Figure 1: The final CAD model & deflection simulation of the blade using low-carbon steel.
Figure 2: Yield Strength vs. Density * Embodied energy (maximize strength while minimizing density & energy needed for manufacturing)
Figure 3: Final Gantt Chart detailing project timeline
Project overview
The Goal: Sweden to reach net zero greenhouse emissions by 2045
The Task: Design a clean and sustainable wind turnbine blade for use in a wind farm
The Constraints: 8.5mm < Blade deflection < 10mm
The Solution: Maximize blade efficiency while being eco-friendly
Skills Used
Soft Skills: Collaboration, Engineering Report Writing, Time Management
Technical Skills: Autodesk Inventor, ANSYS-GRANTA EduPack, Microsoft Office
Design Process
Initial Research: The team gathered information about wind turbine blade design and shared the knowledge amongst each other
Problem Framing: The team met several times to properly define the problem, then came up with the objective, function, and constraints of our blade design
MPI Selection: The team chose the two main objectives to be minimizing energy required to manufacture the blade and minimizing CO2 production
Materials Selection: The team took the most common materials that showed up for each MPI then used a weighted decision matrix to choose our final material
Deflection Simulation: The team ran deflection simulations on various thicknesses of the blade to find allow maximum deflection of the blade
Administrative Role
Role: I was the Subject Matter Expert
Responsibilities: I created and shared the collaborative working document for the team and completed the Source Materials Database
Expectations: Ensured that the team worked on the Project Report in a collaborative manner and that the sources used in the project are broad and reliable
What I learned
Collaboration: I learned how to complete engineering projects as a team. I also learned that having multiple people helped getting ideas on the table faster.
Time management: Since Design Studio times were limited and always had milestones to complete, I learned how to more efficiently get things done.
Final Thoughts
Given that this was the first ever engineering project anyone in the entire team had really undertaken, all things went very smoothly. I think we all learned something about how to work better in a team and how to approach engineering projects in general.