Numerical Analysis of Deformation of a Wind Turbine Blade With Variable Geometry Controlled by Means of Centrifugal Force

J. Markowskia, P. Imilkowskia, G. Wieczorkiewiczb, P. Dlugiewiczc aPoznan University of Technology, Institute of Machine Construction, Piotrowo 3, 60-965 Poznań, Poland bLower Silesian Center for Modern Technologies LLC, Wałbrzyska 49/3, 52-314 Wrocław, Poland cIMAGINE FLYING LLC, Jacksonville Executive Airport at Craig (KCRG), 985 Charles Lindbergh Dr, Ste3E, Jacksonville, FL 32225, USA

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The efficiency of energy conversion from wind to mechanical energy of a rotating wind turbine rotor depends on the flow conditions of the medium and its impact on the rotor blade. Flow conditions change with change in wind speed and rotor rotational speed. Therefore, in order to increase the operating area of a wind turbine with good efficiency values, it is necessary to modify the turbine blade setting. Mechanical solutions for changing the pitch setting of turbine blades exist for large wind turbine rotors. For small wind turbines, such systems are not used due to the system's costs, which significantly increase the cost of a small turbine. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a solution that will be cheap to use and will ensure an improvement in the efficiency of a small wind turbine. The article discusses analysis of turbine blade deformation caused by centrifugal force. Deformation analyses of the blade with the proposed structure were carried out in numerical tests, and the results are presented in the article. The simulations and obtained results indicate the key role of turbine blade cross-section stiffness. Furthermore, they indicate the need for further work to investigate the relationship between blade stiffness, cross-section geometry, and blade wall thickness.

DOI:10.12693/APhysPolA.149.S75 topics: wind turbine, analysis, deformations, small wind turbine blade