DOI: https://doi.org/10.61435/ijred.2025.61124

Influence of profile geometry on the self-starting capability of an H-Darrieus turbine

1Center for Research in Engineering and Applied Sciences, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Morelos, Mexico

2Center for Transdisciplinary Research in Psychology, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Morelos, Mexico

3Institute of Renewable Energies, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico

4 Institute of Engineering and Technology, Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico

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Received: 16 Feb 2025; Revised: 8 Apr 2025; Accepted: 5 May 2025; Available online: 17 May 2025; Published: 1 Jul 2025.
Editor(s): H Hadiyanto
Open Access Copyright (c) 2025 The Author(s). Published by Centre of Biomass and Renewable Energy (CBIORE)
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Abstract

To spread the use of Wind H-Darrieus turbines to electricity generation in urban or rural environments is necessary to improve some of its main drawbacks such as: aerodynamic efficiency, self-starting capability and torque fluctuations. The aims of this study are to enhance the aerodynamic efficiency and self-starting capability of an H-Darrieus turbine through wind tunnel tests combined using a 3D numerical study using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). The NREL S815 profile and four modified versions were evaluated, including one with a 19.2% increase in thickness and three chord-to-diameter ratios: 𝐶/𝐷=0.15, 0.20, and 0.225. These configurations were tested at wind speeds of 6 and 8 m/s. Static torque was measured experimentally, alongside numerical calculations of flow and pressure distribution. A significant correlation between chord length and turbine performance was observed. The 𝐶/𝐷=0.20 profile exhibited increases of up to 50.27% and 58.88% in static torque at 6 and 8 m/s, respectively. The static torque coefficient increased from 0.0063 in the original profile to 0.0447 in the C/D=0.20 profile, directly contributing to the improvement of self-starting capability. Although the 𝐶/𝐷=0.20 geometry showed improvements, the C/D=0.225 profile did not show additional performance gains, indicating that further increases in chord length do not improve turbine performance. The profile modified with a 19.2% increase in thickness ranked just below the 𝐶/𝐷=0.2 profile, exhibiting torque increases of 41% and 25.22% at 6 and 8 m/s, respectively. These findings confirm that chord-to-diameter ratio adjustments play a critical role in boosting torque generation in vertical-axis wind turbines.

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Keywords: H-Darrieus turbine; maximum thickness; NREL S815; profile chord; self-starting capability

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Section: Original Research Article
Language : EN
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