Hi NI,
I have just read the attached report and very interesting and informative it is. I now know what a Savonius wind turbine looks like.
But, like JimB, I find section 3.4 erroneous. Quite simply, it is not to the same standard as the rest of the report:
3.4 DC Motor
'DC motor is a device that can convert mechanical energy to electrical energy. Mechanical energy
comes from the rotation of the rotor which is connected to the shaft of the DC motor and the
electricity produced will be connected to the load from the output terminal as shown in Figure 3.3.
Furthermore, in order to produce high reliability and high efficiency of small wind turbine, the
preferred choice of motor is the brushless DC motor as shown in Figure 3.4.'
To be technically correct, the opening sentence should read:
'A DC motor is an electro mechanical device that converts DC electrical energy into mechanical energy. Under certain circumstances a motor can be used for the reverse function.'
But a motor is not applicable to this application, so the opening sentance of section 3.4 should read:
'A DC generator is an electro mechanical device that converts mechanical energy into DC electrical energy. In some circumstances a DC motor can be used as a DC generator'
Then there is JimB's point about DC brushless motors being unsuitable for use as DC generators.
I know it is probably not in your remit, but you really should bring these points to the attention of your tutor because they throw the credibility of the whole report into question.
Also, because of this, you are being given an almost impossible task which bears no resemblance to the main object of the exercise, which is to assess the feasibility of wind turbines for Malaysia. By the way, I lived in Kuala Lumpur for a while, and apart from the monsoon season, it was practically windless.
spec