Dynamic Modeling and Starting Behavior of a Small Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

Abstract

Small, stand-alone wind turbines are a possible solution to the energy requirements of remote areas in Pakistan. However except for the coastal areas, wind speeds available in various areas of Pakistan are low to medium, especially in the northern areas. It is possible to produce significant power from a small wind turbine at low wind speeds provided the turbine can be started. In this paper “BEM function” and “Aerodynamic function” are used based on the Blade element momentum theory. These Matlab functions calculate the wind turbine blade parameters and aerodynamic forces that will act on wind turbine blades. Pro/E models were then developed on the basis of these parameters. Pro/E models were imported into ADAMS to calculate the output torques. Our analysis shows that most of the starting torque comes from the hub section of the blade. Various changes were incorporated into ADAMS models near the hub region of the wind turbine blade which showed an increase in the staring torque due to an increase in the blade angles and chord lengths. The wind turbine designs for the selected locations of Pakistan were successfully optimized by improving their starting behavior.