IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v18y2025i12p3139-d1679288.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Optimization of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Systems to Capture Vehicle-Induced Highway Winds

Author

Listed:
  • Aydin Ulus

    (Materials Science & Engineering Ph.D. Program, College of Graduate Studies, Youngstown State University, 1 Tressel Way, Youngstown, OH 44555, USA)

  • Stefan Ilie Moldovan

    (Mechanical Engineering Program, Rayen School of Engineering, Youngstown State University, 1 Tressel Way, Youngstown, OH 44555, USA)

Abstract

This study introduces an innovative set of guide vanes that increase the efficiency of Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT) using winds generated by vehicles traveling on highways. The increase in efficiency is based on enhancing the airflow interaction as the vehicle moves past the turbine. Initial Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations with two guide vanes setups demonstrated a 56.81% increase in power output under wind generated by passenger vehicles. Further design enhancements, incorporating three guide vanes with optimized geometries, led to a 242% improvement in power generation. Additional simulations evaluated the performance under wind conditions generated by larger vehicles, such as buses. The three guide vanes configuration yielded a 102% increase in energy capture efficiency in these scenarios. The findings suggest that vehicle-induced winds—typically an untapped energy source—can be effectively harvested using tailored turbine system designs. By integrating passive flow control strategies such as guide vanes, VAWTs can operate more efficiently in highway environments. This research highlights a novel pathway for enhancing renewable energy systems and supports broader efforts toward sustainable energy development through the utilization of unconventional wind sources. This performance enhancement is primarily due to the aerodynamic redirection of airflow toward the advancing blade and away from the returning blade, reducing drag and improving torque generation.

Suggested Citation

  • Aydin Ulus & Stefan Ilie Moldovan, 2025. "Optimization of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Systems to Capture Vehicle-Induced Highway Winds," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-29, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:12:p:3139-:d:1679288
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/12/3139/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/12/3139/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hu, Wenyu & E, Jiaqiang & Tan, Yan & Zhang, Feng & Liao, Gaoliang, 2022. "Modified wind energy collection devices for harvesting convective wind energy from cars and trucks moving in the highway," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    2. Wenlong Tian & Zhaoyong Mao & Yukai Li, 2017. "Numerical Simulations of a VAWT in the Wake of a Moving Car," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-14, April.
    3. Fleming, P. D. & Probert, S. D., 1984. "The evolution of wind-turbines: An historical review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 163-177.
    4. Tian, Wenlong & Song, Baowei & Mao, Zhaoyong, 2020. "Numerical investigation of wind turbines and turbine arrays on highways," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(P1), pages 384-398.
    5. Hu, Wenyu & E, Jiaqiang & Leng, Erwei & Zhang, Feng & Chen, Jingwei & Ma, Yinjie, 2023. "Investigation on harvesting characteristics of convective wind energy from vehicle driving on multi-lane highway," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 263(PE).
    6. Subramanian, Abhishek & Yogesh, S. Arun & Sivanandan, Hrishikesh & Giri, Abhijit & Vasudevan, Madhavan & Mugundhan, Vivek & Velamati, Ratna Kishore, 2017. "Effect of airfoil and solidity on performance of small scale vertical axis wind turbine using three dimensional CFD model," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 179-190.
    7. Jeon, Keum Soo & Jeong, Jun Ik & Pan, Jae-Kyung & Ryu, Ki-Wahn, 2015. "Effects of end plates with various shapes and sizes on helical Savonius wind turbines," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 167-176.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zahra Sefidgar & Amir Ahmadi Joneidi & Ahmad Arabkoohsar, 2023. "A Comprehensive Review on Development and Applications of Cross-Flow Wind Turbines," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-39, March.
    2. Hu, Wenyu & E, Jiaqiang & Zhang, Feng & Chen, Jingwei & Ma, Yinjie & Leng, Erwei, 2022. "Investigation on cooperative mechanism between convective wind energy harvesting and dust collection during vehicle driving on the highway," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    3. Hu, Wenyu & E, Jiaqiang & Han, Dandan & Feng, Changling & Luo, Xiaoyu, 2023. "Investigation on distribution characteristics of convective wind energy from vehicle driving on multi-lane highway," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    4. Cheng, Biyi & Du, Jianjun & Yao, Yingxue, 2022. "Machine learning methods to assist structure design and optimization of Dual Darrieus Wind Turbines," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 244(PA).
    5. Kamal, Md. Mustafa & Saini, R.P., 2023. "Performance investigations of hybrid hydrokinetic turbine rotor with different system and operating parameters," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 267(C).
    6. Bethi, Rajagopal Vinod & Laws, Praveen & Kumar, Pankaj & Mitra, Santanu, 2019. "Modified Savonius wind turbine for harvesting wind energy from trains moving in tunnels," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 1056-1063.
    7. Meana-Fernández, Andrés & Solís-Gallego, Irene & Fernández Oro, Jesús Manuel & Argüelles Díaz, Katia María & Velarde-Suárez, Sandra, 2018. "Parametrical evaluation of the aerodynamic performance of vertical axis wind turbines for the proposal of optimized designs," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 504-517.
    8. Haddad, Hassan Z. & Mohamed, Mohamed H. & Shabana, Yasser M. & Elsayed, Khairy, 2023. "Optimization of Savonius wind turbine with additional blades by surrogate model using artificial neural networks," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 270(C).
    9. Zhu, Wei Jun & Shen, Wen Zhong & Sørensen, Jens Nørkær & Yang, Hua, 2017. "Verification of a novel innovative blade root design for wind turbines using a hybrid numerical method," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 1661-1670.
    10. Zhang, Zhiqing & Dong, Rui & Tan, Dongli & Duan, Lin & Jiang, Feng & Yao, Xiaoxue & Yang, Dixin & Hu, Jingyi & Zhang, Jian & Zhong, Weihuang & Zhao, Ziheng, 2023. "Effect of structural parameters on diesel particulate filter trapping performance of heavy-duty diesel engines based on grey correlation analysis," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    11. Elbatran, A.H. & Ahmed, Yasser M. & Shehata, Ahmed S., 2017. "Performance study of ducted nozzle Savonius water turbine, comparison with conventional Savonius turbine," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 566-584.
    12. Patel, Vimal & Eldho, T.I. & Prabhu, S.V., 2019. "Velocity and performance correction methodology for hydrokinetic turbines experimented with different geometry of the channel," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 1300-1317.
    13. Celik, Yunus & Ingham, Derek & Ma, Lin & Pourkashanian, Mohamed, 2022. "Design and aerodynamic performance analyses of the self-starting H-type VAWT having J-shaped aerofoils considering various design parameters using CFD," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 251(C).
    14. Salleh, Mohd Badrul & Kamaruddin, Noorfazreena M. & Mohamed-Kassim, Zulfaa, 2022. "Experimental investigation on the effects of deflector angles on the power performance of a Savonius turbine for hydrokinetic applications in small rivers," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    15. Lei, Hang & Su, Jie & Bao, Yan & Chen, Yaoran & Han, Zhaolong & Zhou, Dai, 2019. "Investigation of wake characteristics for the offshore floating vertical axis wind turbines in pitch and surge motions of platforms," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 471-489.
    16. Kaldellis, John K. & Zafirakis, D., 2011. "The wind energy (r)evolution: A short review of a long history," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(7), pages 1887-1901.
    17. Guo, Fen & Song, Baowei & Mao, Zhaoyong & Tian, Wenlong, 2020. "Experimental and numerical validation of the influence on Savonius turbine caused by rear deflector," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    18. Ma, Ning & Lei, Hang & Han, Zhaolong & Zhou, Dai & Bao, Yan & Zhang, Kai & Zhou, Lei & Chen, Caiyong, 2018. "Airfoil optimization to improve power performance of a high-solidity vertical axis wind turbine at a moderate tip speed ratio," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 236-252.
    19. Christopher Dent, 2013. "Wind energy development in East Asia and Europe," Asia Europe Journal, Springer, vol. 11(3), pages 211-230, September.
    20. Hao, Daning & Zhao, Chaoyang & Xiong, Bendong & Ren, Miao & Zhang, Zutao & Yang, Yaowen, 2025. "Wind energy harvesting from bus ventilation system for onboard applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 324(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:12:p:3139-:d:1679288. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.