Development of a Low-Speed Wind Turbine for Brazilian Onshore Areas: A Preliminary and Conceptual Design
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This article presents a comprehensive design study of a low-speed wind turbine optimized for regions with weak wind resources, with a particular focus on Brazil’s extensive territories. The research challenges conventional turbine designs by incorporating innovative strategies to enhance aerodynamic performance, structural integrity, and cost efficiency. Consolidated computational tools were integrated with optimization algorithms, creating an innovative multidisciplinary optimization framework. Multiple configurations were assessed based on energy output, load mitigation, and economic viability, leading to the identification of promising designs that effectively balance performance targets with practical constraints. The study highlights how a structured multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) approach, applied during the preliminary and conceptual design phases, enables the development of configurations well-adapted to low-wind-speed environments. These findings result into the output configuration achieving a rated wind speed of 6.45 m/s, and moreover they offer a scalable framework for future research and field validation in low-wind-speed applications. Therefore, the objective of developing a viable wind turbine prototype using custom multidisciplinary optimization models was successfully achieved.
Authors: James Rojas Waterhouse, Cristhian R. Morante Villarreal, Guilherme Beppu de Souza, Fernando Vilas Boas Ribeiro, Carlos Henrique Gasparetti, Kauan Pires Quevedo, Josiel Gonçalves Dos Santos, George Camargo Dos Santos, Marlos José Ribeiro Guimarães
Language: English
Subfield: Aerospace Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,075
OpenAlex ID: W4413212322