Turbine tips give big boost to efficiency
A novel type of wind turbine dramatically improves efficiency by changing the tip shape and linking the blade tips
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Inventor EvoLogics in Berlin, Germany claims that it enhances power output by 50% at a wind speed of 8m/s, 30% at 12m/s and 20% at 15 m/s. The average wind speed in the UK is 5.6m/s.
The design is inspired by the fanned wing tips of birds, and its purpose is to break up tip vortices, in a similar manner to that achieved by the winglets on the latest generation of wings on airliners.
The result is a reduction in the loss of energy to tip vortices, not only providing improved efficiency, but also reducing noise and making the turbine design self stabilising.
More information from: www.evologics.de
