Research on Micro Wind Turbines in Solar Chimney Power Plants with Vertical Collectors

Abstract

On the basis of the design theory of wind turbines, a micro wind turbine was designed for a solar chimney power plant (SCPP) with vertical collectors. The performance of the turbine was analyzed by the combination of theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, and experiment. Findings show that the turbine power increases with the wind speed. Airfoil and installation and torsion angles significantly influence the turbine power. Results of the numerical simulation and experiment show that the optimal airfoil, installation angle, and torsion angle are NACA 4412, 40°, and 20°, respectively, and that the same growth trend is observed along with the wind. Therefore, the simulation was proven to be accurate by the experiment, which indicates that the designed turbine can satisfy the design requirements and can be used in SCPP systems with vertical collectors.