Technical Data Package and Final Report: Team 16028: System and Method for Air Velocity Generated Electrical Power

• Main Authors: Medina, Fabian Javier, Deranek, Thomas, Hoepfner, Austin, Ingle, Hannah, McCook, Heidi
• Other Authors: Redford, Gary
• Language: en_US
• Published: The University of Arizona. 2017
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10150/625097; http://arizona.openrepository.com/arizona/handle/10150/625097

This report is for an optimized method and system for air velocity generated electrical power. The system will be placed in either residential or commercial Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems, and the blades will be oriented in such a way that they rotate about an axis transverse to the flow of air. The blades will spin a turbine that will harness the energy from the passing air and convert it into electricity. The electricity is generated as AC power by the alternator, which is then rectified to DC power and will be directed either to an energy consuming device in the facility, or an energy storage device. During the course of this senior design project three different blade designs were tested in simulation and experimentally. A trade study was run and used to determine the best permanent magnet alternator for the system. An aluminum cover was fabricated and designed to minimize turbulence. The blade designs were tested using an electrical load test and an air velocity evaluation. From this evaluation, the system was determined to produce a 1% energy recovery.