Vertical-Axis Wind Turbine: Assignment 4

Vertical-Axis Wind Turbine: Assignment 4
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Specific engineering and manufacturing process planned to be used in developing the new technology
The vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) would be manufactured according to the design determined following the ideation process and comprehensive market research. The process of manufacturing will basically entail manufacturing the tilt rotors and the blades separately and then attaching them together later on. It is of note that the VAWTs are designed to be able to function even in sites with low wind speeds. Locally available materials and easy to manufacture parts would be used. A small model of the VAWT would be built and tested painstakingly within a wind tunnel at wind speeds of at least 4 m/s at as high as 101 m/s. Since the proposed design is based on tilt rotor technology – a highly effectual technique of harnessing wind power cost-effectively – the turbine would be self-starting and generate adequate energy at low airspeeds (Rolland et al., 2013).
Step 1: Manufacturing the tilt rotor
A dampened articulating rotor would be manufactured first. This would allow the whole turbine to lean into the wind in order to produce higher torque at lower speeds of wind, thereby producing higher amounts of power even with varying wind speeds. Elastomeric bands and pushrods, which are essentially technologically advanced rubber bands, as well as pull/push rods, would also be made separately. The rotor would be made to slant to some extent in order to allow the turbine to self-start and let the VAWT turbine to produce electricity without heavy blades, tower heights, electronics, clutching or noise that come along with conventional wind turbines (Chong et al., 2013). Locking magnets would be incorporated in the turbine during the manufacturing process. These would hold the rotor in place and stop any inadvertent spinning thus creating an in-built safety feature. In...