Client

1

Problem Statement Iowa State University announced
on January 2008 that it aims to become a model of
energy efficiency. To help this vision become a
reality, we wanted to create a wind turbine that
would serve as an attraction for future engineers
and as a tool for alternative energy
experimentation or research. Proposed
Solution The proposed solution was to install a
small-scale wind turbine on the roof of Coover
Hall. The turbine would generate between 500 and
1000 Watts of AC electricity and feed it to the
Coover electrical grid. We decided that the best
choice for turbine was a fixed speed, upwind type
that faced west.

• To provide a more accurate analysis of our
  equipment we have tested all equipment
  individually, as subgroups, and as a whole
  system.
• Individual
• Motor
• The AC motor was driven by a DC motor to measure
  voltage and current output
• Capacitors were used to build up residual
  magnetism in the AC induction motor. We will
  connect three light bulbs as loads and measure
  the voltage and current output.
• The AC motor was connected to the grid and driven
  at 1800 RPM to measure its power output. At 1800
  RPM, the AC motor was floating, which means that
  it was not drawing nor providing power to the
  grid. Unfortunately, the DC motor could not
  drive the turbine past 1800 RPM, but we will use
  another source to drive the AC motor.
• Gearbox
• The output shaft was marked, and the input shaft
  was rotated to verify that the gearbox has a 110
  input to output ratio
• Brake
• The brake was tested to make sure it keeps the
  blades, gearbox, and motor from rotating
• Subgroups
• Nacelle
• After installing all components in the nacelle,
  the mechanical resistance of the system was
  tested by turning the shaft to make sure
  everything was lined up correctly.
• Control System
• RPM sensor was tested using a computer fan that
  had its speed sensor wire connected to a computer
  for actual RPM reading
• Output that activates contactor was tested to
  ensure that it is only on when the motor RPM is
  between 1800 and 1860 RPM

• Design
• Mechanical Safety
• Brake can be applied for maintenance
• Furling tail turns the nacelle and blades out of
  the wind whenever it is too strong
• Tower is high enough (15 height) that a person
  can safely walk under the blades
• Tower base is wide to keep tower and nacelle
  stable (10x10 square base)
• Electrical Safety
• Motor has thermal overload protection that
  disconnects it from grid
• Protection circuit disconnects turbine from grid
  whenever voltage, current, or wind speed
• are not within specifications
• Lightning rod mounted on nacelle diverts energy
  from lightning strike
• Implementation
• Mechanical
• Nacelle is made of ¼ steel plate for sturdiness
  and durability
• Blades are made of fiberglass composite and are
  9.2 in diameter
• Gearbox increases speed from the blades by a
  factor of 10 to drive motor

Project Costs
Project Hours
System Block Diagram
Wind energy is a good sources of renewable and
environmentally friendly energy. Our project is
our attempt to show and provide an example of
this wonderful resource. The turbine in this
project is designed to be tied into a power grid
system and provide a very low amount of
supplementary power to the grid. With this system
in place Iowa State and the Electrical
Engineering department can be viewed as leaders
in the pursuit of green energy. Special thank
you to Tom Donney, Lee Harker, Dr. Greg Smith,
and Trishna Das for providing materials, advice,
and/or help in our project.
Client
Faculty Advisor
Team Members
Dr. Dionysios Aliprantis
Dr. Venkataramana Ajjarapu
Dario Vazquez (CprE) Nick Ries (EE)Luke Donney
(EE)
Lindsay Short (EE)Chris Loots (EE)Dustin
Dalluge (ME)