A wind turbine claimed to produce three times more energy than similarly sized models currently on sale has won the top prize at this year’s BSI sustainability awards.

The revolutionary design, which is aimed at the domestic market, uses vertical rather than horizontal rotating blades. This gives slower rotational speeds that allow the turbine to capture more energy from turbulent airflow, common to urban environments. It also means quieter operation.

Ben Storan, an industrial design engineering student from the Royal College of Art, has been working with Imperial College for the last year to design the turbine.

Similarly sized domestic-size wind turbines claim to generate 1 kW at a wind speed of 12 m/s, but typically produce just 40% of what is claimed. Storan says his design will realistically produce 1.2 kW.

“Growing up in the windy west of Ireland I’ve always been acutely aware of the huge potential in harnessing such a free, clean and renewable source of energy which, along with a spinning clothes line, gave me the idea in the first place.

The turbine is now at the early stages of development but it is hoped it will go into production in the near future.

Source

Building Sustainable Design