Introduction

Aims

In this part of the activity we will:

  • How can we measure the performance of the wind turbine?
  • Measure the maximum voltage generated by the wind turinbe
  • Compare how this measured voltage changes with rotor velocity
  • Discuss how we can record this automatically

Learning outcomes

Learning outcome
Wind turbine Discuss the purpose / aims of a wind turibne
Velocity Identify ways we can measure the velocity
Multimeter Learn to measure the voltage of the wind turbine with a multimeter

Preperation

Equipment required

Equipment item Quantity
Mind wind turbine kit 1
Multimeter 1
Crocodile leads 1
Electical connectors (we will use wago 221 connectors) 2

Measuring the performance of the wind turbine

Purpose of a wind turbine

If you recall from the video shared right at the beginning of this workshop, the main purpose of a wind turbine is to efficiently rotate and generate electricity.

P o t e n t i a l e n e r g y o f t h e w i n d R o t a t i o n G e n e r a t e e l e c t r i c i t y

Question (let’s discuss together)

  • How can we measure the performance of the wind turbine?
☑️ Some possible answers
  • We could count the number of times the blade rotates in a second, or in a minute
  • We could mesaure how much electricity is generated

Measuring the voltage

One way of measuring how much electricity is generated by the turbine is to measure the voltage.

Let’s do that now with our wind turbine

Attach a crocodile connector to each side of the motor terminal.

Make sure to note which terminal is postive (+ve) and negative (-ve)

Connect the end of crocodile lead into the electrical connector

Connect the positive and negative probes of the multimeter into the corresponding electrical connectors

Set the multimeter to measure DC voltage (Autorange)

Spin the wind turbine and observe what is the voltage output

  • Spin the turbine with your hand or put in it front of a fan
  • If the value is negative swap the -ve and +ve probes around

Question (let’s discuss together)

  • What is the maximum voltage value you see?
  • How could we record this value automatically?