BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, MESRA

Optimization of Efficiency of Small

Scale Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine
SUBMITTED TO: Dr. RAVI SHANKAR ANAND

SUBMITTED BY: SOURABH KUMAR BE/15029/14

ARUNAVA NAG BE/15033/14
KUNDAN KUMARBE/15260/14
RONAK KANKARIYA BE/15273/14
 9/10/19

INTRODUCTION
• Wind energy was first harvested in 19th century

• Earlier used to pump water and grind corn

• Discontinued due to development in fossil fuel engines

• Now a days turbine are used to generate electricity

• Wind turbine can generate between 10 watts to 10 x 106

watts

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Introduction 9/10/19

TYPES OF TURBINE

1. On basis of shaft axis

• Horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT)

• Vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT)

2. On basis of power generation

• Small ( 10 w to 10 kw)
• Medium (10 kw to 500 kw)
• Large (500 kw to 10 mw)

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Introduction 9/10/19

ADVANTAGES OF WIND TURBINE

• Wind is a clean energy
• No hazardous products
• Energy is available for almost whole day
unlike solar energy
• Can be installed for individual usage also
• Low maintenance cost
• Sustainable source of energy
• Can be built on water bodies

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Introduction 9/10/19

DISAVANTAGES OF WIND TURBINE

• Initial investment is high
• Birds collide with blades and get killed
• Located in remote areas so transportation cost is high
• Noise pollution

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How do Wind Turbines operate?

Wind strikes the blades of the wind turbine and creates a high pressure in
the downward portion and a low pressure region in the upward direction.
This difference in the pressure causes lift and drag force which helps in the
rotation of the wind turbine.

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LITERATURE REVIEW
Recent designs and developments in the field of small scale wind turbine:

1. Analytical model design of small scale wind turbine

2. Numerical model design of small scale wind turbine

• In analytical model design approach, various theories are used like blade
element theory, blade element momentum theory
• In numerical model design approach, CFD analysis of the blade design
are used. In CFD, the mathematical model is developed based on the
continuity, energy conservation and momentum equations

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Rathod and Kamdi [1] (2014)

Objective: To show that PVC made turbine has better efficiency and capacity.

Conclusion: The turbine could

Work in speed as low as 2 m/s,
giving more scope of
development for low speed
wind turbine.

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Valamanesh & Myers[2](2014)

Objective: To observe the effects of aerodynamic damping and seismic response

of horizontal axis wind turbine towers.

Conclusion: Through analysis it

was found that aerodynamic
damping in operational HAWTs
is approximately 5% of critical
in the fore aft direction

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : P. Pathike, et al.[3](2013)

Objective: To design a new small wind turbine blade that is suitable for low
wind velocity.

Conclusion: It is found that, at a

wind velocity of 6 m/s, the efficiency
of the new wind turbine blade is
27% while that of the commercial
wind turbine blade is only 16.5%.

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Mr. Manoj Kumar et al. [4](2015)

Objective: To optimize the number of blade for a wind turbine.

Conclusion: They found that the

maximum value of electrical
power is obtained 388W, 422W
and 405W for blade number equal
to 3,5 and 7 respectively.

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Mohammadi et al.[5](2016)

Objective: To optimize the blade design on the basis of airfoil.

Conclusion: They founded that FX 66

– S – 196 V1 is a very suitable airfoil
for small scale blades for low speed
condition for all root, mid and tip of
the blade

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Analytical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Maryam Refen et al. [6](2012)

Objective: To perform a comparison between the theoretical and

experimental results for low and high speed wind.

Conclusion: They found that the

blade element momentum theory
(BEM) prediction for the case of low
speed wind turbine is not as accurate
as for high speed wind turbine.

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Numerical Approach 9/10/19
Author : Michael Sherry et al[7](2008)

Objective: To study vortex interaction and stability of the helical vortex wake.

Conclusion: A model
horizontal axis wind turbine
was investigated
experimentally in a water
channel

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Numerical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Rathore & Ahmed[8](2011).

Objective: To optimize a model for rotor design of 750 kW horizontal axis

wind turbine

Conclusion: stress and

deflection of new design were
calculated for blades and hub
by Finite element analysis
method.

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Numerical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Navin Prasad et al. [9](2014)

Objective: To design and development of a wind turbine blade for domestic

application.

Conclusion: the various profiles of

NREL and NACA are analyzed by
CFD and compared with the profiles
which give more lift coefficient and
less drag coefficient. Among that
NACA 4415 is having more lift

coefficient and less drag coefficient .

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Numerical Approach 9/10/19

Author : Abrar et al[10](2013).

Objective: Investigate on improving the efficiency of HAWT for low speed

wind harvesting.

Conclusion: Experimental and

numerical analysis were
conducted with several design,
and optimization was done with
help of CFD analysis

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PROJECT OBJECTIVE & METHODOLOGY

Problems in existing model:

• Aerodynamic losses
• Wake effects
• Drive train losses
• Transmission losses

Project Objective:

• Development of Small Scale Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

• Numerical Prediction of the rotation in the wind turbine by CFD analysis
• Optimisation of the blade design by changing the camber in the wind
turbine blade

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 Project Objective and Methodology 9/10/19
Objective Description
• Small scale wind turbines can be fixed on the roof of
buildings and can produce sufficient power to light a
3 BHK flat
• The power production in Small scale HAWT is less,
but it can be increased by improving the aerodynamic
performance of a small scale horizontal axis wind
turbine
• The aerodynamic performance depends on various
factors like
1. angle of attack
2. chord length
3. camber
• We worked to optimize the camber thickness of the
blade airfoil to find the maximum efficiency
• Here, we also worked to find the rpm obtained by a
wind turbine due to wind flow using CFD analysis in
ANSYS

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Project Objective and Methodology 9/10/19

Project Methodology
Conceptual Model Design

Alternate blade design by changing the camber in the

blade airfoil

Analysis of wind turbine for velocity producing maximum

efficiency

Analysis of the different designs for maximum efficiency

using ANSYS CFD

Fabrication of final model of small horizontal axis wind

turbine

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Conceptual Model Design 9/10/19

Forces acting on the wind turbine blades

Where,
ρ is the density of the fluid, � is the projected
area and � is the free stream velocity
�� and �� are a non-dimensional terms that
both relate to the characteristics of lift and drag
As the angle of Attack increases, the lift force
increase and consequently drag also increases,
which is undesirable and hence we optimised
the angle of attack to 6 degrees.

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Geometric Blade Design 9/10/19

Dimensions:
Rotor Diameter- 175mm
Blade length- 150mm
Chord length- 35mm
Angle of attack- 6 deg
Pitch angle- 0 Deg

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Alternate Blade Airfoils 9/10/19
• Different blade airfoils are created
for analysis by varying the camber
at constant chord length for
obtaining maximum power
production

Camber- 2% Camber- 4% Camber- 6%

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Theoretical Power Calculation 9/10/19
The power contained in the wind is given by
P=
But the maximum power which a wind turbine
can extract is given by
P=
Where , called the Betz Limit,

As the Rotor Diameter is 175mm,

So, in a place where the wind speed is10 m/s,
theoretical power obtained from wind turbine

= 34.768 watt

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

GEOMETRIC MODEL
• Outer Domain :
• Geometry : cuboid
• Dimension :
X axis (length) : 400mm
Z axis (breadth) : 200mm
Y axis (height) : 200 mm
• Domain material : air

Isometric view
• Inner domain
• Geometry : sphere
• Dimension : diameter : 374 mm
• Domain material : air

• Inlet :
• Geometry : Circular
Side view • Dimension : diameter : 374 mm

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

MESHING

Mesh type :
• Sizing: course
• Geometry: Tetrahedron patch
confirming mesh
• Max face width: 125 mm

Inflation layer:
• Selected domain : turbine
• No of layers : 2
• Layer thickness increase per layer : 1
• No of elements : 510398 (limited to
512000)

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

FLUENT SETUP AND BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

• Flow type : Transient

• Acceleration due to gravity : 9.81 m/sec2 (along –ve y axis)
• Model : k-epsilon
• Fluid material : air
• Density : Variable
• Turbine material : aluminium

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

Boundary conditions :
• Inlet velocity : 10 m/sec
• Pressure: atmospheric
• Outlet : pressurized outlet

Dynamic meshing :
• Rotation axis : X axis
• Moment of inertia : 0.002 kgm^2
• Inner domain : rigid body
• rotation : passive
• Turbine : rigid body
• rotation : active
• Outer domain : deformable body

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

Simulation time:
• Time step size: 0.01
• No of time steps : 600
• Total time : 6 seconds
• No of iterations per time steps: 2

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SIMULATION RESULT
• Effect of inlet velocity
on efficiency
• Inlet velocity : 5m/sec
• Turbine RPM obtained : 373.5
• Power input : 7.3 W
• Power output : 2.3 W
• Efficiency : 31.5 %
• Simulation time : 15 secs Turbine blade tangential velocity

Pressure contour Velocity contour

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

• Inlet velocity : 10 m/sec

• Turbine RPM obtained : 735
• Power input : 51.8 W
• Power output : 17.12 W
• Efficiency : 33.56 %
• Simulation time : 15 secs

Turbine blade tangential velocity

Pressure contour Velocity contour

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

• Inlet velocity : 25 m/sec

• Turbine RPM obtained : 1754
• Power input : 808 W
• Power output : 70.34 W
• Efficiency : 8.7 %
• Simulation time : 15 secs

Turbine blade tangential velocity

Pressure contour

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

VARIATION OF EFFECIENCY WITH INLET AIR VELOCITY

Sl.no Inlet RPM Power Power Efficiency Simulation

velocity input output (%) time
(m/sec) (W) (W) (secs)

1 5 373 7.3 2.3 31.5 15

2 10 735.29 51.8 17.12 33.56 15

3 25 1754 808 70.34 8.7 15

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

Effect of camber on turbine velocity and power output

Design 1 :
Chord length- 35 mm
Camber- 2%

Velocity contour
Pressure contour

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

• Obtained maximum angular

velocity of turbine at 10
m/sec wind speed : 687.12
RPM

Velocity contour of turbine at 5.53 secs

after air flow at 10 m/sec
Velocity contour front view of fluid at 5.53
secs after air flow at 10 m/sec

• Power output obtained : 17.12 W

• Power input : 51.8 W
• Obtained efficiency of the
design : 33.56 %

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

Effect of camber on turbine velocity:

Design 2 :
Chord length- 35 mm
Camber- 4%

Velocity contour

Pressure contour

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

• Obtained maximum angular

velocity of turbine at 10 m/sec
wind speed : 786.24 RPM

Velocity contour of turbine at 5.53 secs

after air flow at 10 m/sec
Velocity contour front view of fluid at 5.53
secs after air flow at 10 m/sec

• Power output obtained : 24.67 W

• Input power : 51.8 W
• Obtained efficiency of the design
: 47.44%

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 Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

Design 3:
• Chord length- 35 mm
• Camber- 6%

• Obtained maximum angular

velocity of turbine at 10 m/sec
wind speed : 735.29 RPM

• Power output obtained : 19.78 W

• Input power : 51.8 W
• Obtained efficiency of the
design : 38.1%

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Analysis of Conceptual Design 9/10/19

VARIATION OF EFFECIENCY WITH CHANGE IN CAMBER VALUES

Sl.no Camber RPM Power Power Efficiency Simulation

input output (%) time
(W) (W) (secs)

1 2% 687.12 51.8 17.12 33.56 15

2 4% 786.24 51.8 24.67 47.44 15

3 6% 735.29 51.8 19.78 38.1 15

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Conclusion and Future Works
Conclusion
• This small horizontal axis wind
turbine can be used for power
generation in rural as well as
urban areas for power generation
on small scale on low speeds
also.
• We conclude that the small
horizontal axis wind turbine can
be installed on rooftops of
buildings and houses in rural
and urban areas with stable wind
speeds as the turbine produce
sufficient power to run and
operate domestic appliances.
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Future Works
• The power generated by the
turbine at the same wind speed
can be increased by increasing the
blade length in order to increase
the swept area of the turbine
• Also we can use a diffuser in
turbine to increase the velocity of
the incoming wind to increase the
power output.
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References: 9/10/19

[1] Vicky K Rathod, Prof.S.Y.Kamdi,“Design & Fabrication of PVC Bladed

Inexpensive Wind Turbine”, IOSR Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering
(IOSR-JMCE), Volume 11, Issue 4 Ver. II (Jul- Aug. 2014)

[2] V.Valamanesh, A.T.Myers, “Aerodynamic Damping and Seismic Response of

Horizontal axis wind turbine towers”, 2014

[3] P. Pathike, T. Katpradit, P. Terdtoon and P. Sakulchangsatjatai, “Small

Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine Blade for Low Wind Speed Operation”, Journal
of Applied Science and Engineering, Vol. 16, No. 4, pp. 345351 (2013).

[4] Chaudhary, Manoj Kumar, and Anindita Roy. "Design & optimization of a
small wind turbine blade for operation at low wind speed." World Journal of
Engineering 12.1 (2015): 83-94.

[5] Mohammadi, Mohammadreza, Alireza Mohammadi, and Said Farahat. "A

new method for horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) blade optimization."
International Journal of Renewable Energy Development 5.1 (2016): 1.

Optimization of Efficiency of Small Scale HAWT

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References 9/10/19

[6] Refan, Maryam, and Horia Hangan. "Aerodynamic performance of a small

horizontal axis wind turbine." Journal of Solar Energy Engineering 134.2 (2012):
021013.

[7] M. Sherry, J. Sheridan, D. Jocano, Characterization of Horizontal Axis Wind

Turbine’s Tip and Rotor Vortices,2008

[8]A.S. Rathore, S.Ahmed, Design and Analysis of Horizontal Axis Wind

Turbine Rotor,2011

[9] Prasad, Navin, et al. "Design and Development of Horizontal Small Wind
Turbine Blade for Low Wind Speeds." no 1 (2014): 75-84.

[10] Md. Abu Abrar, A M Ishtiaque Mahbub, Mohammad Mamun, “Design

optimization of a horizontal axis micro wind turbine through development of
CFD model and experimentation”, 10th International conference on mechanical
engineering, ICME 2013

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THANK YOU

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