Design of multiple airfoil HAWT blade using MATLAB programming

This paper presents the design and optimization of a small horizontal axis wind turbine blade (HAWT) using proposed code. The blades which determine the performance of a wind turbine were laid out using NACA 4412, NACA 2412 and NACA 1812 and have been designed for wind speeds of 5 m/s which is the most prominent wind speed prevailing in the Indian Peninsula. The self-created code based on Blade Element Momentum theory generates an optimum blade profile which operates at high efficiency by making use of multiple airfoils. Twist angle distribution, chord distribution and other parameters for different airfoil sections along the blade are determined through the proposed code. The 4.46 m rotor diameter managed to achieve a power coefficient of 0.490 at wind speeds of 5 m/s and produced power output of 0.56 kW. The results of the blade analysis carried out using Q-blade software agree well with the proposed code and performance analysis of the wind turbine is carried out.