Design and Optimisation of Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine Blades Using Biomimicry of Whale Tubercles

Abstract

Wind speed is the major factor in generating power in a wind turbine. However, due to the non-optimum and redundant design of wind turbine blades, not nearly enough wind is captured for utilization. In the present study, modifications were done on the leading edge of the HAWT blade using tubercles showing their effects on aerodynamic performances. From this research, the following results found concerning the performances of HAWT with leading-edge tubercles were that; blades with tubercles on the leading edge will have superior performance in the post-stall regime by 27%,  tubercles with a smaller amplitude and lower wavelength will produce higher lift and lower drag in the low wind speed condition, and tubercle blade will have a stable and smooth performance in varying wind speed conditions, producing higher torque and power at low wind speed. Using a small wind turbine model, SolidWorks Motion Analysis Simulation was used for dynamic modeling to evaluate and determine the force and torque of the mechanical structure. These results were compared and examined using standard wind turbine blades which showed an improvement of 30% in efficiency.