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Wind Turbines from China
By slokuta, Section Wind Posted on Fri Dec 15, 2006 at 06:12:41 PM MST
Would like some feedback from the experts regarding these Chinese made turbines.

Company name: Wuxi Tongbao International Co., Ltd.
http://sws.en.alibaba.com/product/0/50063747/Wind_Turbines.html

Wind Turbines from China | 2 comments (2 topical)

Re: Wind Turbines from China (3.00 / 0) (#1)
by asheets on Fri Dec 15, 2006 at 12:59:30 PM MST

I'm pretty sure that the ones in the picture can't do 150W - 20,000W. And I can't seem to bring up any other detail...
_____________________________

Alan Sheets

Re: Wind Turbines from China (3.00 / 0) (#2)
by jimovonz on Fri Dec 15, 2006 at 03:50:08 PM MST

There doesn't seem to be much info available from the link you have provided. I have imported a number of similar small turbines from China (http://www.wwindturbine.com/) and as with most things, you get what you pay for. Out of the box, the turbines I have been getting would give more trouble than they are worth. With some modification/additions you can end up with something usable. For a start, 2/3 of the 'controllers' (simple regulators that dump to an internal load + fan to vent heat) have been DOA. No biggie to me as I was never under the illusion that they were up to the task. The watt ratings and power curves attributed to each model are a long way off what I manage to achieve in testing. The 12V version of one model is exactly the same as the 24V one - only the set point for the regulator is different. As a consequence the turbine cuts in too early and the advertised 200/300w turbine is maxed out at ~150w (alt seems to max out at around 10A) The very same 12V rated turbine using a 24V regulator gives the rated output. The advertised power curves would probably be close at the top end into a 48V battery. The blades are pultruded fiberglass and so fixed chord width and no taper. The basic aerofoil shape appears reasonable but the finishing leaves a lot to be desired. They all have a flat spot on the under side of the leading edge where I presume they have sat while curing. The ends are cut off square and quite rough. The trailing edge is also rather blunt. I have been tapering the blades to also give twist (similar to what you would do with blades made from PVC pipe) as well as rounding the tip and smoothing off all the rough bits. This gives me a blade that runs faster with much less noise (the unmodified blades are hideously noisy due the rough edges and I believe the stalled tip due to the fixed pitch). The faster blades and consequently higher voltage for a given wind speed allow me to get more out of the alt. I am using one of the 200/300W rated turbines for testing a MPPT controller. So far I have seen over 500W into a 12V battery from this turbine in testing. Due to the higher efficiency achievable with higher RPM/MPPT there is still scope to raise the 20mph furling point to get even higher output without going over the alts original heat loading limit. The cable that comes with both the 200 and 300w turbines is ~ 1mm2 and is equal to 1/2 of the phase resistance - thats just geting down the tower! I remove this and use 4mm2/conductor cable. The 6m tower that comes with the turbine comes in 4 sections and is strong enough in itself. The anchors that are provided are woefully inadequate (to the point of being dangerous in even a light wind). I am just negotiating to have propper duck billed anchors supplied.
Some other modifications are also in the documents here under the Wind section:
http://www.ecoinnovation.co.nz/links.php?code=8
I don't rectify up the tower nor do I install slip rings as Eco Innovation do in the above link.

Wind Turbines from China | 2 comments (2 topical)

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