30] describes PLA as “Biodegradable” and “cost-efficient”, which just further

describes the sustainability PLA based parts bring into the project. Another benefit of
using 3D printer for parts is the ease and accuracy to obtain various geometries as one
completed part. [31] shows a study to find out the achievable geometric accuracy from
3D printers. The study suggests, assuming factors such as skill of the technician, proper
functioning of the 3D printer are met, geometric errors of typically less than 1 percent
(1%) of the desired values can be achieved [31]. Modern Engineering strives for
features with sustainability and precision to produce devices with competitive
capabilities, cost effectiveness at the expense of little to none damage to the
environment. 3D printing, on-point, meets the criteria required by modern Engineering
and the usage of this technology nominates this project into the said devices.
2.2.5 Airfoil Selection
Selection of a proper airfoil is the key to the performance of the entire turbine
as airfoil cross-section makes up the blades of the wind turbine. A system with detailed
analysis of all the other components, but, equipped with improper airfoil, will fail
drastically in giving the desired output [32]. The main parameters that decide the
category of suitable airfoils for a design are Reynold’s number range throughout the
entire span of the blade, wind speed, application and the size of the wind turbine. To
29
remain on the subject of this project, we shall only investigate about airfoils that are
suitable for small wind turbines with low Reynold’s number and low wind velocity.
Philippe Giguere and Michael S. Selig [32] presented their experimental study in 1997
on airfoils for small wind turbines and low Reynold’s number and their study, has
since served as the handbook for modern small wind turbines. The study, [32], presents
a list of 15 different airfoils and shows the experimental results of each of these airfoils.
All the airfoils listed, have their own distinctive features and the desired application
decides the most suitable option of airfoil. For areas with low wind velocity and low
Reynold’s number, such as our situation, preferred choice is of an airfoil with a high
𝐶
lift-to-drag ratio ( 𝑙 ).
𝐶𝑑
2.2.6 Blade Structural Design
P. J. Schubel and R. J. Crossley [19] provides great insights about the structural
requirement of the blade. They, [19], describes the blade as a combination of two
sections one for the Aerodynamic requirements and the other for Structural
requirements. After having covered the aerodynamic requirements of the blade in CH.
2.1, this section only considers the structural requirement of the blade. Observe Figure
2.10 for a graphical representation of the two sections of a turbine blade.
Figure 2. 10: An illustration of the requirements of the blade. [19]
As important as the aerodynamic parameters are in the design of a turbine

blade, structural parameters are of equal importance. A normal practise in structural
parameters study is to consider the worst-case scenarios and understand the structural
expectation under such loadings [33]. The loading cases normally vary from one
design to another, but, the typical load cases prioritized by texts are as followed [33]:
30
I. Emergency stop scenario [36]
II. Extreme loading during operation [35]
III. Parked 50-year storm conditions [34]
And the sources of the blade loading are as followed:
1. Aerodynamic
2. Gravitational
3. Centrifugal
4. Gyroscopic
5. Operational
Let us brief these loading sources with graphical representation for a better
understanding:
1. Aerodynamics: The wind striking the wind turbine blades induces two forces into
the blade, Lift and Drag force (see CH. 2.1.3) and these forces combined resolve
into two more forces, Thrust and Reactional force. The magnitude of these forces
is a function of the wind velocity and blade velocity. Observe Figure 2.11 to see
the direction of these forces with respect to an individual blade element.
Figure 2. 11: Aerodynamic loadings on individual blade element. [19]
31
The Aerodynamic loadings induces flap-wise bending in to the wind turbine
blade and requires careful design consideration and analysis in order to avoid structural
failure. The analysis is normally carried out with the turbine blade represented as a
cantilever beam and the wind load as distributed loading. Observe Figure 2.12 to
visualize the flap-wise bending situation on a turbine blade.
Figure 2. 12: An illustration of the blade modelled as a cantilever beam (flap-

wise bending). [19]
The bending results in tensile and compressive stresses on the top and bottom
surfaces along the span of the blade.
2. Gravitational & Centrifugal: These loadings are mass dependent and increase
cubically with the turbine diameter and hence are negligible for wind turbines with
rotor diameter of less than 10 m [33]. The diameter of the turbine design for this
project is much smaller than 10 m, therefore, Gravitational & Centrifugal load
considerations can be ignored in both consideration and analysis.
3. Gyroscopic & Operational: Gyroscopic loads results from yawing motion of a

wind turbine while operation. Operational loads are system dependent load and
result from mechanisms that take place during operation, such as pitching and
32
yawing. Gyroscopic and Operational loads shall also be neglected in consideration
and analysis as these loadings are normally less intensive than aerodynamic
loading. [33]
3.3 Summary of Literature Review
Figure 2. 13: A summarized flow-chart of the literature review.
33
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
This chapter has been divided into various sections, with all sections organized
in a very sequential manner to provide a complete information of the procedures and
the approach taken forth for this project. The knowledge gained from the subject
INTEGRATED DESIGN PROJECT (EPT-3076) was followed throughout this project
for guidance and a significant amount of that knowledge shall be seen applied in this
chapter. The sections of the chapter include, Design and Development, presents
problem statement analysis, development of design considerations (discussed in CH.
2.2), analysis methodology, conceptualisation, material selection, finalized design,
fabrication, cost summary of the prototype and corresponding justifications based on
theories.
2. Development of
1. Problem 3. Preliminary
considerations (Problem
statement analysis design ideas
Solutions)
5. Conceptual 6. Material
4. Finalised idea
design selection
7. Design
analyses 8. Fabrication 9. Cost Summary
10. Prototype
testing
Figure 3. 1: Project overview of design and development of wind turbine for

wind energy harvesting.
34
3.1 Problem Statement Analysis
Problem statement analysis was set as the foundational base of the design and
development of wind turbine as this analysis provide a detailed picture of the elements
that lead to the problem. Various texts such as, [39] and [40], define “Identification of
problem” or “Problem statement” as step one in research and design methodology. As
we have defined the problem statement of the project in chapter one (see CH. 1.5),
here, we shall discuss the elements that leads to the problem. Graphical techniques
such as Fishbone diagram, 5-why analysis, Brainstorming, etc. can be used for problem
statement analysis. For the problem analysis of this project, Fishbone diagram
technique and 5-why analysis technique were utilised to determine the reasons why
small wind turbines are not preferred by individual residents. Observe Figure 3.2 for
the Fishbone diagram followed by 5- why analysis in Figure 3.3.
Figure 3. 2: A depiction of elements of the problem statement through Fishbone

diagram.
The elements, as can be seen from the fishbone diagram, are the root causes
why small wind turbines are not preferred for individual residential housings. Firstly,
many existing designs of small HAWTs are not designed for areas with low wind
velocities which eliminates many areas and limits the usage of small HAWTs to a very
little and specific amount of areas. Secondly, many small HAWT design are
conventional designs which are bounded by the Betz’s limit and, at best, are only good
35
enough to produce 30% - 45% of the power in the wind. Thirdly, many small wind
turbines are expensive and require a long period for the amount payback through
energy production. Lastly, most of the small wind turbines are mainly designed for
areas with open lands, limiting the application of the device for individual residential
housings. Let us now dive deeper into the causes of these elements that lead to the
problem by using the 5-whys analysis shown in Figure 3.3.
Figure 3. 3: 5-whys analysis of the problem statement.
36
The 5-whys analysis clears our understanding of the problem and narrows the
root cause of the problem. The counter-measure was set as the key point throughout
the design and development of this project to ensure a valid solution can be resulted
through this project.
3.2 Design and Development of Considerations
The design considerations were made based on the COUNTER-MEASURE

discussed earlier (Figure 3.3) and were seen as the SOLUTION to the problem
statement. In this section we shall discuss the methodology followed to design and
develop the Considerations discussed in CH. 2. We shall divide the design and
development of each consideration into individual sub-section to ensure an organized
distribution of the information.
3.2.1 Airfoil Selection
𝐶
Knowing the design requirement of a high lift-to-drag ( 𝐶 𝑙 ) ratio airfoil with
𝑑
the capability to perform at low Reynold’s number, the airfoils presented in [32] were
studied to narrow down the list of presented airfoils to only the airfoils with high lift-
to-drag ratio. The co-ordinates of the airfoils were obtained as ‘.dat’ file using airfoil
tool website [37] and were then imported into Qblade for comparison of aerodynamic
parameters represented by ‘Polar diagrams’. Three airfoils were narrowed down,
namely, BW3, S822 & S823 as these airfoils are specifically designed for small wind
turbines [32]. The procedure of obtaining, importing and comparing airfoils can be
seen from Figure 3.4, 3.5 and 3.6 sequentially.
Figure 3. 4: Obtaining the airfoil co-ordinates. [37]
37
Figure 3. 5: BW3 (RED), S822 (GREEN) & S823 (BLUE) co-ordinates imported
into Qblade.
Figure 3. 6: The Polars of BW3 (BLACK), S823 (BLUE) & S822 (GREEN)
obtained from Qblade analysis.
Cl denotes Lift coefficient; Cd denotes Drag coefficient & Alpha denotes Angle of
Attack.
38
Based on polar diagrams obtained at Reynold’s number of 50,000, shown in
Figure 3.6, BW3 was observed to have the highest lift-to-drag ratio amongst the
available choices of airfoils for small wind turbines. The BW3 airfoil showed much
higher lift-to-drag ratio than S822 and S823, and the max lift-to-drag ratio of BW3
takes place at much smaller angle-of-attack (alpha) than the other two airfoils which
left BW3 as the top choice for this project.
3.2.2 Turbine Blades
After selecting the airfoil, the next step taken in the design methodology was
to develop on the design considerations of the blade for the wind turbine. A 300 mm
long blade, equipped with BW3 airfoil was designed using Qblade. The key geometric
parameters, for aerodynamic stability, were obtained using Qblade. Qblade algorithm
uses the chosen theory’s (Betz or Schmitz) formulas to generate chord length and twist
based on the design TSR, blade length and the optimum Angle-of-Attack. Figure 3.7
shows the definition of parameters into Qblade for analysis.
Figure 3. 7: Qblade dialogue box for blade geometry optimization.
The optimum Angle-of-Attack is where the airfoil reaches its maximum lift-
to-drag ratio value, which for BW3 airfoil, was seen to be 5 and the chord length was
generated using Betz’s theory. Also, the design was computed for a three-bladed
system as more than three blades increases the material cost of the system and less
than 3 blades induces dynamic instability into the system. The design TSR was chosen
39
by analysing the rotor’s performance coefficient at various values of TSR. Observe
Figure 3.8 to see performance coefficient values at different TSRs.
Figure 3. 8: Performance coefficient at various TSRs.
The maximum value of performance coefficient (CP) was obtained at design

TSR of 4. The final geometric parameters of the wind turbine blade obtained from
Qblade analysis can be seen in Table 3.1.
Table 3. 1: Geometric parameters of the blade obtained from Qblade.
Position, X-axis Chord Twist

S.No. Foil
(mm) (mm) (deg.)
1 0 20.0 0.00 Circular Foil
2 30 20.0 0.00 Circular Foil
3 60 81.1 16.6 BW-3
4 90 67.3 11.8 BW-3
5 120 57.3 8.43 BW-3
6 150 49.8 5.95 BW-3
7 180 44.0 4.04 BW-3
8 210 39.3 2.53 BW-3
9 240 35.6 1.31 BW-3
10 270 32.4 0.30 BW-3
11 300 29.8 -0.54 BW-3
40
Qblade was also used to generate a 3D drawing of the blade based on the
computed values of the geometric parameters. Figure 3.9 shows the 3D graphical
representation of the blade from Qblade.
Figure 3. 9: The 3D representation of the blade divided into elements generated

from Qblade.
3.2.3 Nozzle-Duct
The consideration of Nozzle and Duct around the wind turbine was tested using
CFD analysis in ANSYS Fluent. The flow and boundary conditions were specified
into the software and resulting Velocity and Pressure trends were observed to
determine the effect of nozzle and duct on the system. Separate analyses were carried
out on each individual body (rotor, nozzle and duct) to understand their behaviour in
the system and then an assembly of these bodies was analysed.
3.2.4 3D Parts
The parts that were expected to undergo small magnitudes of loadings and
would require fastening through other means of fabrication, were simply drawn into
Autodesk Inventor for 3D printing. This step was taken to minimise the assembly
procedure and to reduce the number of parts involved in the final assembly. This step,
of minimising parts for manufacture and assembly, is known as DFMA (Design for
Manufacture & Assembly) in design terminology and it helps in reducing the overall
41
cost of fabrication. Figure 3.10 can be observed to better understand the concept of
DFMA methodology.
Figure 3. 10: An example of the DFMA methodology in the design of a roll-bar.
3.2.5 Linkage System
A linkage system was considered to facilitate the blade-pitch mechanism of the

wind turbine. The mechanism was considered to be a manual system rather than an
electronic system to minimise the cost and complexity of the project. A linkage system
was designed in GIM, a linkage analysis software, to observe the locomotion at the
blades’ end upon manual translational actuation. Figure 3.11 shows the design of the
linkage system in GIM with the locomotion.
Figure 3. 11: Linkage system design in GIM.
42
The blue circle (labelled 2) in the Figure 3.11 represents the locomotion of the
end link upon translation of the actuator rod (labelled 1). The rotation of the blades
using a mechanism as such could facilitate simultaneous rotation of all the three blades
at once by connecting the translating links of all the blades to a disk. The design of the
linkage system was mainly carried out to incorporate a flexible mechanism for blade-
pitch requirement of the wind turbine system. It should also be highlighted that the
blade-pitch system is a requirement but not a necessity which is why a manual
actuation system was preferred.
3.3 Preliminary Design Ideas
In this subtopic, the developed ideas were utilised to form few preliminary
design combinations and then the most suitable design for our problem statement was
used to finalise a design. Each preliminary design combination shall be discussed in
detail to provide reasoning of the combination of parts and features used in the design.
The preliminary design combinations are discussed individually to maintain order and
to avoid misinterpretation of information.
3.3.1 Preliminary Design Combination Idea 1
The first preliminary design combination involved a nozzle Infront of the wind
turbine to increase the wind velocity at the rotor face coupled with a sprocket and chain
transmission system. Figure 3.12 show a general sketch of the idea.
Figure 3. 12: A general sketch of the preliminary design combination 1.
43
Additionally, the design possessed a very small hub at the expense of Blade-
pitch mechanism. This design involved very few parts and was seen as a very cost-
efficient option. Also, the design did not require any base-frame structure as the design
was meant to be bolted at rooftop.
The second design combination idea involved using a duct with vortex
generators around the wind turbine coupled with a belt and pulley transmission system.
The rotor hub of this design involved mechanism for blade-pitch using simple linkage
system to manually actuate the rotation of the blades. Figure 3.13 and Figure 3.14
shows the graphical representation of the duct with vortex generators and the rotor hub
with the linkage system respectively.
Figure 3. 13: The desing of the duct with vortex generators towards the
downstream end.
Figure 3. 14: The rotor hub (left) and the blade-pitch linkage system (right).
44
This design involved a base frame for the wind turbine with a pole to support
the duct and the rotor assembly. This design involved more parts than the preliminary
design 1, but, with the benefit of more features.
The third design idea involved a nozzle and duct around the wind turbine with
vortex generators towards the end of the duct coupled with a simple gears transmission
system. The design also featured a simple YAW mechanism to direct the turbine in the
path of the most efficient wind. The rotor assembly of this design involved a DFMA
considered rotor hub with a hemispherical dome at the face of the rotor as shown in
Figure 3.15.
Figure 3. 15: Rotor hub with a dome at the face.
Also, the design involved manual rotation option for blade-pitch system (without
linkage system) to reduce the parts used and the cost of the design.
3.4 Finalised Design
The third design was chosen as the final design for this project as this design
incorporated all the key design considerations made earlier in CH. 2. The upside of
incorporating all the design considerations into a single design was, each consideration
45
contributes in improving the outcome of the wind turbine. Also, the parts of this design
involved cost cutting techniques such DFMA and 3D printed parts. Table 3. 2 shows
a summary of the preliminary ideas with the third design, finalised design, highlighted
in the table.
Table 3. 2: Summarized depiction of the Preliminary designs.
Preliminary design ideas

Features
1 2 3
Rotor hub
Disk Circular Circular
geometry
Linkage Manual linkage

mechanism for No mechanism to Manual rotation
blade-pitch actuate rotation
Nozzle Yes No Yes
Vortex Generators No Yes Yes
Transmission Sprocket and

Belt and Pulleys Simple gears
system chain
Duct No Yes Yes
YAW No No Yes
Cost Low Moderate Moderate
3.5 Conceptual Design
After finalising the ideas for the design of wind turbine, Autodesk Inventor was
used to prepare a full assembly drawing comprising al the finalised feature (see Table
3.2). All the parts were drawn as individual CAD drawings and combined using proper
46
mating options. In design methodology, Conceptual Design or Conceptualisation is
defined as an early stage in the designing process with the purpose of helping in
recognizing viable solutions and design visualization to understand the behaviour of
the design [38]. This concept, [38], was reflected in design methodology of the design
and development of the wind turbine by using the conceptual design to understand the
material and component requirement of the design. Figure 3.16 shows the conceptual
design of the final assembly of the wind turbine.
Figure 3. 16: Conceptual design of the final assembly of the wind turbine design.
As can be seen from Figure 3.16, the conceptual design incorporated all the
features that were finalised in Table 3.2. The conceptual design was then used to
understand the behaviour of the wind turbine to develop ideas for the next stages.
Through the visualization of the design, using conceptual design, the material and
dimensional requirement of the design were analysed and the next section (CH. 3.6)
details the steps that were taken to satisfy the design requirements.
47
3.6 Material Selection
In this subtopic we shall discuss about the methodology that was taken to
finalise the materials of the key parts of the wind turbine. This was a critical step in
design methodology as it directly relates to the cost and the strength of the design. The
material selection knowledge imparted in the subject, Integrated Design Project (EPT-
3076), was strictly applied for the material selection of this project to ensure an
academically acclaimed approach of design methodology. The methodology involved
consideration of few potentially applicable materials for a specific part and choosing
an option based on conceptual analysis techniques (namely Concept Screening and
Concept Scoring) to narrow down the list of options. The material options were chosen
with regard to material suitability, properties and cost. The analysis techniques
involved key aspects expected or required of the part being examined and how
compatible the material options are with each aspect individually. Similar approach of
concept screening and concept scoring was also applied to welding and fastening
methods, and shall also be discussed in this subtopic. The scoring schemed followed
for the tables below is as follows:
5 – Excellent, 4 – Above average, 3 – Average, 2 – Below average, 1 – Very poor and 0 –

Non-Applicable
3.6.1 Base Frame
The base structure is where the rest of the turbine system was designed to be
mounted and this required a high strength material to obtain a stable design. The
material of the base was required to be easily weldable to ease the fabrication of the
rest of the assembly onto the base frame. Also, corrosion resistance of the material was
an important factor to ensure longevity of the wind turbine assembly. The CAD
drawing of the base frame can be seen in Figure 3. 17. The background of the CAD
software (Inventor) was changed to white for better visualization of the part.
48
Figure 3. 17: The CAD drawing of the base frame.
It was then subjected to the concept screening method to narrow down the list of
options for the material selection. Table 3.3 and Table 3.4 shows the concept screening
and concept scoring performed for the material selection of the base frame
respectively. [41] was used as the handbook for material properties and the cost of the
materials are based on market survey.
Table 3. 3: Concept Screening of the potential materials for the base frame
Stainless Mild
Objective Aluminium PVC
Steel steel
Yield Strength + + + -
Cost efficiency 0 0 0 +
Wear of material + - + -
Weight - + - +
Ease of fabrication + 0 + +
Availability + + + +
corrosion + - - -
Total 0’s 1 2 1 2
Total +’s 5 3 4 4
Total – ‘s 1 2 2 3
Net Score 4 1 2 1
Continue? Yes No Yes No
49
Table 3. 4: Concept Screening of the short-listed materials for the base frame
Materials
Criteria Weightage Stainless

score Mild Steel score
Steel
Weldability 5 Moderate 4 High 5
Cost 5 RM 59/ft 4 RM 39/ft 5
Yield
5 ~290 MPa 5 ~250 MPa 4
Strength
Density 5 7.7 g/cm3 4 7.85 g/cm3 4
Ease of
5 Easy 5 Easy 5
fabrication
Corrosion
5 High 4 Low 3
resistance
Finishing 5 Good 5 Low 3
Total score 35 31 29
The scoring system resulted with stainless steel receiving the highest score,
hence, providing the material best suited for the base frame.
3.6.2 Nozzle & Duct
Weldability/fastening ability of the material was an important factor required

from the selected material of these parts to obtain a stable design. Also, a smooth
surface and high corrosion resistance was required from the material for nozzle and
duct. Smooth surface was required to avoid high friction near the boundary layers of
the flowing fluid and the corrosion resistance was a factor to avoid failure due to cyclic
50
humid conditions. Lastly, the cost was a very important criteria as the amount of
material required for nozzle and duct was high. Due to the specific requirements of the
nozzle and duct, only two material options were available for analysis. Figure 3.18 and
Table 3.5 shows the CAD drawing and the concept screening of the nozzle and duct.
Figure 3. 18: CAD drawings of Duct (left) and nozzle (right).
Table 3. 5: Concept screening for the material selection of nozzle and duct.
Objective Stainless Steel Plastic
Weldability/Fastening ability + +
Cost efficiency 0 -
Surface smoothness + +
Weight - +
Ease of fabrication + -
Availability + +
Corrosion resistance + -
Total 0’s 1 0
Total +’s 5 5
Total – ‘s 1 3
Net Score 4 2
Rank 1 2
Continue? Yes No
51
The concept screening of the material selection of nozzle and duct resulted in
stainless steel as the best suited option. Although both the materials satisfied most of
the requirements of the parts, stainless steel offered more flexibility in terms of cost,
ease of fabrication and corrosion resistance. Due to the requirement of mould for
plastic fabrication of the parts, the cost of the plastic option turned out to be too high
compared to stainless steel. No further analysis was required for the nozzle and duct
as the concept screening was sufficient to single out a material.
3.6.3 Turbine Blades
The important criteria required from the material of the turbine blades included
Geometric accuracy (Chord and Twist), mechanical strength, cost and surface
smoothness. Knowing the criteria required from the material, suitable options were
shortlisted to be analysed through concept screening and concept scoring. Figure 3.19,
Table 3.6 and Table 3.7 shows the CAD drawing, concept screening and concept
scoring of the turbine blade respectively.
Figure 3. 19: CAD drawing of the turbine blade.
52
Table 3. 6: Concept screening for the material selection of the turbine blades.
Stainless PLA
Objective PVC Composite
Steel (3D Printed)
Yield Strength + + - +
Cost efficiency - + + -
Surface smoothness + + - 0
Density - + + +
Ease of fabrication - + + -
Geometric accuracy + 0 + +
Total 0’s 0 1 0 1
Total +’s 3 5 4 3
Total – ‘s 3 0 2 2
Net Score 0 5 2 1
Rank 4 1 2 3
Continue? No Yes Yes No
Table 3. 7: Concept scoring for the material selection of turbine blades.

Materials
Criteria Weightage PLA

PVC Score Score
(3D Printed)
Cost 5 RM 3.5/blade 5 RM 4/blade 5
Yield Strength 5 ~52 MPa 4 ~37 MPa 3
Density 5 1.38 g/cm3 4 1.24 g/cm3 3
Ease of
5 Easy 5 Easy 5
fabrication
Geometric
5 Moderate 4 High 5
accuracy
Surface
5 Good 5 Low 2
smoothness
53
The concept screening and the concept scoring for the material of turbine
blades resulted with PVC (Polyvinyl chloride) blade as the most suitable option. PVC
material for blades offered potential for great flexibility in terms of accuracy, surface
smoothness and ease of fabrication. Although other materials, such as PLA (Polylactic
acid) and composite offer potential for better geometric accuracy, but the associated
issues of these materials downgraded their score.
3.6.4 Rotor Hub
The rotor hub was preferred to be fabricated in consistency with the DFMA design
methodology. 3D-Printed part was seen as the most suitable option to achieve the
desired DFMA consistency in the part, which comes with a choice of two material,
namely PLA and ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). They important criteria
required from the part was mainly strength and dimensional accuracy. Figure 3.20 and
Table 3.8 shows the CAD drawing and concept screening respectively, for the material
selection of rotor hub.
Figure 3. 20: CAD drawing of the rotor hub part.
54
Table 3. 8: Concept screening for the material selection of the rotor hub.
Objective ABS PLA
Strength + +
Cost efficiency - +
Surface smoothness + +
Weight + +
Ease of fabrication + +
Accuracy + +
Availability + +
Total 0’s 1 0
Total +’s 6 7
Total – ‘s 1 0
Net Score 5 7
Rank 2 1
Continue? No Yes
Concept screening resulted in PLA as the more suitable option for the material
of the rotor hub due to the cost difference between ABS and PLA. The strength of PLA
based parts was a subject of the thickness of the part. The weight and ease of
fabrication through 3D printing simplified the fabrication process of the rotor hub
immensely. Also, DFMA methodology was made possible for this part because of 3D
printing.
3.6.5 Welding Technique
After material selection of the parts, a welding technique was needed to be

narrowed down before the fabrication process. [42] was used as the guideline for
welding techniques on stainless steel. The techniques obtained from [42] were then
cross checked with local vendors to list down the available options. GTAW (Gas
Tungsten Arc Welding), SMAW (Shielded Metal Arc Welding), and FCAW (Flux
Cored Arc Welding) were the techniques easily available and suitable for stainless
55
steel. Weldability on stainless steel, weld strength, complexity, cost and time were the
criteria used as the base to score the welding techniques. Table 3.9 and Table 3.10
shows the concept screening and scoring of the welding techniques respectively.
Table 3. 9: Concept Screening for welding techniques.
Objective SMAW FCAW GTAW
Weldability with Stainless Steel + + +

Cost + + 0
Weld Strength 0 - +
Complexity 0 0 +
Time 0 0 +
Total 0’s 3 0 1
Total +’s 2 2 4
Total – ‘s 0 1 0
Net Score 2 1 4
Rank 3 2 1
Continue? No Yes Yes
Table 3. 10: Concept scoring for the selection of welding technique.
Materials
Criteria Weightage
GTAW Score FCAW Score
Weldability with
5 High 5 High 5
Stainless Steel
Cost 5 Moderate 3 High 2
Weld Strength 5 High 5 High 5
Complexity 5 Easy 5 Easy 5
Time 5 Fast 5 Fast 5
56
The concept screening and scoring resulted in GTAW as the most suitable
welding technique for the fabrication of stainless-steel parts in the design. FCAW
provided almost the same flexibility as GTAW but was downgraded due to its higher
cost as it involves electrodes in the welding procedure.
Overall, the material selection analyses performed narrowed the wide list of
options for each part to a single, most-suited option. This academically acclaimed
material selection methodology was simple, yet highly effective as it gave a logical
justification to each and every selection. The selected materials, post material
selection, were translated to the respective parts in Inventor to obtain similarity
between model (CAD) and the outcome (Prototype).
3.6.6 Transmission System
A simplistic design was chosen to obtain a cost-effective transmission system.

The transmission system for the wind turbine included shafts, gears and bearings
mounted on a plate (platform) behind the wind turbine rotor. The purpose of the gears
was to increase the rotational speed of turbine shaft. Spur gears with a factor of 2:1
were used to accomplish this task. Figure 3.21 and Figure 3.22 shows the set of gears
and the platform with the bearings used for the transmission system respectively.
Figure 3. 21: Spur gears used in the wind turbine.
57
Figure 3. 22: Platform incorporated with the bearings for transmission.
The platform was design to incorporate two bearings to ensure a smooth

rotation of the shaft without imbalance. The platform required a material strong
enough to withstand the loadings from the shaft and positioned precisely to ensure an
even distribution of the weight of the transmission system onto the base frame. Also,
the platform material was required to have good weldability to simplify the fabrication
of the platform on to the base frame.
3.6.7 Generator
A simple DC brushed motor was chosen to perform the task of a generator in

the design. Normally, the motor is used to output mechanical power through electrical
input, but, a permanent magnet motor can also be used in reversed order. As the wind
turbine provides the mechanical power, it can be transmitted to rotate a motor which
in turn produces electricity. A simple power relation with revolutions per minute (N)
and torque (T) can be expressed as:
2πNT
P= (3.1)
60
The expression shows a direct relation to the input torque and shaft speed and
since higher shaft speed values are easy to achieve compared to higher shaft torque
values, the gear ratio was designed specifically to obtain a fast rotation at the generator
shaft. Normally, Synchronous machines or induction machines are used for power
58
generation in big wind turbines, but, for a small sized wind turbine, DC machines are
a cheap and well-suited option.
3.7 Design Analysis and Theoretical Formulation
In this sub-section we shall detail the analyses approach and the corresponding
design parameters that were taken forth to analyse the design performance before it
underwent the fabrication phase. Also, various key and related design theories that are
required to produce a stable design shall be discussed in this sub-section. This was a
critical step in design methodology as it projects the final performance and determine
possible failure or inefficiencies of the examined design. Various analyses were
performed on various key components to project their respective performance under
specific conditions. The analyses performed included CFD analysis, Force and Stress
analysis and Aerodynamic analysis. These analyses were performed with careful
considerations of the parameters to reflect real-life conditions in order to obtain
accurate results. The tools used to carry out these analyses were ensured about their
credibility before their application in the project to avoid errors in the results. The
analyses performed are given below with their corresponding tool in brackets ‘()’:
1. CFD analysis (ANSYS Fluent)

2. Aerodynamic analysis (Qblade)
3. Stress analysis (Autodesk Inventor)
This section only discusses the methodology followed for the analyses,
whereas, the results of the analyses will be furthered in Chapter 4. Let us discuss the
methodology followed for each analysis in individual sections.
3.7.1 CFD Analysis (ANSYS)
The CFD analysis was performed on the nozzle, duct and duct with vortex
generators to understand the behaviour and effect of the flow around the wind turbine.
The analysis was performed using ANSYS Fluent with point method to observe the
59
pressure and velocity variance before and after each part (nozzle, duct and duct with
vortex generators). The theoretical formulation involved in these components is
discussed first to provide an understanding of the analysis requirement and conditions
before discussing the analysis methodology.
The continuity equation can be used to understand the behaviour of a fluid flowing
through a nozzle and is expressed as:
ṁ1 = ṁ2 = ρA1 v1 = ρA2 v2 (3.15)
This was the foundational reason for utilising a nozzle between the wind way
and the rotor. The duct and the vortex generators normally, are not defined by simple
set theoretical formulation as their behaviour normally depends on their specific
application. Theoretical reasoning for utilising a duct and vortex generators was
mainly to obtain a greater downstream pressure (see CH. 2.2). As the behaviour of the
duct and vortex generators can only be understood through CFD analysis, the duct with
vortex generator and nozzle were analysed using ANSYS Fluent with the following
methodology:
1. General select steady state

2. Models-viscous model -laminar
3. Define cell-zones
4. Define boundary conditions
5. Report definition create variables (your choice of domain)-surface monitor report
for velocity and pressure (for graphs)
6. Monitors select surface monitor-create coordinate point selection for pressure and
velocity-create two points before and after
7. Create report plot
8. Initialize
9. Run iterations recommended (5000 iterations) for a small-time step
10. Plot post processing result
60
3.7.2 Aerodynamic Analysis (Qblade)
After carrying out the design and development of the blade in Qblade (CH.
3.2.1 and CH. 3.2.2), the software was used to perform aerodynamic analyses on the
finalised airfoil and blade geometry which shall be discussed in this sub-topic. Also,
Theoretical formulation computed through the software for each respective analysis
shall be shown and briefed.
3.7.2.1 Airfoil Analysis
The finalised airfoil (BW3) was analysed to obtain the optimum angle of
attack, Lift coefficient, drag coefficient, Moment coefficient and Lift-to-Drag
coefficient. Reynold’s number and Mach number were the key parameter required in
the analysis of the airfoil which was found to be between 50,000 to 100,000 and 0.01
respectively in areas with low wind velocities. The theoretical formulation for
Reynold’s Number (Eqn. 3.2), two-dimensional coefficients of Lift (Eqn. 3.3), Drag
(Eqn. 3.4), and Pitching moment (Eqn. 3.5) followed by Qblade analysis of the airfoil
are given below:
Inertial forces ρUL

Re = = (3.2)
Viscous forces μ
L/l Lift Force/unit lenght

Cl = = (3.3)
1 2 Dynamic Force/unit lenght
2 ρU c
D/l Drag Force/unit lenght

Cd = = (3.4)
1 2 Dynamic Force/unit lenght
ρU c
2
M Pitching moment
Cm = = (3.5)
1 2 Dynamic moment
2 ρU Sc
61
where  denotes density of air, U denotes undisturbed wind velocity, S denotes
projected airfoil area (chord span), c denotes chord length of the airfoil, and L is the
airfoil length.
3.7.2.2 Blade Analysis
The blade was analysed within the software to observe the performance of the
blade. Parameters such as the wind velocity and Reynold’s number were inputted into
the software to match the conditions of areas with low wind velocity. [43] was studied
to familiarize and improve analysis methodology using Qblade to ensure accurate
results. Figure 3.23 shows the methodology acquired from the study and later applied,
to carry out the analysis for the turbine blades.
Figure 3. 23: Analysis methodology used for Qblade analysis of the blades and
the wind turbine [43].
62
The purpose of the analysis was to ensure that the following conditions were
met by the blade design:
1. Reasonable performance coefficient

2. Ability to perform at low Reynold’s number
3. Reasonable Power output
4. Optimised Geometric parameter (Chord length and Twist)
5. Ability to perform at low wind velocities
The parameters obtained from the blade analysis were performance coefficient,
induction factors, thrust coefficient, power and torque of the wind turbine. Eqn. 3.6 –
Eqn. 3.11 shows the theoretical formulation of the blade parameters obtained from
Qblade analysis.
The performance co-efficient in terms of b, upstream over downstream velocity ratio

can be expressed as:
1
P ρSV1 3 (1 − b2 )(1 + b)
Cp = = 4 (3.6)
W 1 3
2 ρSV1
The induction factors include axial induction factor (a) and angular induction factor
(a’) and are expressed as:
V1 − V2
a= (3.7)
V1
ω
a′ = (3.8)
2
The thrust coefficient obtained from the analysis is expressed as:
63
T Thrust Force
CT = = (3.9)
1 2 Dynamic force
2 ρU A
Finally, the Power output (P) and the Torque (T) are expressed as:
1
P= ρS(V1 2 − V2 2 )(V1 + V1 ) (3.10)
4
T = R (3.11)
3.7.3 Stress Analysis
The force and stress analysis were performed on parts expected to undergo
heavy loadings, to avoid structural failure. The forces acting on the parts were
understood through texts [17], and these forces were defined to carry out the stress
analysis of the parts. The stress analysis was carried out using Autodesk Inventor and
with the following methodology:
1. Defining the parts materials

2. Selecting the constraints of the part
3. Defining the forces
4. Running the tests
We shall discuss the sources of loading, types of loading with theoretical

formulation used in the analysis of each part in an individual manner in the following
sections.
3.7.3.1 Blade
After understanding the sources and types of loading on turbine blades from
CH. 2, in this section we shall detail the theoretical formulation and the FEM analysis
methodology performed on the blade to determine the structural capability of the blade
64
design. Figure 3.24 shows an illustration of the cross-section of blade used in structural
study. The following procedure can be followed to calculate the tensile and
compressive stresses and, also, the equations can be used to understand the critical
elements of the geometry to design a cost-optimized blade with adequate structural
strength:
Figure 3. 24: Co-ordinal representation of an airfoil bending about xx-axis.[19]
o Step 1: Calculate the second moment of area of the blade element cross-sectional
area using Eqn. 3.12
Ixx = ∬(y − y1 )2 dxdy (3.12)
The equation shows that a larger distance to the spar cap region results in a smaller
moment of area, meaning, smaller resistance to the bending.
o Step 2: Compute the bending moment of the beam (Blade) using Eqn. 3.13
1
M= − w(L − r)2 (3.13)
2
o Step 3: Finally, the stresses can be computed using Eqn. 3.14
σ M E
= = (3.14)
y I R
65
Eqn. 3.13 & Eqn. 3.14 signifies an increase in Bending Moment and Stresses
near the rotor hub which is why an increase in airfoil section (Chord length) can be
observed moving from the tip to the root of the blade. The concepts from these
equations can be used to minimise material cost and produce light weight blades.
The FEM analysis of the blade design was applied on the blade using Qblade
to obtain steady loading, specifically, Edge-wise and Flap-wise loadings. Static
loading in wind turbines, refer to non-time varying loads that act on a non-moving
blade. To recall (from CH. 2), only aerodynamic loading is sufficient in blade design
of rotors with a diameter less than 5m [19]. Aerodynamic loadings include Static and
Dynamic loadings. Normally, static loadings are always higher than dynamic loadings,
which is why Qblade software only offers static blade loading analysis option. Figure
3.25 shows an illustration of Edge-wise and Flap-wise loading on blades.
Figure 3. 25: An illustration of Edge-wise and Flap-wise bending on blades.
The overall procedure carried out for the FEM analysis of the blade was as followed:
1. The Material properties, namely, Young’s modulus (E) and density () were
defined into Qblade.
2. The internal structure of the blade was defined into the system as solid (without
spar).
3. The windspeed was defined.
4. Corresponding Normal and Tangential loadings were computed
5. Results of FEM structural analysis were obtained
66
3.7.3.2 Base Frame
The base frame analysis was a critical step as it was designed to hold the weight
of the rotor, platform, generator, transmission system, duct and nozzle. Buckling due
to the compressive force was the main source of loading on the base frame. In this
analysis the rod of the base frame was modelled as a column with fixed ends (top and
bottom). Figure 3.26 shows the representation of the rod as a column with fixed ends.
Figure 3. 26: Base frame rod modelled as column under compressive loading.
Buckling loading situation is governed by Euler’s critical load equation and is

expressed as:
π2 EI
Pcr = (3.15)
(KL)2
Where:
- Pcr, Euler’s critical load
- E, Young’s modulus of the column
- I, minimum area moment of inertia of the cross-section of the column
67
- L, Length of the column
- K, Effective length of the column (see appendices)
The key observation from Equation 3.15 was an inverse relation between the
critical load and the column length. Meaning, a longer length rod will buckle under
smaller magnitude of load compared to a rod of similar mass and material with shorter
length. The observation was reflected in the design of the base frame rod to avoid
buckling failure. The situation shown in Figure 3.25 was translated into Inventor with
the load as the summation of mass of all the components supported by the base frame
at one end, and the reaction from the ground at the other end.
3.8 Fabrication
After completing conceptual design, material selection and analyses, the design
was ready to undergo the fabrication phase. The fabrication process was split into three
stages to follow an organised procedure. The ideology behind splitting the fabrication
process was derived from the experience gained through Industrial Training Program
(EPT 4066) at an automotive assembly plant. The ideology was to prepare a CKD
(Complete Knock-Down) of the wind turbine parts and prepare sub-assemblies before
mounting the sub-assemblies together to form the final assembly. Observe Figure 3.27
to see an illustration of the three stages of fabrication, with description of each stage.
Figure 3. 27: A Graphical illustration of the work flow process of fabrication.
68
3.8.1 First Stage of Fabrication
Firstly, the 3D printed parts were fabricated to form the parts required in rotor
sub-assembly. The parts printed using 3D printer included, rotor hub, caps and shaft
connector. The post-processing of 3D printed part involved removal of simple support
structure and filing the remains of the support structure. Due to the size limitations of
the available 3D printers, the rotor hub and the shaft connector were designed and
fabricated as two different parts with holes for fastening. The rotor hub and the shaft
connector were then fastened using screws to form a single part. For simplicity, only
the key parts are shown in the figures. Figure 3.28 show the rotor hub and shaft
connector fastened.
Figure 3. 28: The rotor hub and the shaft connector fastened as one part.
Secondly, the blades of the wind turbine were prepared by drawing out the
dimensions and shape of the blade onto a PVC pipe and using hand Grinding cutter.
The cutting process required precision to obtain accurate dimensions of the blade, and
post-cutting, simple finishing was required to obtain a smooth surface at the edges.
The cross-section of the PVC blade accurately matched the BW3-airfoil shape. The
PVC blade (Post-cutting) and the cross-section of the PVC blade is shown in Figure
3.29.
69
Figure 3. 29: The blade (left) and the cross-section of the blade (right-circled).
The blades were then placed into the cap and the cap was then mounted with
bearing to facilitate blade-pitch rotation. The blade with the cap and bearing formed
the blade sub assembly, which were to be fitted into the rotor hub. Figure 3.30 shows
the blade sub-assembly.
Bearing
Cap
Blade
Figure 3. 30: The blade sub-assembly.
Thirdly, before cutting, Stainless Steel sheets of 1 mm thickness were marked

using geometric tools and techniques to translate the desired 3D geometric dimensions
onto the sheets. The cutting process was carried out for the preparation of nozzle, duct,
vortex generators, platform and yaw-mechanism Plate. Plasma cutting method,
coupled with geometric tools, was used to cut the stainless-steel sheets to form the
70
desired geometries. These parts were cut individually in preparation of the second
stage which involved formation of the second sub-assembly. Figure 3.31 shows the
application of geometric tool (compass) mounted with plasma cutter for precision
cutting.
Compass
Plasma
cutter
Figure 3. 31: The cutting procedure of stainless-steel sheets.
Lastly, hollow rods and hollow bars for the base frame and Yaw mechanism
were cut to dimensions. Four bars of similar dimensions were cut using grinding tool
in preparation of the base frame. Similarly, 3 rods of different dimension were cut for
the base frame rod, yam mechanism rod and platform support rod. The concept was to
insert the yaw mechanism mounted with bearings into the base frame rod, and then
mount the platform rod onto the yaw mechanism rod. This concept was followed as it
ensured the distribution of weight of the entire system through the base frame on to
the ground. The yaw mechanism was simply achieved by incorporating a small rod
mounted with bearings between the nozzle and duct assembly and the base frame.
When the turbine is facing away from the wind, the wind would push the duct causing
it to rotate and face the wind. Figure 3.32 shows the yaw mechanism rod incorporated
with bearings.
71
Figure 3. 32: Yaw mechanism rod with bearings before mounting into the base
frame rod.
3.8.2 Second Stage of Fabrication
Firstly, welding of the CKD parts prepared in the first stage was carried out in
a sequential manner. Starting with the bars and rods, each bar was welded with a metal
piece to close its end to exhibit better finishing. Four bars were then welded to the base
frame rod. Next, platform rod was welded to the platform plate. Figure 3.33 shows
post-weld picture of the base frame.
Figure 3. 33: Post-weld picture of the base frame.
72
Secondly, finishing was performed on the welded ends of the four bars. The
finishing process was carried out using graining tool at the weld spots. The finishing
process was only carried out on the bars as finishing of every weld was seen as
unnecessary cost addition (electric cost) due to their little significance in the overall
finishing of the prototype. Figure 3.34 shows the pre-finishing and post-finishing
condition of the bar end.
Figure 3. 34: Pre (left) and Post (right) finishing condition of the bar end.
Lastly, the second sub-assembly, nozzle-duct sub-assembly, was prepared by

welding the parts prepared in the first stage. This also involved welding of the
platform-rod with the nozzle-duct and yaw mechanism plate to complete the second
sub-assembly.
3.8.2 Third Stage of Fabrication
This stage involved assembling of all the sub-assemblies to form the final
assembly. The blade sub-assembly was jammed fixed into the rotor hub by jamming
the bearings of the blade sub-assembly against the walls of the rotor hub. A shaft was
jammed with the shaft connector to complete the rotor sub-assembly. The mechanism
rod was jammed into the base frame rod at the bottom and with the nozzle-duct sub-
assembly at the top. Figure 3.35 and Figure 3.36 shows the final product of fabrication
process.
73
Figure 3. 35: Transmission system of the final fabricated prototype.
Figure 3. 36: Complete assembly upon completion of fabrication.
74
3.9 Cost Summary
In this sub-topic we shall discuss the cost of all the components that were used
in the assembly of the Wind Turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex generators. Also, we
shall summarise the costs involved to determine the feasibility of the project. Table
3.11 shows the parts and components list that were used in the assembly and their
corresponding costs.
Table 3. 11: Cost list of the full assembly.

Unit Cost
S. No. Part or Component Material Quantity Cost (RM)
(RM)
1 Blades PVC 3 5.7 17
2 Rotor hub PLA 1 6 6
3 Cap PLA 3 4 12
4 Bearing (Blade-Pitch) Chrome Steel 3 18 54
2 3
5 Bearings (Yaw) Chrome Steel 18
1 12
6 Nozzle Stainless-Steel 1
85 85
7 Duct Stainless-Steel 1
8 Vortex Generators Stainless-Steel 6 5 30
9 Base Frame Stainless-Steel 1 90 90
Bearings
10 Chrome Steel 2 20 40
(Transmission)
11 Platform Stainless-Steel 1 60 60
12 Yaw rod Stainless-Steel 1 30 30
13 Platform-Rod Stainless-Steel 1 30 30
14 Gear (small) Aluminium 1 20 20
15 Gear (big) Aluminium 1 20 20
16 Generator - 1 110 110
Total = RM 622
75
The total cost per unit of the full assembly of Wind Turbine with nozzle, duct
and vortex generators was calculated to be RM 622. The variable costs were then
estimated through investigation regarding monthly cost of maintaining a workshop,
with the owner of the workshop used for fabrication of the assembly. The estimated
value of variable costs of a workshop that runs 5-days/week with 9 working hours/day
are shown in Table 3.12.
Table 3. 12: List of Variable costs involved in a workshop.
Cost/month
S.No. Description Cost/year (RM)
(RM)
Utilities (Electricity, Gas and
1 250 3000
water)
2 Labour cost 1000 12000
3 Miscellaneous cost 120 1440
4 Rental 500 6000
Total 1870 22440
Using the cost per unit (Table 3.11) and variable cost (Table 3.12), a summary
of cost production was prepared. The summary shows the costs involved if the
assembly of the wind turbine were produced with the estimated variable costs shown
in Table 3.12. The summary is shown in Table 3.13 for 12 units produced/year.
Table 3. 13: Summary of costs involved in production.
Units produced/
Description Cost (RM) Cost (RM)
year
Product cost 622/unit 12 7464/year
Variable cost 22440/year
76
3.10 Prototype Testing
Testing involves two methods, Design testing and Prototype testing. Design
testing involves computer aided software to test the design at various conditions, which
was carried out in Ch. 3.7 as design analyses. Alternatively, Prototype testing is the
methodology taken to test the prototype by applying real-life conditions to the design
(prototype). Upon completion of fabrication of the prototype, various tests were
performed on parts of assembly and the assembly as a whole to determine its similitude
with the theoretical analyses. The tests performed included structural tests and
aerodynamic tests. We shall brief the details of testing methodology in this section,
before discussing the results in Chapter 4.
The structural tests were performed on the blade and the base frame to ensure
their mechanical capability before application. In practise, structural tests are
performed by applying maximum expected magnitude of loads to ensure structural
integrity at normal conditions. The magnitude of loads applied on the blade for the
structural tests were obtained by simulating the turbine at a high wind speed in Qblade.
Alternatively, the loads applied on the base frame were obtained by adding the masses
of the parts supported by the base frame.
The aerodynamic tests were performed to determine the working of the yaw
mechanism, rotor and the effect of nozzle, duct and vortex generators. Normally,
testing of wind turbines require Wind Tunnel test to determine various specification
of the design but due to limited sources, a floor fan was used to simulate wind for the
aerodynamic tests.
77
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
In this chapter, we shall present the results obtained from the project. The
results obtained have been divided into two sections, Analyses results and Practical
results. The analyses results provide the results from the design analyses that were
performed using computer aided software, and, the practical results provide the results
obtained from the prototype testing. The chapter also includes comparison of results
with previous works to help in understanding the significance of the results. Also, the
problems faced in the project shall be discussed in this chapter to provide a background
for future improvements. It should be noted that the results provided in this chapter
have been obtained following the methodology and theoretical formulation provided
in section 3.7 and 3.10 of Chapter 3. The discussion of the results shall be provided
for each respective figure, chart or table to ensure an organized explanation of the
provided contents. To simplify discussions, the wind turbine with nozzle, duct and
vortex generators shall be referred to as ‘wind turbine with NDVG’. Lastly, a summary
of the results shall be discussed.
4.1 Analyses Results
This sub-topic illustrates and discusses the result obtained for Aerodynamic
analysis, using ANSYS and Qblade, and Structural analysis, using Autodesk Inventor.
The sub-topic has been divided into two sections (Aerodynamic and Structural) for
simplicity in interpreting the results.
4.1.1 Aerodynamic Analyses Results
Firstly, the CFD analysis results were obtained to find out the increase in
velocity through the turbine due to the aerodynamic effects of nozzle, duct and the
vortex generators. The inlet wind velocity through-out the analyses was taken at 3m/s,
as this is the value of average wind speed in areas with low wind velocity (Melaka)
[45]. The results obtained through CFD analysis are illustrated as airflow through the
sole duct, and, airflow through duct with nozzle and vortex generators to provide an
78
idea for comparison. Secondly, the result obtained through CFD analysis were
translated into Qblade for a comparison of performance between a bare wind turbine
and the wind turbine with NDVG. The performance of the wind turbine has been
defined through Power output, obtained using Qblade. Figure 4.1 shows the flow of
air through the sole duct at an inlet velocity of 3 m/s.
Figure 4. 1: Ansys result of flow through the sole duct represented by flow lines.
The result showed a slight decrease in the velocity of the flow near the walls,
which is expected due to the formation of boundary layer near the walls. The maximum
value throughout the duct can be seen as 3m/s of the flow through the centre of the
duct (red path-lines) which remains unchanged from the inlet velocity. The panel on
the left corner of Figure 4.1 shows the range of velocities within the duct, and their
corresponding colour representation used for the path-lines.
The nozzle and vortex generators were then assembled to the duct and analysed
using the same parameters and conditions as in the analysis of the duct (Figure 4.1).
Figure 4.2 illustrates the result obtained after assembling the nozzle and vortex
generators to the duct.
79
Figure 4. 2: Ansys result of flow through the nozzle, duct and vortex generators
assembly represented by flow lines.
The results showed promising increase in the overall flow velocity upon the
assembly of nozzle and vortex generators to the duct. The result also displayed a better
boundary flow velocity, caused by the formation of ‘lower pressure space’ due to the
vortex generators. The lower pressure space is formed immediately downstream of the
vortex generators. The velocity magnitude of the flow near the centre of the sole duct,
nozzle-vortex generators and duct assembly, and their percentage difference are shown
in Table 4.1.
Table 4. 1: Tabular representation of the CFD results.
Velocity (m/s) – Sole Velocity (m/s) – nozzle + Percentage

duct vortex generators + duct difference (%)
3 3.823 27.43
It was found that the utilisation of duct with nozzle and vortex generators
increased the velocity of the airflow by 27.43%. In comparison with the study
80
presented in Ch. 2, [28], that showed results with a percentage difference of 66.7%-
300%, it can be said that further enhancement in the percentage difference is
achievable through utilisation of vortex generator with different shapes and geometry.
Although, better results can be achieved, obtained results were seen as a motivation to
procced with the design.
The increased value of wind velocity, 3.823 m/s, was then defined into Qblade
to obtain turbine performance results. Figure 4.3 illustrates the analyses results of
Power output of a bare wind turbine at 3 m/s and Figure 4.4 illustrates the Power output
of a turbine with NDVG at 3.823 m/s.
Figure 4. 3: Analysis results of power output of a bare wind turbine.
Figure 4. 4: Analysis results of power output of a turbine with nozzle, duct and
vortex generators.
81
The results of the values of interest of wind velocity from Qblade are shown in
tabular form with percentage difference in Table 4.2. Also, The Betz’s limit value
computation and comparison with obtained value of power of wind turbine with
NDVG is shown in Table 4.3.
Table 4. 2: Tabular representation of the power output obtained through

Qblade.
Wind Velocity (m/s) Power output (W) Percent difference (%)
3 1.95
56.38
3.823 4.47
Using Power in wind formula and multiplying with 0.593 (59.3%) to obtain the Betz’s
limit value of the design, we get:
1 1
P = ρAV 3 CP = (1.225)(π(0.35)2 )(3)3 (0.593) = 3.77W (4.1)
2 2
kg
Where:  = 1.225 m3, A = πr 2 , r = 0.35m and V = 3 m/s
Table 4. 3: Comparison between the Betz's limit value and the obtained value of
power.
Betz limit Power (W) Obtained Power (W) Percent difference (%)
3.77 4.47 18.57
The efficiency of the wind turbine with NDVG can be calculated by dividing the
obtained power (4.47 W) with the power in wind (Eqn. 4.1):
Po 4.47
efficiency = = = 70.3% (4.2)
PW 6.35
82
As shown in Table 4.1, the turbine with NDVG showed an enhanced
performance of a difference of 56.38% in power output, compared to a bare wind
turbine. The wind velocity at the rotor for the bare wind turbine was used as 3 m/s, and
due to the enhancement in wind velocity by nozzle, duct and vortex generators, the
wind velocity at the rotor for the wind turbine with NDVG was used as 3.823 m/s.
Secondly, for Table 4.2, the Power in Wind formula was used to determine the Betz’s
limit value for a bare turbine at wind speed of 3 m/s and rotor radius of 0.35 m. The
Betz’s limit power of the bare turbine was then compared to the power obtained for
the turbine with NDVG, which showed an enhancement of 18.57 %. Finally, the
efficiency of the wind turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex generators was obtained as
70.3%.
The resulting efficiency (70.3%) was used to compare wind turbine with
NDVG, with conventional wind turbine design presented in [44]. Both the wind
turbines, [44] and wind turbine with NDVG utilised BW3 airfoil for the turbine blades.
The design presented in [44] featured a rotor radius of 0.5 m, and the design of the
wind turbine with NDVG possessed a rotor radius of 0.35 m. To obtain similarity
between [44] and the wind turbine with NDVG, the efficiency (d) was used to
compute the power output upon increasing the rotor radius to 0.5 m. The computation
is shown in Equation 4.3 and the comparison is tabulated in Table 4.4. The power
comparison of both the wind turbines is shown at a wind speed of 3 m/s.
1 1
P = ρAV 3 d = (1.225)(π(0.5)2 )(3)3 (0.703) = 9.13 W (4.3)
2 2
Table 4. 4: Comparison of power output between published design and design

with NDVG.
Power output of wind

Power output
turbine with NDVG Percent difference (%)
presented in [44] (W)
(W)
4.8 9.13 90.21
83
As shown in Table 4.4, the wind turbine with NDVG showed an enhanced
value of power output compared to the wind turbine presented in [44]. The percent
difference between the two wind turbines was seen to be of 90.21%.
4.1.2 Structural Analysis
The FEM analysis were performed on the blade using Qblade and defining
various parameters. The loadings on the blade were computed upon defining the wind
speed, material properties, blade geometry and blade structure (hollow, spar or solid).
The analyses performed included Edge-wise and Flap-wise analysis. Figure 4.5 shows
the key parameters defined into Qblade for the computation of loadings and Figure 4.6
shows the analysis results of Flap-wise loading on the turbine blade.
Figure 4. 5: The key parameters definition into Qblade.
Figure 4. 6: FEA result of Flap-wise loading on the blade.
84
The blades displayed an overall stable strength under flap-wise loading with
no visible deflection at a windspeed of 20 m/s. The windspeed of 20 m/s was used to
simulate high loading conditions. The magnitude of the critical stress for Flap-wise
loading can be seen from Figure (4.6) (top-left panel) with a maximum stress at some
points along the blade reaching 17.8 MPa. Similar conditions were defined to obtain
the results for Edge-wise loading, shown in Figure 4.7.
Figure 4. 7: FEA result of Edge-wise bending on the turbine blade.
The FEA result of Edge-wise loading also showed a stable performance of the
blade under loading. The result also showed a lower resistance of the PVC blade under
Edge-wise loading with a maximum stress at some points along the blade reaching
0.40 MPa.
Both the analysis provided stable results with majority of areas of the blades
showing a smaller value than the maximum stress values. The factor of safety was
calculated by using the maximum stress observed in Flap-wise loading as the Edge-
wise loading showed smaller stress. Using [46] to obtain the Flexural Yield Strength
of PVC material and Equation 4.4, Table 4.5 shows the calculated factor of safety in
Flap-wise.
85
σYield
n= (4.4)
σApplied
Where, σYield = 73.1 MPa [46] and σApplied is the maximum applied stress.
Table 4. 5: Factor of safety result of Flap-wise loading.
Yield stress Maximum applied stress

Loading Safety factor
(MPa) (MPa)
Flap-wise 73.1 17.8 4.11
Next, Structural analysis of the base frame was carried out to determine the
performance of the base frame upon incorporation of the weights of nozzle, duct,
platform, generator and the rotor. The weights of nozzle, duct and platform were
obtained through Autodesk Inventor by defining the material of the parts. Additionally,
the weights of the generator, bearings and the rotor were measure using a weight scale.
Table 4.6 shows the weights of the different parts applied on the base frame and their
m
corresponding Force after multiplying the Gravitational constant (9.81 s2).
Table 4. 6: Weights of the various parts supported by the base frame.
Parts Weight (KG) Force (N)
Generator 2 11.81
Bearings 4 39.24
Duct and Nozzle 5 49.05
Platform 4 39.24
Total Force (N) 139.34
Figure 4.8 and Figure 4.9 shows the results of Von-Mises stress and deformation
analysis performed on the base frame respectively.
86
Figure 4. 8: Result of Von-Mises stress analysis on the base frame.
Figure 4. 9: Displacement analysis results on the base frame.
The results displayed a stable performance of the base frame upon application
of loads of the various parts mounted on to the base frame. The Von-Mises result
displayed a maximum stress value around the top edge of the rod of base frame. Extra
87
material was welded to the top edge of the rod to avoid failure at the mounting point
(top edge of rod). The displacement results showed an excellent resistance to buckling
due to the applied weights on the base frame. The results, overall, justified the
utilisation of Stainless Steel for the material of the base frame.
4.2 Prototype Results
Following the Prototype testing methodology, the prototype was tested to

obtain results. The components tested included nozzle, duct, vortex generators and
rotor by simulating wind through a floor fan. The maximum wind velocity obtained
through the fan was 3.8 m/s, measured using an Anemometer. The results of the
components are presented below in a listed manner.
4.2.1 Nozzle, Duct and Vortex generators:
The testing of the effect of nozzle, duct and vortex generators was carried out
by measuring the wind velocity at fixed distance away from the fan to obtain the
velocity that would be faced by a bare wind turbine. Next, the rotor of the wind turbine
with NDVG was placed at the same fixed distance and the velocity was measured.
Figure 4.10 and Figure 4.11 shows the wind velocity readings obtained for open space
(bare wind turbine situation) and for the wind turbine with NDVG respectively.
Figure 4. 10: Wind speed that would be faced by the rotor of a bare wind
turbine.
88
Figure 4. 11: Wind speed faced by a rotor with NDVG.
The results obtained for the wind velocity of a bare wind turbine situation and
for the wind turbine with NDVG showed a significant difference at the rotor face. The
effect of nozzle, duct and vortex generators around a wind turbine increased the wind
velocity by a factor of 1.27 at the rotor face. The increase in wind velocity was
successfully obtained through both analysis and practical testing. Table 4.7 shows the
practical results and the percentage difference with the analyses results obtained by
computing the difference between analysis increase in velocity with the practical
increase.
Table 4. 7: Practical results and percentage difference from analysis results of

the wind velocity.
Wind velocity for a bare Wind velocity for turbine
wind turbine (m/s) with NDVG (m/s)
3.8 4.8
Difference from
21.51
analysis results (%)
89
4.2.2 Rotor
The rotor of the wind turbine with NDVG was tested by applying similar
methodology of simulating wind through a fan. The computer-aided design and
analysis of the wind turbine with NDVG was carried out for a wind speed of 3 m/s,
which was achievable using the fan for simulating wind. Although, the transmission
system and the shaft of the turbine was fairly smooth, unfortunately, the rotor failed to
output results as designed and analysed, when acted upon by the wind through the fan.
The failure of the rotor to perform was narrowed down to Three main reasons, which
due to limited resources and budget, could not be countered.
Firstly, practical designs always require more magnitude of applied parameters

than computer-aided design and analyses values to perform as computed. The
parameters analysed using computer-aided software does not involve real-life
irreversibilities as the practical design. Similitude between computer-aided design
results and practical results is normally achieved through various testing which lead to
the root cause problem of the design. The testing of wind turbine with NDVG was
extremely limited as the maximum value for practical simulation of wind was 5 m/s.
Also, the wind through a fan, the testing source, is very irregular with only few areas
in front of the fan reaching the maximum velocity.
Secondly, the aerodynamics of the blade failed to produce the magnitude of lift
force that was needed to initiate rotation. The PVC blades, due to limited budget, were
utilised at the expense of aerodynamic capabilities. The blades could not feature twist
along the span as the blades were not custom made for wind turbines. Also, the blades
did not feature precise cross-section of the BW3 airfoil.
Lastly, due to limited value of wind velocity available for testing, the design
cut-in velocity could not be obtained. The computer-aided analysis of the design was
carried out for a cut-in velocity of 3 m/s, but due to irreversibilities, the practical cut-
in speed of the design may be more than 3 m/s. Unfortunately, the practical cut-in
speed of the wind turbine with NDVG could not be achieved, hence, no practical power
results could be obtained.
90
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Design Conclusion
An innovative design for a highly efficient Horizontal-axis Wind turbine was

successfully achieved. After completing the design, analysis, testing and fabrication of
the wind turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex generators, the project design justified
the claims of highly efficient power output. Although the last objective was only
partially met due to limitations, the corresponding justifications gives the project an
overall success.
The counter-measure for the stated problem statement was successfully

achieved with the design. The analysis justified the utilisation of nozzle, duct and
vortex generators can remarkably enhance the power output of a Horizontal-axis wind
turbine. The results also justified the accuracy of design selection, material selection
and analyses performed on the wind turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex generators.
Mainly, a design methodology of development of wind turbines for areas with low
wind velocity and low Reynold’s number was successfully achieved.
Mainly, the project marked successful completion of research, design

methodology, analysis methodology, fabrication, testing and lastly, enhanced result
acquisition. The analysis performed, showed an increase of 50.32% over the Betz’s
limit value and 90.21% increase compared to a previous work of a conventional wind
turbine. Most Importantly, it should be noted that the project introduced a Novel design
for Non-conventional type of Horizontal-axis wind turbine. This design can used for
further improvements through research and experimentation to obtain even better
results. With proper research the design introduced in this project can also be
considered for commercialisation as it helps with the sustainability problem of today.
Although the prototype failed to perform as expected, the constraints stated

above should be strongly considered. Limitation of time and resources was also a big
91
contributing factor leading to the failure of the prototype. The analysis results should
not be overlooked, as huge enhancement over conventional design has been achieved.
5.2 Future Works and Recommendations
The results obtained from the project showed great promise which suggests,
further enhancement should be considered to develop on the ideas of the project. The
project can be seen as an effort towards Sustainability development. With the world
problem of carbon emissions, Renewable energy sources are being strongly considered
to mitigate the harmful effects of alternative Non-Renewable energy sources. Wind
Turbines, is a big industry with many researchers around the working on various
aspects to develop more efficient designs. A design, as promising as this project should
be considered an option in efforts of minimising the consumption of harmful energy
sources. Many areas of the Wind Turbine with nozzle, duct and vortex generators can
be dived into, for further enhancement of the design.
A more suitable material can be utilised for the turbine blades to obtain further
enhancement in the wind turbine. The Problems faced in this project included the
blades used, and with further investments, a more efficient and suitable blade material
can be utilised. Also, in efforts to minimise cost, the rotor diameter was kept small
which resulted in a small length of lever arm for the rotor. The power output is directly
related to the square of the rotor radius, and hence for further works, a larger prototype
can be considered to obtain greater results.
Optimization of Airfoil with consideration of Reynold’s number for the chord

length can be performed on the blades of the wind turbine to obtain better performance
of the turbine blades.
Cheaper materials could be used for the nozzle and duct with equivalent
performance potential. Many cheaper options of fabrication were discarded in this
project due to the availability issues. On a larger scale, with more resources, the
92
availability issues can be tackled to utilise cheaper material with more ease in
fabrication the Stainless Steel.
All in all, with the recommendations stated above, a more enhanced wind
turbine can be designed with greater potential. Although the prototype failed to output
results as expected, with more time and resources these issues could have been
countered to output the results as analysed. Most importantly, the rotor radius of the
project was kept small for ease in fabrication and the associated costs. To obtain
noticeable results, a larger rotor radius can be designed following the methodology of
this project to obtain promising results.
93
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98
APPENDIX A
1. Power in wind
The general formula that defines the power in wind is derived as followed:
A cylindrical column of free and unobstructed sir moving at a constant speed V is the
rate of change in its kinetic energy.
𝑑𝐸𝑘𝑖𝑛
𝑃= (1.1)
𝑑𝑡
Knowing kinetic energy is expressed as:
1
𝐸= 𝑚𝑉 2 (1.2)
2
Substituting Eqns. (1.1) into (1.2) and applying chain rule of differentiation we get:
1 𝑑 1 𝑑𝑉 𝑑𝑚
𝑃= ( (𝑚𝑉 2 )) = (2𝑚𝑉 + 𝑉2 )
2 𝑑𝑡 2 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡
For a constant wind speed V:
𝑑𝑉
=0
𝑑𝑡
Consequently, power in terms of its mass flow rate can be expressed as:
1
𝑃= 𝑚̇𝑉 2 (1.3)
2
99
If S is the cross-sectional are 0f the column of air,  is the density, the mass flow rate
is:
𝑚̇ = SV (1.4)
Combining (1.3) and (1.4) we get the final expression for the power in wind as:
1
𝑃= S𝑉 3 (1.5)
2
2. The Betz’s Limit derivation
2.1 Ideal Wind Rotor
Figure 1.9 shows an ideal wind turbine with upstream wind velocity V1 and cross-
section area S1 and downstream velocity V2 and area S2.
Figure 1.8: Pressure and speed variation in an ideal model of a wind turbine.
[18]
100
2.2 Mass conservation and continuity equation
𝑚̇ = 𝜌𝑆1 𝑉1 = 𝜌𝑆𝑉 = 𝜌𝑆2 𝑉2 = 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 (1.6)
Euler’s theorem gives the force exerted by the wind on the rotor as:
𝑑𝑉
𝐹 = 𝑚𝑎 = 𝑚 = 𝑚̇∆𝑉 = 𝜌𝑆𝑉(𝑉1 − 𝑉2 ) (1.7)
𝑑𝑡
The wind stream’s incremental energy is given by:
𝑑𝐸 = 𝐹𝑑𝑥 (1.8)
From which the power of the wind is given by:
𝑑𝐸 𝑑𝑥
𝑃= =𝐹 = 𝐹𝑉 (1.9)
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡
Substituting Eqn. (1.7), we get the extractable power from the wind as:
𝑃 = 𝜌𝑆𝑉 2 (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 ) (1.10)
The power as the rate of change of kinetic energy from upstream to downstream is
given by applying the law of conservation of energy as:
1
∆𝐸 𝑚(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) 1
𝑃= = 2 = 𝑚̇(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) (1.11)
∆𝑡 ∆𝑡 2
Combining with Eqn. (1.6), we can write:
1
𝑃= 𝜌𝑆𝑉(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) (1.12)
2
101
Combining the continuity equation (1.10) with conservation of energy (1.12)
equation by equating the two:
1
𝑃= 𝜌𝑆𝑉(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) = 𝜌𝑆𝑉 2 (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 )
2
Implying:
1 1
(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) = (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 )(𝑉1 + 𝑉2 )
2 2
= V (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 )  V, S,  ≠ 0
102
2.3 Extractable power and Force in terms of the downstream velocity factor,
or interference factor
1
𝐹 = 𝜌𝑆𝑉. (𝑉1 −𝑉2 ) = 𝜌𝑆. (𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) (1.13)
2
1
𝑃 = 𝜌𝑆𝑉 2 (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 ) = 𝜌𝑆(𝑉1 + 𝑉2 )2 (𝑉1 − 𝑉2 )
4
1
= 𝜌𝑆(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 ) (𝑉1 + 𝑉2 ) (1.14)
4
Introducing a “interference factor”, or “downstream velocity factor”, b as the ratio of

the downstream and upstream velocities as:
𝑉2
𝑏= (1.15)
𝑉1
Now from Eqn. (14) the force can be expressed as:
1
𝐹= 𝜌𝑆𝑉1 2 (1 − 𝑏 2 ) (1.16)
2
The extractable power in terms of interference factor b can be expressed as:
1 1
𝑃= 𝜌𝑆(𝑉1 2 − 𝑉2 2 )(𝑉1 + 𝑉1 ) = 𝜌𝑆𝑉1 3 (1 − 𝑏 2 )(1 + 𝑏) (1.17)
4 4
2.4 Coefficient of Performance Cp, Efficiency
The kinetic power of undisturbed upstream velocity with V = V1 over a cross-section

are S becomes:
103
1
𝑊= 𝜌𝑆𝑉1 3 (1.19)
2
The performance coefficient, or efficiency, is the dimensionless ratio of the power P

to the available kinetic power W in the undisturbed stream:
𝑃
𝐶𝑝 = (1.20)
𝑊
This means that the performance coefficient is a dimensionless measure of

Extractable power of a wind turbine from the energy content of an undisturbed wind
stream.
Substituting Eqn. (1.17) & Eqn. (1.19) into Eqn. (1.20) we get:
1
𝑃 𝜌𝑆𝑉1 3 (1 − 𝑏 2 )(1 + 𝑏) 1
𝐶𝑝 = = 4 = (1 − 𝑏 2 )(1 + 𝑏) (1.21)
𝑊 1 3 2
2 𝜌𝑆𝑉1
2.6 Maximum performance coefficient, The Betz’s limit
Using the chain rule formula:
𝑑 𝑑𝑣 𝑑𝑢
(𝑢. 𝑣) = 𝑢 +𝑣 (1.22)
𝑑𝑥 𝑑𝑥 𝑑𝑣
Now applying formula to the function and equating the derivative to zero, yields:
𝑑𝐶𝑝 1 𝑑
= [(1 − 𝑏 2 )(1 + 𝑏)]
𝑑𝑏 2 𝑑𝑏
1 1
= [(1 − 𝑏 2 ) − 2𝑏(1 + 𝑏)] = (1 − 𝑏 2 − 2𝑏 − 2𝑏 2 ) (1.23)
2 2
104
1 1
= (1 − 3𝑏 2 − 2𝑏) = (1 − 3𝑏)(1 + 𝑏) = 0
2 2
This leads to a trivial solution:
1+𝑏 =0
𝑉2
𝑏= = −1, → 𝑉1 = −𝑉2 (1.24)
𝑉1
And a more practical answer is given by:
𝑉2 1 1
1 − 3𝑏 = 0, 𝑏 = = → 𝑉2 = 𝑉1 (1.25)
𝑉1 2 3
105
APPENDIX B
106
107
108
109
APPENDIX C
- ANSYS Fluent report
110
111
112

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DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF WIND

TURBINE FOR WIND ENERGY HARVESTING

MIR MUJTABA ALI

The project report is prepared for

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

Copyright of this report belongs to Universiti Telekom Sdn. Bhd as qualified by

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.

Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude towards the lecturers of

The objective of this project is to design a small size Horizontal-axis Wind

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................. 1

1.1.1 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine ................................................................... 2

1.3 Objectives .................................................................................................... 11

1.4 Gantt Charts ................................................................................................. 12

1.4.1 FYP Part 1 ............................................................................................ 12

1.5 Thesis Organization ............................................................................. 15

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................... 17

2.1.1 Power in Wind ..................................................................................... 18

2.2.1 Non-Conventional Wind Turbines (NCWT) ....................................... 24

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY .......................................................................... 34

3.1 Problem Statement Analysis ....................................................................... 35

3.2 Design and Development of Considerations ............................................... 37

3.2.1 Airfoil Selection ......................................................................................... 37

3.3.1 Preliminary Design Combination Idea 1 .............................................. 43

3.5 Conceptual Design ...................................................................................... 46

3.6 Material Selection ........................................................................................ 48

3.6.1 Base Frame ........................................................................................... 48

3.7.1 CFD Analysis (ANSYS) ...................................................................... 59

3.8.1 First Stage of Fabrication ..................................................................... 69

3.10 Prototype Testing ........................................................................................ 77

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ..................................................... 78

4.1.1 Aerodynamic Analyses Results ........................................................... 78

4.2.1 Nozzle, Duct and Vortex generators: ................................................... 88

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS .......................... 91

5.2 Future Works and Recommendations ......................................................... 92

Figure 1. 1: A Darrieus Wind Turbine. [8] .................................................................. 4

Table 1.1 (a): Types of Wind Turbines ........................................................................ 4

Through continuous research and development, many advancements have been

1.1.1 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

1.1.2 Horizontal Axis Wind turbine

• The main rotor shafts

1.1.3 Types of Wind Turbines

A very common type of vertical axis wind turbines,

Figure 1. 1: A Darrieus Wind Turbine. [8]

Another common type of wind turbine, it has “S”

Figure 1. 2: A Savonius Wind Turbine. [10]

Uses horizontal support for three vertical air-foils

Figure 1. 3: A Giromill Wind Turbine. [11]

The most common and extensively-used type of

Figure 1. 4: A farm with few upwind turbines. [12]

Also referred to as diffuser augmented wind turbine,

Figure 1. 5: Shrouded Turbines. [11]

Figure 1. 6: The Key parts of a horizontal axis wind turbine. [14]

Below, let us describe each individual key component in a listed manner:

- Outer frame to cover or protect the internal machinery

• Generator: Generator in wind turbines is used to convert mechanical energy into

Figure 1. 7: Flowchart of frequency conversion for a wind turbine. [5]

The implementation of sustainability has become a necessity in today’s time as

The problems faced in the proposed design of a wind turbine powered

1) To manipulate the conventional wind turbine design to achieve better efficiency