Experimental investigation of a variable geometry vertical axis wind turbine. Issue 4 (August 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Prince, Simon A; Badalamenti, Carmine; Georgiev, Dimitar
• Is Part Of: Wind engineering. Volume 45:Issue 4(2021)
• Page Start: 904
• Page End: 920
• Publication Date: 2021-08
• Subjects: Vertical axis wind turbine -- Farrah turbine -- Savonius turbine -- aerodynamics; Wind-pressure -- Periodicals; Winds -- Periodicals; Wind power -- Periodicals; Engineering meteorology -- Periodicals; Pression du vent; Vents; Énergie éolienne; Météorologie appliquée; Engineering meteorology; Wind power; Wind-pressure; Winds; Periodicals; 621.4505
• DOI: 10.1177/0309524X20935134
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0309-524X

Abstract

An experimental study is presented on the performance of a vertical axis wind turbine with variable blade geometry of the design developed by Austin Farrah. This is experimentally compared with the performance of a correspondingly sized Bach-type Savonius turbine using the same electrical generator and measurement instrumentation in a wind tunnel. Experiments were performed for Reynolds numbers, based on blade chord, in the range 5 × 10 3 to 1 × 10 5, and for blade settings between −40° and +40 o . The study shows that for the tip speed ratios that have been investigated, the Farrah vertical axis wind turbine design can only marginally outperform a corresponding two-bladed Bach-type Savonius turbine and then only when its blades are set to 40° pitch angle. The presence of a small inner cylinder, which rotates with the turbine, does not enhance its performance due to the fact that it is immersed in an extensive column of relatively static air.