
Wind Turbine Blade Angle and Voltage Output
Hard
Does the angle of a wind turbine's blades change how much electricity it produces? Blade angle controls how much wind each blade catches. Too little angle and the blades barely spin. Too much and they stall.
You cut zinc-sheet blades and mount them into wooden blocks with slots cut at seven angles, from 0 to 90 degrees. Each block attaches to a DC motor. You place the turbine one meter from an industrial fan and read the voltage on a digital voltmeter.
The results show voltage rises steadily as the angle increases up to 75 degrees. At 75 degrees the turbine produces 0.95 volts. Beyond that angle the output drops back to zero.
Hypothesis
The hypothesis is that the power generated by the wind turbine will vary depending on the angle at which the blades are positioned.
Method & Materials
You will build a wind turbine with blades at different angles, measure the voltage generated, and observe how the angle affects the power output.
You will need a DC motor, a zinc sheet, scissors, wooden blocks, an electric hand drill, needle files, a protractor, screws, a screw driver, a digital voltmeter, and an industrial fan.
Eureka Crate — engineering & invention kits for ages 12+ — monthly projects that build real-world skills. (Affiliate link)
See what’s includedResults
The results show that increasing the angle of the wind turbine blades up to 75° will increase the output voltage. Beyond 75° the output voltage will decrease. This proves that the power generated by the wind turbine does vary depending on the angle at which the blades are positioned.
Why do this project?
This science project is interesting because it explores how to generate electricity from the wind in an environmentally friendly way.
Also Consider
Experiment variations include using blades of different sizes and varying the wind speed to observe any differences in the results.
Full project details
Additional information and source material for this project are available below.Related videos
These videos explain the science behind this project and demonstrate key concepts used in the experiment.
Share this Science Project:
Related Science Fair Project Ideas
Burn equal amounts of bioethanol, kerosene, diesel, and gasoline to compare which heats water most and which burns longest.
Hard
Build a wave tank with a floating generator and discover how wave height and speed affect the voltage.
Hard
Collect soil from a forest and two farmed fields to see how management changes its color and nutrient levels.
Hard
Share this Science Project:
