Performance analysis of the deflector integrated cross axis wind turbine

Wind turbines in the context of integration in an urban environment are considered as one of the most promising technologies for the efficient diffusion of renewable energy sources. However, situations such as low wind velocity, highly turbulent and skewed wind flow conditions are commonly encountered in this environment. This misaligned flow could affect the horizontal axis wind turbine performance. The vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) is more suitable to operate under these unfavorable conditions. Nevertheless, the conventional VAWT has low efficiency and poor self-starting characteristics. Therefore, a novel design of deflector integrated cross axis wind turbine (CAWT) is proposed. Tests were carried out to harness wind energy from both the horizontal and vertical components of the skewed flow induced by the deflectors. A semi-empirical approach was also developed to analyse the performance of the CAWT. The aerodynamic behaviour of the CAWT was determined by combining the blade element momentum (BEM) model and double multiple streamtube theory (DMST). The approach showed notable agreement between the experimental and theoretical results (9.8%-14.2% difference). In conclusion, the findings from the experiment and the model showed that the concept has very good potential in the renewable energy industry. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.