Experimental research on gyromill type vertical axis wind turbine using a sailwing

Wind tunnel experiments using a small scale model of gyromill type vertical axis wind turbine with a sailwing have been performed for application to small or medium scale wind power systems. A number of unique characteristics of the vertical axis sailwing wind turbine have been demonstrated such as the self starting property, the self-controlability of rotor revolution speed to suit the power characteristics of the wind speed, compared with a rotor using a rigid wing. The effects of varying the tension of the trailing edge wire, membrane material, and leading edge shape on the wind turbine performance are demonstrated. The maximum power coefficient obtained was not very satisfactory, however, there are particularly singificant for the small scale of model, and it is expected that these effects will be less for a rotor of practical size.