Executive Summary: Design Process of a Small-Scale Wind

Turbine to Supply Electricity to West Africa

Seth Goldberg, Giuliano Damiano, Abdullah Naser, Garret Ober

Team 7.7, ME 340, Mechanical Engineering Department, Pennsylvania State University

This document summarizes the process used in designing a small-scale wind turbine.
Our team was tasked with designing a small-scale wind turbine that would benefit an area that
does not have access to electricity. The ideal location for our turbine is on the western coast of
Africa; in countries such as The Dominican Republic of Congo or Angola. Not only do these
areas have ideal wind to support the design, but they also have an extensive need for electricity.
Keeping accurate time across industries becomes very difficult when electricity is not a resource.
Due to a lack of accurate timekeeping devices, government officials in these areas have been late
to important meetings [1]. Our design will be able to power alarm clocks or other small
electronic devices that many take for granted. With the help of small-scale wind turbines, West
Africa will be able to utilize electricity for the first time.
Three sections of our design process will be discussed in this summary: Concept
Generation and Selection, Sequence of Prototypes, and Performance of Final Design. The first
section breaks down how we arrived at our final design. The second will go over the prototypes
that were built and what we were able to learn from each of them. Lastly, the final section will
discuss the performance of the final design in terms of power generated, durability, and
aesthetics.

Concept Generation, Screening, and Selection

The concept generation stage of our design process began with decomposing our turbine
system into 3 major subsystems: blades, transmission, and stand. These subsystems were based
on our customer needs. The first customer need is that the turbine must be durable; which is why
a stand subsystem is important. The next customer need is that the turbine must generate
sufficient power. This amount of power will be affected mostly by the transmission and blade
design. The last customer need is that the turbine must be aesthetically pleasing. This will be
accomplished with the design of our blades and stand. With our subsystems determined, we
began to brainstorm concepts. Within each subsystem, we were able to generate 4 concepts
using various brainstorming methods.
Once the concepts were generated, the next step in the design process was to narrow the
ideas down to the final concept. In order to accomplish this, our team created metrics related to
each aspect of our customer needs. The metrics we used are as follows: amount of power,

ME 340 1! Spring 2018

amount of time to withstand high winds, wind speed needed to generate power, and feasibility of
the gear ratio that will be needed. These metrics were weighted against each other in an
Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) matrix which established the most important metrics. The
last step in our concept selection stage was to enter our concepts and weighted metrics into a
screening matrix. This resulted in three matrices with one for each subsystem. Using these
screening matrices, our team decided that our final concept will utilize the following: a 3-blade
rotor in a horizontal orientation, a gearbox transmission system, and uni-stand system. With our
final concept selected, the next step in our design process was to start manufacturing prototypes.

Sequence of Prototypes
At this stage in the design process, creating prototypes is essential to uncover possible
problems the design might encounter. Our team built a total of 3 prototypes: an alpha 1
prototype, an alpha 2 prototype, and a final beta prototype. Both of the alpha prototypes were
extremely important in determining the feasibility of certain components.
The alpha 1 prototype can be seen in Figure 1. With this prototype, we focused on
designing a solid stand along with a stable housing to hold our motor and shafts. Although
testing this prototype was a success, we gained valuable knowledge on what aspects worked well
and which needed improvement. The first thing we noted from this prototype was that our stand
and base will hold up extremely well to high winds. The first major thing we learned was the
need to include a gearbox for our final design to generate adequate power. We calculated the
angular velocity of the direct drive shaft and it came out to be around 400 rotations per minute.
We already knew that we wanted our motor to rotate at around 1500 rotations per minute to
achieve our desired power. This left us with our gear ratio being around 3.75. Our stand system
was able to survive the high-speed wind test from as little as 6 inches away and held together
very well. This was very important for our team because it allowed us to focus on other areas of
the system. The alpha 1 prototype taught our team many lessons about the small-scale wind
turbine system.
Our second prototype that we developed was the alpha 2 prototype. This can also be seen
in Figure 1. During the testing of this prototype, we tried out 3D printed bushings along with a
much lighter blade style. We quickly learned that the plastic from the 3D printer had too much
friction to act as a bushing and was slowing down our shaft more than helping it. However, the
lighter blade style worked well in terms of the angular velocity. This information was used to
create our final beta prototype.
The beta prototype that our team created is also shown in Figure 1. In this final
prototype, we were able to implement a gearbox and a final version of the blades. Both of these
systems used lessons learned from the previous prototypes in order to be successful. We used the
idea of having light blades from the alpha 2 prototype and used the gear ratio determined from

ME 340 2! Spring 2018

the alpha 1 prototype. Learning from our early prototypes, our team was able to successfully
develop a small-scale wind turbine that meets all of our customer’s needs.

!
Figure 1. Sequence of prototypes for the small-scale wind turbine: (a) alpha 1 prototype, 

(b) alpha 2 prototype, and (c) beta prototype.

Performance of Final Design

The next step of the design process was to test the performance of our final design
relative to our specifications. The specifications were created with our customer needs in mind,
with at least one relating to each customer need. First, the power generated by the turbine was
tested. Our specification called for our turbine to produce at least 200 milliwatts. When testing
our turbine, we found that it was able to produce 478 milliwatts. Our wind turbine was able to
successfully achieve more than enough power for the application in Western Africa. Next, our
team tested the durability of the wind turbine. The specification for this called for the turbine to
last at least 13 seconds under the high-speed wind test. The wind turbine was able to last 20
seconds before we called it a success, although it could have lasted much longer. For our last
customer need, aesthetics, our specification had to do with the surface roughness on various
parts. We specified the roughness to be at 200 micro-inches or less using average roughness.
Using a profilometer, we found that the roughest part of our system was around 150 micro-
inches. Our team’s final design was able to meet all of our customer needs which is verified
using our specifications given.
Our team’s small-scale wind turbine turned out to be very successful. The final design
can be seen in Figure 2, along with a close-up view of the inside of the housing. We were able to

ME 340 3! Spring 2018

follow the design process learned in class, and met all of our customer needs. Although it was a
success in the classroom setting, there are improvements that can be made when the turbine is
put in its working environment. This is discussed in more depth in Appendix A. An easy to
follow set of instructions is also provided in Appendix B. These instructions were made so that
anyone regardless of their technical expertise can assemble and use our wind turbine. To see
what physical properties were used in our decision making, see Appendix C. Extensive thought
went into every step of our design process which resulted in a successful final prototype.

a b

Figure 2. The final beta prototype right before testing. Showing the (a) 3D printed
blades and hub and (b) an up-close of the gear system.

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Appendix A: How the Design Could Have Been Improved

This appendix shows our teams reflection on the final design. Along the way, we faced
multiple design constraints that will not occur in the turbines working environment. Although
our design was a success, there will always be areas for improvement. Our team concluded that
there are two design changes that can be made when the turbine is put to use: an ability to vary
the gear ratio and an increased blade size.

Variable Gear Ratio

The ability to vary the gear ratio would be very useful when the small-scale wind turbine
is set up in the desired location. This would allow the user to increase the gear ratio on a day
with low winds, and decrease it in the event of a storm or high winds. The ability to keep the
motor spinning at the desired rate regardless of the weather would improve the power generated
in low winds along with the increasing the durability when there are high winds.

Increased Blade Size

Another improvement to the design would be an increased blade size. When designing
the beta prototype mentioned in the document, our team was constrained to only capturing wind
provided by a box fan. However, in real life applications wind will be coming from all directions
and will be covering a much larger cross-sectional area parallel to the blades. Increasing the
blade size would allow the turbine to capture more wind energy and therefor would increase the
amount of power the turbine will be able to generate.

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Appendix B: How to Use the Wind Turbine

There are 3 main steps to assemble to wind turbine. First, you connect the blades to the
rotor using set screws. When the blades are in place, you press fit the rotor onto the main shaft.
The main shaft is connected to a series of gears which turn the motor and generate power. After
the rotor is fit on as evenly as possible, you bolt down the base to make sure the wind turbine
does not move or vibrate when it is in use. The set of instructions are thoroughly explained
below:

1. Connect the blades to the rotor. Carefully attach the blades to the rotor using the provided
set screws. Do not over-tighten the screws to avoid any damage to the blades. Be sure to
orient each blade at the same angle so the turbine remains balanced. Figure B-1 shows
where to insert the set-screw into the rotor.

! 

Figure B-1. Turbine rotor with arrow pointing to where the set-screw should be inserted.

2. Press fit the rotor onto the main shaft. After attaching the blades with the set screws,
press fit the rotor onto the main shaft. Apply constant pressure on the shaft end with the
orifice on the back side of the rotor. Test to see if the rotor is attached evenly by spinning
the blades and observing symmetry as the blades spin. Be sure the blades completely
clear the gear box when rotating. This step is shown in Figure B-2.


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 Figure B-2. Turbine rotor with blades connected being fit onto the main shaft.

3. Bolt down the base. The final step of successfully assembling the wind turbine is to bolt
down the base. Carefully secure the base onto a surface that is relatively flat. The
turbine needs to be at level as possible for optimal efficiency. The purpose of bolting
down the base is to secure the turbine to avoid vibrations. This last step is shown in
Figure B-3.

! ! !
Figure B-3. Base of turbine being secured in place using a bolt and hex key.

To assure safe use of the turbine follow each assembly step carefully. First, attach the
blades. Next, fit the rotor onto the main shaft. Finally, properly secure the base in the desired
location. After completing these steps, the turbine can then be operated safely and efficiently. 


ME 340 7! Spring 2018

Appendix C: Relevant Calculations

This appendix presents the calculations that were used in the development and design
stage of our wind turbine. The available wind power has to be approximated to reduce the
number of unknown variables. It was decided to use a 20-inch box fan in order to test the
effectiveness of our turbine. Because this box fan has a fixed area and 3 variable speeds, it was
possible to calculate the power available from the wind it provides. The box fan provides wind
power in excess of what is outlined by our customer needs. However, losses from heat and sound
generation will reduce the electrical power generated from this available wind power. The overall
efficiency of the turbine as a system is dependent on the efficiency of its individual components.
Listed are the components that represent variables with the biggest effect on efficiency: turbine
blade profile, number of turbine blades, gearbox ratio, and the electrical generator. These
variables were optimized for efficiency using special design characteristics and mathematical
analysis.

Available wind power from the 20-inch box fan

This section presents the calculation of available wind power from the 20-inch box fan.
The available wind power P! w is the calculated by deriving the rate at which the kinetic energy
! E of the wind is changing
K

˙ = ! 1 ṁU 2,
! w = KE
P
2
(1)

Where K! ˙E is the rate of change of kinetic energy with respect to time, ṁ

! is the mass flow rate of
wind from the box fan, and U is the velocity of the wind.
The mass flow rate !ṁ is found with the following

1
ṁ
! = ρAU, (2)
2
kg
where !ρ is the air density (!1.225 ), A
! is the cross-sectional area of the air column, and U
! is
m3
velocity of the air column.
Combining equations (1) and (2) yields the equation to calculate the wind power supplied by the
box fan

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 1
! w=
P ρAU 3. (3)
2

An anemometer was used to measure the velocity of the air moved by the fan. However, the
velocity measured is only representative of the small area covered by the anemometer. Therefore,
as shown in Figure C-1, the box fan was divided into 9 smaller sections which were more
similarly sized to the anemometer.

Figure C-1. The 20-inch box fan was divided evenly into 9 sections to increase precision when
calculating wind power.

Using equation (3), the power was then calculated separately for all 9 sections. Finally, after
taking the sum of all 9 results, the wind power available from the box fan is determined to be
2.32 Watts.

Efficiency calculation of a 3-blade vs 4-blade rotor

In order to analyze the efficiency of our system and determine our final concept, we
created two plots. Both plots have Torque as the dependent variable and angular velocity of the
generator as the dependent variable. On both plots, we have two separate series: one showing
what would be needed to get our desired power and one showing what can be generated by our
motor. Both of the graphs discussed are shown in Figure 3. To get these series, we used the
following equations:
Pout
T
! needed = , (4)
ωrotor ηgen

where Tneeded is the torque needed to achieve our desire Power output, Pout which is 200-
milliwatts as given from our Prototype Needs and Accompanying Metrics and Specifications

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section. ωrotor is the angular velocity of the rotor, and ηgen is the efficiency of the generator. The
efficiency of the generator is given by equation 5.
η! gen = f (ωgen ), (5)
where !ωgen is the angular velocity of the generator. Finally, we have the torque that will
be supplied which is given by equation 6:
1
 T
! supplied = Cm ρ A RU 2, (6)
2
where Cm is the rotor torque coefficient, ρ is the air density, A is the cross-sectional area,
R is the rotor radius, and U is the wind velocity. These equations were used to generate the plots
shown in Figure C-2.

Figure C-2. 3-blade and 4-blade power generation plots using our efficiency calculation.

In Figure C-2, both graphs have two plots. The blue plot represents the torque required
compared to the angular velocity of the rotor to achieve the desired power output. The red plots
represent the torque required compared to the angular velocity of the generator to achieve the
same power. The ideal operating area occurs within the intersection of the two plots. Using
these plots, it can be shown that the ideal operating area for our desired power output is easier to
achieve using a 3-blade design rather than a 4-blade design. After combining the data from our
AHP matrix, our selection matrices, and our power generation plots, our team has made a
decision for each subsystem in our wind turbine. The blade system will use 3 blades oriented
horizontally, and the power transmission subsystem will utilize a set of gears for their high
efficiency.

ME 340 ! 10 Spring 2018

References

1 Africa | Can Africa keep time? (2003, October 28). Retrieved March 1, 2018, from http://
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3211923.stm

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! Spring 2018