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Drag and lift coefficients evolution of a Savonius rotor

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Abstract

The lift and drag coefficients of the rotating Savonius wind machine are determined from the pressure difference measured between the upper plane and the lower plane of a blade. Pressure measurements have been performed for two sets of experiments; the first one for U = 10 m/s and the second one for U = 12.5 m/s. In each case it is to be noted that a negative lift effect is present for low values of the tip speed ratio λ. The lift coefficient becomes positive when λ increases. The drag coefficient is of course always negative.

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Abbreviations

A :

rectangular area of the wind tunnel

C x :

drag coefficient

C Y :

lift coefficient

{ovC} x :

averaged drag coefficient

{ovC} Y :

averaged lift coefficient

D :

rotor diameter

h :

rotor height

R + r :

radius of rotation of a blade

Re :

(U · D)/v Reynolds number

S :

rotor projected area

U :

wind velocity

δ :

central gap

λ :

tip speed ratio

ν :

cinematic viscosity

ϱ :

density of air

References

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Chauvin, A., Benghrib, D. Drag and lift coefficients evolution of a Savonius rotor. Experiments in Fluids 8, 118–120 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00203076

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00203076

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