Design, Fabrication, Analysis and

Optimization of Airborne Wind Turbine

Advisor:
Sir Zahid Suleman Butt
Engr Aamir Sohail

Group Members:
Nauman Mustafa 13-ME-10
Asad Ullah 13-ME-52
Hussain Bilal 13-ME-58

Department of Mechanical Engineering,

UET TAXILA

ABSTRACT
 An airborne wind turbine is a design concept for a wind turbine with a rotor supported

in the air without a tower, thus benefiting from more mechanical and aerodynamic options,

the higher velocity and persistence of wind at high altitudes, while avoiding the expense of

tower construction, or the need for slip rings or yaw mechanism. An electrical generator

maybe on the ground or airborne. Challenges include safely suspending and maintaining

turbines hundreds of meters off the ground in high winds and storms, transferring the

harvested and/or generated power back to earth, and interference with aviation. Airborne

wind turbines may operate in low or high altitudes; they are part of a wider class of airborne

wind energy system (AWES) addressed by high altitude wind power and cross wind kite

power.

Theoretical Literature:-
Airborne wind turbine:-
Airborne wind energy (AWE) regards the generation of usable power by airborne
devices. In contrast to towered wind turbines, airborne wind energy systems are either flying
freely in the air, or are connected by a tether to the ground, like kites or tethered balloons. It
turns out that all airborne wind energy systems with significant power output are
mechanically connected to the ground in order to exploit the relative velocity between the air
mass and the ground; in fact, to be able to harvest wind power, they need to maintain a strong
force against this motion. They can be connected to a stationary ground station, or to another
moving, but non-flying object, like a land or sea vehicle. Power is generated in form of a
traction force, e.g. to a moving vehicle, or in form of electricity.

Fig.: Airborne Wind Turbine Balloon

Type of wind turbine:-

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine:-
Horizontal axis wind turbines, also shortened to HAWT, are the common style that most
of us think of when we think of a wind turbine. A HAWT has a similar design to a windmill,
it has blades that look like a propeller that spin on the horizontal axis.
Horizontal axis wind turbines have the main rotor shaft and electrical generator at the top
of a tower, and they must be pointed into the wind. Small turbines are pointed by a simple
wind vane placed square with the rotor (blades), while large turbines generally use a wind
sensor coupled with a servo motor to turn the turbine into the wind. Most large wind turbines
have a gearbox, which turns the slow rotation of the rotor into a faster rotation that is more
suitable to drive an electrical generator.

Vertical Axis Wind turbine:-

Vertical axis wind turbines, as shortened to VAWTs, have the main rotor shaft arranged
vertically. The main advantage of this arrangement is that the wind turbine does not need to
be pointed into the wind. This is an advantage on sites where the wind direction is highly
variable or has turbulent winds.
With a vertical axis, the generator and other primary components can be placed near the
ground, so the tower does not need to support it, also makes maintenance easier. The main
drawback of a VAWT generally create drag when rotating into the wind.
Overview of Specific Types of Airborne Wind Energy Systems:-
Rotor Concept

The rotor concept is the most similar to the classic ground-based, horizontal axis,
wind turbine, wind power system. The main difference between traditional ground-based
systems and this AWE system is that the spinning rotor (or multiple rotors) is flown like a kite
up into altitudes with the best winds. The wind provides a torque on the rotor that produces
the rotational motion and the power generation. The wind also imparts a thrust force on the
rotor, which is used to lift the system to the desired altitude. This flying rotor kite requires a
control system to orient and steer the apparatus for maximum power production. These
controls can include wings and tails with control surfaces. The thrust force can also be
controlled by adjusting the torque applied by the generator, as it draws power, and by
adjusting the rotors blade pitch control.

Kite Concept
The kite concept typically uses a kite attached with cables to a ground-based portion
of the system. The ground station has cable spools that are attached to generator-motors. The
powerful forces generated by the sweeping motion of the kite pull the cables, generating
power as they turn the generator attached to the spool. Once the kite has reached its
maximum altitude, it goes into a low-resistance dive that allows the spool to reel in the cable,
attached to the kite, closer to its beginning altitude. Then, the pattern is repeated. The energy
required to reel the kite in is much less than the energy generated as the kite sweeps across
the wind, resulting in a large net gain in power with each cycle.
Balloon Concept

Balloon-type AWE systems use a large helium balloon, with flaps arranged around the
balloon to catch the wind (Figure 16). Each end of the balloon has a generator attached
between the cables and the balloon. As the wind strikes the balloon, the flaps on the top catch
the wind, while the flaps on the bottom flatten. Thus, the high drag on top, coupled with the
low drag on the bottom, causes a torque that spins the balloon around its horizontal axis. This
is a drag type machine, meaning that it does not use lift forces, as the rotor and kite type
systems do, but instead uses only the drag forces of the wind to rotate. The major
disadvantage of this type of system is that it is only about half as efficient at extracting power
from the wind as a rotor-type system that can utilize both lift and drag. But this reduction in
efficiency, compared to ground-based wind power generation, is expected to be more than
offset by the increased wind speeds and consistency of the wind at the higher altitudes that it
could reach. This could translate to an overall cost for energy production per KWh to be less
than the cost of energy from the ground-based systems.

Wind data Analysis

Pakistan has 1046 km long coastline with very favourable wind conditions. The flat
coastal terrain makes it more suitable for power generation through wind. Surveys carried out
in this coastal belt point towards a wind corridor stretching about 60 km along the coastline
of Sindh province between the towns of Gharo to Keti-Bandar and more than 170 km deep
inland towards Hyderabad.
Wind energy potential from the same corridor is being harnessed in neighbouring
Indias Gujrat region, where more than 700 MW wind energy has been installed.
 Important Factors in Wind Turbine

Cut - in Wind Speed

This is the minimum wind velocity below which no useful power output can be
produced from wind turbine, typically between 3 and 4 m/s (10 and 14 km/h, 7 and 9 mph).
Rated Wind Speed
This is the lowest wind velocity at which the turbine develops its full power. This
corresponds to the the maximum, safe electrical generating capacity which the associated
electrical generator can handle, in other words the generator's rated electrical power output.
The rated wind speed is typically about 15 m/s (54 km/h, 34 mph) which is about double the
expected average speed of the wind. To keep the turbine operating with wind speeds above
the rated wind speed, control systems may be used to vary the pitch of the turbine blades,
reducing the rotation speed of the rotor and thus limiting the mechanical power applied to the
generator so that the electrical output remains constant. Though the turbine works with winds
speeds right up to the cut-out wind speed, its efficiency is automatically reduced at speeds
above the rated speed so that it captures less of the available wind energy in order to protect
the generator. While it would be possible to use larger generators to extract full power from
the wind at speeds over the rated wind speed, this would not normally be economical because
of the lower frequency of occurrence of wind speeds above the rated wind speed.
Cut - out Wind Speed
This is the maximum safe working wind speed and the speed at which the wind
turbine is designed to be shut down by applying brakes to prevent damage to the system. In
addition to electrical or mechanical brakes, the turbine may be slowed down by stalling or
furling.
Wind Shear:-

Wind shear refers to a change in wind speed or direction with height in the
atmosphere. Shear is one of the reasons that can cause a rapid change in lift, and thus
affecting the drag. In this way, turbine performance is strongly influenced due to difference of
wind shear. Wind shear is important for the formation of tornadoes and hail. Generally,
turbine manufactures are offering power curve of turbines that are qualified having upper
value of wind shear as 0.2. If a site, wind shear is higher, than it is required to consult with
turbine manufacturer to offer site based power curve. Some amount of wind shear is always
present in the atmosphere, but particularly strong wind shear.

Airborne wind turbine design:-

System Location
 Altitude
Wind speed
Power

Atmosphere
Temperature
Pressure
Air density

Rotor Design
Number of blades
Blades design
Efficiency of blade

Balloon Design
Number of Balloons
Weight Carrying capacity per Balloon

Gear Design
Type of gear train
Gear velocity ratio

System Location:-
The first step in analysing the performance of an AWE device was to determine the
properties of the atmosphere at the operating altitude. The following table provides known
constants used in determining the properties of the air at an altitude of interest.
The most important characteristic of the atmosphere for wind-powered generation is
the density of the air, since the function for the power available in wind is directly
proportional to the air density. We in our theoretical are using density to be 1.224kg/m3. The
wind speed and the blade radius of rotor play a very important role to maximize the power
generated from the wind.

Fundamental Equation of wind power (P) is given as:

1
P= A v 3
2

Where
= density of air
 A= swept area of rotor
v= velocity of air

Wind Efficiency/Benz Law:-

According to Betz's law, no turbine can capture more than 16/27 (59.3%) of the
kinetic energy in wind. The factor 16/27 (0.593) is known as Betz's coefficient.

Proof of Betz' Theorem

Assumption:

Let us make the reasonable assumption that the average wind speed through the rotor
area is the average of the undisturbed wind speed before the wind turbine, v1, and the wind
speed after the passage through the rotor plane, v2, i.e. (v1+v2)/2.

Proof:

The mass of the air streaming through the rotor during one second is

m = A (v1+v2)/2

where,

m= the mass per second

= density of air

A= swept rotor area

[(v1+v2)/2] =average wind speed through the rotor area

The power extracted from the wind by the rotor is equal to the mass times the drop in
the wind speed squared (according to Newton's second law):

P = (1/2) m (v12 - v22)

Substituting value of m = A (v1+v2)/2 in above equation

 P = ( /4) (v12 - v22) (v1+v2) A

Now, let us compare our result with the total power in the undisturbed wind streaming
through exactly the same area A, with no rotor blocking the wind. We call this power P0:

P0 = ( /2) v13 A

The ratio between the power we extract from the wind and the power in the
undisturbed wind is then:

Efficiency = (P/P0) = (1/2) (1 - (v2 / v1)2) (1 + (v2 / v1))

We can see that the function reaches its maximum for v2/v1 = 1/3, and that the
maximum value for the power extracted from the wind is 0.593 or 16/27 of the total power in
the wind.

Rotor Design
After defining the atmosphere, the next step in analysing the performance of an AWE
rotor is to define the design parameters for the device. One of the most important design
choices is the diameter (D) of the blade, because the power generation is proportional to the
area swept out by the rotor. This choice is based on the desired power outputthe larger the
blade diameter, the more power produced, but the diameter will be limited by the physical
limits of the blades structural strength.

Upfront, the diameter (D), number of blades (B), and hub diameter (Dh) are selected.
Initially, these numbers are estimated; however, they will be adjusted based on the results of
the performance calculations.

Number of blades in the rotor:-

We are using rotor with 3 blades because by increasing the number of blades the
weight of the turbine will increase which is not desired as we want a less weight of the
turbine.
Blade design:-
The length of each blade is

Next, tip speed ratio () is a very important parameter because it affects the amount of
power that can be pulled out of the wind and the amount of thrust on the wind-rotor. The tip
speed ratio can be controlled in a number of different ways, such as adjusting the amount of
power drawn from the wind or by using blade stall or blade pitch angle. For this performance
analysis, focus is on the performance at the maximum power tip speed ratio.

With tip speed ratio set, the next thing to do is to calculate the blade rotation speed
() using Equation 19. With (R) as the rotor radius in meters, and the wind speed (U) in
meters per second, the result of this equation will be in radians per second (to get rpm,
multiply by 60/2).

Blades Airfoil:-
The ideal shape for a wind-rotor blade design can be determined using the
combination of blade element theory and momentum theory. The derivation of the equations
used to determine the ideal shape of a wind-rotor blade is given in Wind Energy Explained.
The method gives the ideal twist angle and chord lengths for each blade station, which result
in the maximum power. This maximum power occurs when all of the blade elements are at
the angle of attack that produces the best lift-to-drag ratio for the airfoil used.
The direction of the apparent wind, that is the incident wind, relative to the chord line
of the aerofoil is known as the angle of attack.
BALLOON DESIGN:
There are different kinds of balloons under study. First we study what are
they and then we decide which one is preferable to use:

How Helium Balloon works?

Helium has a lifting force of 1 gram per litter. So if you have a balloon that contains 5
litters of helium, the balloon can lift 5 grams.
There is something incredible neat about helium balloons! If you buy one at the circus
or fair, you can hold its string and it will ride along above you. If you let go of the string, it
will fly away until you cant see it anymore.
 Most of us feel comfortable with the idea of something floating in water. We see that
happen every day. In fact, people themselves float in water, so we have a way of directly
experiencing water flotation. The reason why things float in water applies to air as well, so
let's start by understanding water flotation.
Helium balloons work by the same law of buoyancy. In this case, the helium balloon
that you hold by a string is floating in a "pool" of air (when you stand underwater at the
bottom of a swimming pool, you are standing in a "pool of water" maybe 10 feet deep --
when you stand in an open field you are standing at the bottom of a "pool of air" that is many
miles deep). The helium balloon displaces an amount of air (just like the empty bottle
displaces an amount of water). As long as the helium plus the balloon is lighter than the air it
displaces, the balloon will float in the air.
It turns out that helium is a lot lighter than air. The difference is not as great as it is
between water and air (a litter of water weighs about 1,000 grams, while a litter of air weighs
about 1 gram), but it is significant. Helium weighs 0.1785 grams per litter. Nitrogen weighs
1.2506 grams per litter, and since nitrogen makes up about 80 percent of the air we breathe,
1.25 grams is a good approximation for the weight of a litter of air.

Fig. Working of Helium Balloon

Fig.: Hot Air Balloon

 Balloon weight carrying capacity

Balloon Concept
Balloon-type AWE systems use a large helium balloon, with flaps arranged around
the balloon to catch the wind Each end of the balloon has a generator attached between the
cables and the balloon. As the wind strikes the balloon, the flaps on the top catch the wind,
while the flaps on the bottom flatten. Thus, the high drag on top, coupled with the low drag
on the bottom, causes a torque that spins the balloon around its horizontal axis. This is a drag
type machine, meaning that it does not use lift forces, as the rotor and kite type systems do,
but instead uses only the drag forces of the wind to rotate. The major disadvantage of this
type of system is that it is only about half as efficient at extracting power from the wind as a
rotor-type system that can utilize both lift
and drag. But this reduction in efficiency, compared to ground-based wind power
generation, is expected to be more than offset by the increased wind speeds and consistency
of the wind at the higher altitudes that it could reach. This could translate to an overall cost
for energy production per KWh to be less than the cost of energy from the ground-based
systems.

Balloon Performance Calculation:

For design purposes, we must have values for:
1. Size
2. Payload weight
Using these values we can easily calculate:
1. Required helium
2. Positive Lift
3. Estimated Burst Altitude

Gear Design:-
When examining simple gear trains, it is necessary to decide whether the output gear
will turn faster, slower, or the same speed as the input gear. The circumference (distance
around the outside edge) of these two gears will determine their relative speeds.
Suppose the input gear's circumference is larger than the output gear's circumference. The
output gear will turn faster than the input gear. On the other hand, the input gear's
circumference could be smaller than the output gear's circumference. In this case the output
gear would turn more slowly than the input gear. If the input and output gears are exactly the
same size, they will turn at the same speed.
We in our gear train are using two gears on larger and one smaller which have a
velocity ratio of 10-15. Larger gear will be the driver gear and smaller gear will be the driven
gear.

Experiments Performed
Balloon Weight Carrying capacity:-
We performed an experiment on how much a balloon of a specified dimensions will
carry weight. We took a balloon of a bigger size and inflated it using helium gas. After
inflation the diameter of the balloon became approximately 3.5feet. After that we calculated
the lifting force that can be produced using this balloon. The balloon had capability to lift a
weight of 400grams. So, if we want to lift a weight of 5kg which will be our approximate
weight than we have to use approximately 15-20 Balloons.

Dynamo Electricity Generation:-

Component used for energy generation is Dynamo. A simple cycle
dynamo works on minimum rpm to give desired voltages hence its
applicable in wind turbines where high rpms cant be reached as per
required.

WORKING OF CYCLE DYNAMO

A bicycle dynamo is a type of generator attached to a bicycle to

produce electricity for the bicycles lights. The top of the dynamo touches
the tires rim, which spins when the bicycle starts moving. Currently, the
term dynamo refers to mechanisms that are capable of producing direct
current, such as the small devices fitted to bicycles to generate power for
the lights.

As we performed the experiment we found that at 1400rpm the

dynamo lighted the equipment placed in front of it.

Location of experimentation:-

Location of experimentation is very important parameter in our project. We are

interested in doing our project experimentation by the side of Khanpur Dam as we are likely
to get a good results of wind speed there. We have visited the location twice and we also met
with the owner of a restaurant so as to request him to give us some space for experimentation
on the roof of the restaurant.

Future Considerations
Software results for Rotor using
WT_PERF
ANSYS CFD
Wind speed calculations at required space
Fabrication of Project
Experimentation at required space