Impact of Vortex Generators on Archimedes Spiral Wind Turbine

This paper presents a novel method for studying the effect of vortex generators on an Archimedes Spiral Wind Turbine (ASWT), demonstrating improvements in power output and efficiency compared to conventional designs. The Archimedes spiral wind turbine design features three blades characterized by a uniform spiral growth. Vortex generators are small devices that enhance flow attachment by creating vortices. This study explores the potential benefits of integrating vortex generators with ASWTs to enhance Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) systems and applications. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were conducted to assess and compare the effects of these generators on the ASWT. SolidWorks is used for model creation whereas Ansys Fluent for simulations. The analysis consisted of two domains: a rotating domain and a stationary domain. The CFD analysis was performed using the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. At a wind speed of 8 m/s, the results indicated that the inclusion of vortex generators increased power output by 7.2%, 7.9%, 5.2%, 7.9%, and 24.1% at Tip Speed Ratios (TSR) of 1.0, 1.32, 2.0, 2.5, and 3 respectively. Consequently, power output is enhanced at higher TSRs, concluding that vortex generators improved the performance of the ASWT.