Vortex Formation on Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine with Splitted winglets

Abstract

Horizontal axis wind turbine has developed to many combination. One of the combination is by adding variation in their blades such as variation of device. Many kind of devices that added to the blade such as addition splitted winglet to the blade. This additional device is the application device that added to the wings of recent aircraft that gives better performance than wings without this device. The purpose of using this device is to minimize the backflow air in their tip of blade. This research expectation is turbine will get better performance. However, the addition of the device do not increase the turbine performance. Comparing the turbine with the blade without splitted winglet, the turbine without splitted winglet gives better performance than the turbine that has blade with splitted winglet. Vortex formation in the splitted winglet device is one of phenomenon that cause the decrease performance of wind turbine. Vortex is air that flowing back to the device and makes the other flow velocity slower. In turbine without splitted winglet, the performance of Cl is greater than the other. When the air that hit the turbine is 4.5 m/s, the torque of the turbine with splitted winglet is 2.66 E-3 Nm. The turbine without splitted winglet gives better torque about 2.8 E-3 Nm. From variation that compared, additional of device not always give the better performance.