Numerical analysis of a rooftop vertical axis wind turbine

A numerical analysis of a rooftop vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) for applications in urban area is presented. The numerical simulations were developed to study the flow field through the turbine rotor to analyze the aerodynamic performance characteristics of the device. Three different blade numbers of wind turbine are studied, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Each one of the models was built in a 3D computational model. The effects generated in the performance of turbines by the numbers of blades are considered. A Sliding Mesh Model (SMM) capability was used to present the dimensionless form of coefficient power and coefficient moment of the wind turbine as a function of the wind velocity and the rotor rotational speed. The numerical study was developed in CFD using FLUENT®. The results show the aerodynamic performance for each configuration of wind turbine rotor. In the cases of Rooftop rotor the power coefficient increases as the blade number increases, while in the case of Savonius rotor the power coefficient decrease as the blades number increases.Copyright © 2011 by ASME