REVERSE ENGINEERING AND MODIFICATION OF WIND TURBINE BLADE THROUGH 3D SCANNING AND CFD 6DOF ANALYSIS

Efforts to increase the potential of low-speed wind energy can be achieved by optimizing blade shape. Reverse engineering is a method used to replicate components that will be developed or produced domestically, thereby reducing import value and wait times for ordering components. In this study, blades from foreign production will be tested through reverse engineering using a Scan-arm 3D Scanner. The result of the 3D scanning process, which is in the form of a point cloud, is processed with Rev Eng software to form a mesh. Then, the geometry data in mesh form is exported in .stl format for further processing in CAD software. The geometry modification process is carried out for optimization. The results of the modification process are then analyzed using CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) with the 6 degrees of freedom method. The torque and rotational speed obtained from the CFD analysis are used to calculate the theoretical mechanical power. The aim of this research is to modify the blade obtained through reverse engineering. By using the latest technology in the field of reverse engineering, the modification process is conducted to obtain blade geometry that can operate at low wind speeds. The Detailed Engineering Design (DED) data from each blade modification serves as a reference for the production/manufacturing of the reverse-engineered blade. The reverse engineering process can accelerate product design and development. By using a 3D scanner, complex geometric shapes that are difficult to interpret can be accurately digitized. In the reverse engineering process of the turbine blades, two modified variants were made. From the results of the CFD 6DoF method simulation, it was found that variant 1 had better aerodynamic properties than the original with changes in twist and an increase in the blade tip width. Meanwhile, variant 2, with modifications only to the twist angle, showed worse performance.