Enhancing Aerodynamic Performance of Savonius Vertical Axis Wind Turbine used with Triboelectric Generator

This paper aims to design a system to generate energy from flowing wind due to the motion of a vehicle on the road or from the flow of wind in compact areas to utilize the wasteful energy into a useful one. It is envisaged via a design and the improvement in efficiency of a Savonius Vertical Axis Wind Turbine and coupled in an integrated system with a Triboelectric Nanogenerator (TENG) that can generate a good amount of electrical energy. Aerodynamic calculations are performed numerically using a CFD Software, and the efficiency of the TENG is evaluated analytically. The Turbine's coefficient of power is validated with the literature for an inlet velocity of 7 m/s with a Tip Speed Ratio (TSR) of 0.75 and found to reasonably agree with that of experimental results. The baseline design is modified with a new blade arc angle and rotor position angle based on the recommended parameter ranges suggested by previous researchers. Simulations have been performed for different TSR values ranging from 0.25 to 1.5 with an interval of 0.25 with two applicable free stream velocities of 5 m/s and 7 m/s. Finally, the newly designed vertical axis wind turbine’s performance results obtained through CFD are used as input for the analytical performance prediction of the TENG. The results show that this approach could be feasible and useful for small power source applications.