Modeling the coupled electro-mechanical response of a torsional-flutter-based wind harvester with a focus on energy efficiency examination

Wind energy is a rapidly evolving field of research because of the need for clean energy resources. Large horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWT) are often employed to increase output power and energy production. On the other hand, “specialized” wind-based energy systems have been proposed to capture the wind energy resource in the low wind speed range and for intermediate-scale applications, e.g., one or few residential housing units. Wind harvesters, triggered by various aeroelastic instability regimes, have been studied in recent years [e.g., Matsumoto et al. (2006)]. Along this line of research, the writer has examined a torsional-flutter-based apparatus for extracting energy from the wind flow. This paper presents some recent advancements, a new fully-coupled electro-mechanical model and the numerical results of an ongoing investigation.