Katru Eco-Energy, an Australian company, has developed a new type of horizontal wind turbine called Implux which can capture air from all directions. Implux stands on a vertical axis but has a horizontal blade facing up. The blade is inside a framework which allows air to enter and forces it to flow up toward the turbine blade.
What sets the turbine apart from other technologies is that it can streamline and accelerate wind from any direction into a central chamber where the turbine rotors generate electricity. The center of the device is a fluid dynamic gate which prevents air from escaping the turbine.
Because the turbine only has one moving part, the turbine rotor, the device boasts reduced noise and reduced maintenance compared with standard horizontal wind turbines of the same rotor size. A prototype model of the Implux-225 can generate up to 2 kilowatts of electricity, with future plans to improve it to 4 to 10kW.
Varan Sureshan, the founder of Katru, said in an interview with ABC Television that Implux can capture up to 87 percent of the wind directed to the turbine, out of which, 50 percent of it can be converted into power. For the design of their turbine, Katru went to Honda Formula 1 racing team's modeling arm, Advantage Computational Fluid Dynamic, who worked to optimize the turbine back in 2006.
The wind turbine is intended for a specific niche market; commercial buildings, multi-story buildings, industrial and commercial on-site. Though it can be used for wind farms and even at homes, the company stresses that its overall efficiency cannot be achieved. "The wind turbine in the city has to be able to cope with wind which comes from multiple directions and conventional can't really cope with that," said Mr. Sureshan.
Recently, Katru, with help from Tempco Ltd., a specialist prototype developer, released a prototype unit fabrication and full test assembly in Singapore. They are currently evaluating typical high-rise buildings for suitability as a potential test location for their device; however, no details were given as to where it will take place. The prototype unit's structural frame was made of steel, while its shroud was made of fiberglass, and its blades were made from carbon.
Last November 2010, Mass Megawatts Wind Power, Inc., a developer of wind power technology, modified their vertical-axis wind turbine to a propeller-style, horizontal-axis blade for its Multi-Axis Turbosystem. They changed the design to address two major issues - tower height and lower wind resource. (L.J. Polintan)
Source: Apec-vc
