SWEPT WIND TURBINE BLADE DESIGN STUDIES
Introduction/Abstract
The power generated by a wind turbine is proportional to the diameter of the blades on the turbine; therefore, it is desirable to have the largest blade diameter possible on a give tower structure. This research studies the effects of adding a sweep to the leading edge of wind turbine blades. It has been found that adding a sweep to the wind turbine blades passively lowers the dynamic loading on the structure, by lowering the effective angle of attack on the blade. This reduction of the loads involved allows for a longer set of blades to be mounted on a given turbine structure than would be possible with standard wind turbine blades. Analysis of power generation and the loads involved is preformed using numerical, command based software, applying Blade Element Momentum (BEM) Theory, such as wt_perf, FAST, and a custom software program developed by Dr. Larwood named CurveFAST. It is seen in this research that although swept blades generate less lift per unit length than standard blades, the increase in swept wind area possible with the swept blade geometry versus standard blade geometry still results in a net positive increase in power generated of roughly 5%. This net positive increase in power is believed to the great enough to be of financial interest for entities considering the design and implementation of new wind turbines.
Location
DeRosa University Center, Stockton campus, University of the Pacific
Format
Poster Presentation
SWEPT WIND TURBINE BLADE DESIGN STUDIES
DeRosa University Center, Stockton campus, University of the Pacific
The power generated by a wind turbine is proportional to the diameter of the blades on the turbine; therefore, it is desirable to have the largest blade diameter possible on a give tower structure. This research studies the effects of adding a sweep to the leading edge of wind turbine blades. It has been found that adding a sweep to the wind turbine blades passively lowers the dynamic loading on the structure, by lowering the effective angle of attack on the blade. This reduction of the loads involved allows for a longer set of blades to be mounted on a given turbine structure than would be possible with standard wind turbine blades. Analysis of power generation and the loads involved is preformed using numerical, command based software, applying Blade Element Momentum (BEM) Theory, such as wt_perf, FAST, and a custom software program developed by Dr. Larwood named CurveFAST. It is seen in this research that although swept blades generate less lift per unit length than standard blades, the increase in swept wind area possible with the swept blade geometry versus standard blade geometry still results in a net positive increase in power generated of roughly 5%. This net positive increase in power is believed to the great enough to be of financial interest for entities considering the design and implementation of new wind turbines.
