Computational Fluid Dynamics Study of a Modified Savonius Rotor Blade by Universal Consideration of Blade Shape Factor Concept

Abstract

This work aims to investigate computationally the performance of Savonius vertical axis wind turbine having a new design feature for its blade geometry. The proposed design is based on a universal consideration of blade shape factor concept for the Savonius rotor blade. A blade shape factor ranges from zero to infinity, or vice versa, is considered in a single blade of the modified Savonius rotor. This means that each point in the two-dimensional blade profile of the suggested blade design has a single value of blade shape factor that is defined based on the dimensions of conventional semicircular blade. The computational results of the proposed blade shape design, having blade shape factor varying from infinity to zero, showed an improvement in Savonius turbine performance as compared to conventional blade shape design. Moreover, increasing the operating range of Savonius wind turbine is expected.