Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

pinshape

This is a test part for a vertical axis wind turbine that I modified by converting a NACA0015 symmetrical airfoil to an asymmetric airfoil. To assemble the airfoil, I will need to epoxy it together. This one will be used to drive a small electric motor that charges at about 6 volts at 100rpm. A 2.2 gear reduction with 32 pitch pinion gears similar to those found in RC cars will be employed. The initial test was documented in a YouTube video, which captured my first attempt. The turbine handled winds of up to 24mph but suffered a catastrophic failure at speeds exceeding 30mph due to the blades breaking off. To mitigate this issue, I added more material to the point of breakage. My ultimate goal is to construct a full-size turbine, scaled up by a factor of 400%, to provide power to my residence. To achieve this, I am utilizing 20mm OD and 9mm ID bearings. A steel axle approximately 100-120mm in length will be fabricated or alternatively, a threaded rod can be used as the axle. All printed components are produced using the following settings: 1.75 filament, .4 nozzle, .2 layer height, honeycomb infill with a density of .5, and PLA material. The temperature settings for the extruder and bed are 205°C and 65°C respectively for the first layer, while the second layer utilizes temperatures of 200°C and 60°C. The printing speeds employed are 30mm/s for perimeter layers and 60mm/s for infill (default speeds). Perimeter layers consist of four top and bottom layers. The blades, however, require specific settings: a .2 layer height is used for the blade center, with three perimeter layers on top and bottom, and no rectilinear infill; at the blade end, three perimeter layers are employed on top and bottom, along with three layers of .2 rectilinear infill. Blade assembly necessitates printing one of each part labeled "Blade______" for a 210mm blade. For a 360mm blade, three "BladeCenter" pieces will be required – two between BladeMounts and one on either side between BladeMount and BladeEnd. The MotorHousing uses four top and bottom layers, three perimeter layers, and a .35 layer height. I forgot to mention that the hub is not symmetrical; this asymmetry was intentionally introduced to enable me to determine the optimal angle of attack for the blades. Currently, the trailing edge has a radius approximately 4mm larger than the leading edge.