Energy Engineering

ISSN: 0199-8595 (Print) 1546-0118 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uene20

Evaluating Performance of Horizontal Axis Double

Rotor Wind Turbines

Ehab Bani-Hani, Ahmad Sedaghat, Abdallah Saleh, Ahmad Ghulom, Hamad

Al-Rahmani, Saqer Al-Zamel & Jessica Lopez

To cite this article: Ehab Bani-Hani, Ahmad Sedaghat, Abdallah Saleh, Ahmad Ghulom,
Hamad Al-Rahmani, Saqer Al-Zamel & Jessica Lopez (2019) Evaluating Performance
of Horizontal Axis Double Rotor Wind Turbines, Energy Engineering, 116:1, 26-40, DOI:
10.1080/01998595.2019.12043336

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/01998595.2019.12043336

Published online: 05 Dec 2018.

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26 Energy Engineering Vol. 116, No. 1 2019

Evaluating Performance of
Horizontal Axis Double Rotor Wind Turbines
Ehab Bani-Hani, Ph.D.
Ahmad Sedaghat, Ph.D.*
Abdallah Saleh, Ahmad Ghulom, Hamad Al-Rahmani,
Saqer Al-Zamel, and Jessica Lopez

ABSTRACT

The current work investigates experimentally the performance of

a double rotor horizontal axis wind turbine (DRHAWT). A second rotor
is added to the traditional horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT). The
second rotor will restore the residual energy left in the wake of the first
rotor; hence, increasing the output of the original wind turbine. For this
purpose, two arrangements are examined; the first arrangement uses the
second rotor directly after the first rotor, where both rotate in the same
direction (concurrent), and the second arrangement uses the second
rotor, where the rotors rotate in different directions (counter current).
Small models are built and tested in the Australian College of Kuwait
(ACK) wind tunnel setup. For comparison purposes, the base line one
rotor HAWT is tested alone, then the two double rotors arrangements
are tested, and the results are presented here. Power output and effi-
ciency of these three designs are calculated and discussed. The experi-
mental results conveyed an increase in the efficiency of the double rotor
turbines compared with the single rotor turbine. It is indicated that the
efficiency of the single rotor design is merely 15%, which raises to 18.1%
for the double rotor counter rotating wind turbine. The efficiency is ob-
served to be slightly more for the counter current double rotor turbine
compared with the concurrent design.

Keywords: Concurrent; Counter current; Double rotor; Efficiency; Wind

turbine.

*Corresponding author
 27

INTRODUCTION

Wind energy is one renewable energy source. Many studies have

been conducted to investigate the possibility of utilizing wind energy [1-
4]. The feasibility and global growth of wind energy made the research-
ers search for new methods of design and analysis of wind turbines
[5-7]. Some improvements are made to utilize wind energy where the
wind energy is less feasible. Thus, improving the wind turbine designs
to extract more energy is one topic of recent research [8].
One of the new developments in wind turbine design for energy
harvesting from the wind is by adding a second rotor [9-11]. The addi-
tion of a second rotor aims to capture the residual energy in the wake of
the wind stream passing through the swept area of the first rotor. This
enables the turbine to extract more energy from the wake of the first ro-
tor, which leads to higher efficiency.
There have been a number of studies on efficiency of wind turbines.
In a 2014 study [9], a gearbox transmission system of a single and a dual
rotor wind turbine were compared. In a single rotor wind turbine system,
there is a parallel gear box arrangement, whereas the dual rotor had a
combination of planetary and parallel shaft gearbox arrangement. The
study stated that in general for horizontal axis wind turbines with a single
rotor, the maximum theoretical efficiency of 59% (Betz limit) is possible,
while this limit increases to 64% efficiency when two rotors are used.
In 2005, Lee et al. [12] have constructed a 30-kW counter rotating
wind turbine system and have obtained power curve data experimental-
ly and numerically. In addition, the effects of distance and diameter ratio
between two rotors have been considered by using BEM (blade element
momentum) method. Several computer designed programs have been
used to predict performance of the counter rotating wind turbine having
two 500-kW rotors [12].
In research done by Tipu Sultan and Anurag Gour [13], the per-
formance of a counter rotating wind turbine is compared with that of a
single rotor having half the number of blades. However, these compari-
sons were questionable because each rotor configuration has different
solidity (the ratio of total blade rotor disk area). For a correct compari-
son, this report [13] investigates the performance of three types of rotor
wind turbines under similar solidities.
Another study from Iowa State University in March 9, 2015 [14]
was conducted where designers looked into better performance from a
28 Energy Engineering Vol. 116, No. 1 2019

turbine by adding a second rotor. The research used wind tunnel tests to
have a better understanding of topological effects (such as hills, valleys
and the placement of turbines) affected wind turbine productivity. In
the study by Hu [14], the Iowa State University aerospace engineering
program looked at the base of each blade and realized two drawbacks to
the design. The first was that the blades were not shaped correctly like
an aerofoil, making it difficult to harvest wind, which in turn reduced
the turbine performance by 5%. Second was that the big blades disturb
the wind, thus reduced the energy harvested by next wind turbine. Hu
[14] stated, “A turbine sitting in the slipstream of another can lose 8 to 40
percent of its energy production, depending on conditions.”
Based on the results of these findings, Iowa State University sug-
gested a solution which was adding a smaller secondary rotor to resolve
the drawback situation that faced single rotor wind turbines. This study
found that by adding two rotors, you get more energy from the turbine.
Through lab tests and computer stimulations, it was found that there
was an 18% increase in energy.
In a more recent study (in August 2017), a Canadian investment
firm stepped forward to fund the building of a 5-MW prototype of the
two-rotor Airgenesis 2013 design. The idea behind this design was two
rotors on the same shaft rotating in the same direction. A right-angle
drive in the nacelle turns a drive shaft to transmit power down tower
to an 11-MW generator mounted at the base of the turbine. This design
had three important aspects: to create more power, easier maintenance,
and take weight off the tower. Airgenesis Senior Vice President Clayton
Troxell states [15]: “The turbine will include two rotors as in the original
design, the center-tower drive shaft, and down-tower generators. The
5-MW design turned out to be a great model for the prototype. Once
testing completes, plans are to construct full-sized, 5- to 11-MW units for
wind farms around the world.”
Figure 1 shows the double rotor designed by Airgenesis, LLC that
the Canadian investment firm planned to fund, and construction ex-
pected to follow in Prince Edward Island, Canada in 2018.
The wind speeds at higher heights has an important impact on
wind turbines, making them more efficient. For this reason, wind tur-
bines today are reaching higher heights. Higher wind speeds mean more
electrical energy output, and wind turbines are getting taller to reach
higher heights winds [14]. The average wind turbine rotor diameter in-
stalled in 2015 grew to 102 meters, up 113% since 1998. By introducing a
 31

Figure 1. The initial 5-MW M2Y6Y 500, designed by Airgenesis®, LLC [14]

second rotor, this will eliminate the need to build such turbine structures
because it will be easier where wind energy can be harvested more ef-
ficiently.

METHODOLOGY

The present work is aimed to investigate the effect of adding a

second rotor to the traditional wind turbine. The second rotor will be
added in different arrangements as discussed in the next section. Figure
2 shows two prototyped double rotor designs were built to be tested in
open wind.
Three wind turbine models were designed and built for this study.
Three designs are made from the same material and have the same di-
mensions. However, the second rotor is smaller than the first rotor in the
double rotor cases. The models are tested in the ACK wind tunnel set up
under the same conditions of wind speed. Figure 3 shows the wind tun-
nel testing of the first arrangement when the second rotor is rotating in
different direction to the original rotor (counter current) and two rotors
uses different nacelles. Figure 4 shows the wind tunnel testing of the sec-
ond arrangement when the second rotor is rotating in the same direction
(concurrent) and installed on the same nacelle of the first rotor.
32 Energy Engineering Vol. 116, No. 1 2019

(a) Testing of the Two Models (b) Side View

(counter and single) (counter and single)

Figure 2. Design of two double rotor and one single rotor for open wind tests

The first design is the single rotor wind turbine, which is the hori-
zontal axis wind turbine with three blades. A 3D print technique was
used to fabricate the blades and the hub using the ACK 3D printer. Then
the model was placed inside the ACK wind tunnel. The wind tunnel
speed of wind was varying to maximum of 10 m/s. Wind speed and the
power output measurement were recorded. Finally, the efficiency was
calculated. The same procedure was repeated for the double rotor wind
turbines. Where same dimensions and same wind speeds are used. The
add rotor is smaller than the original rotor. The recommended ratio is
4/9. Again, 3D printing technology was used to build the three blades
double rotor turbines (see Figure 5). The second model was the counter
current rotation and the third one was the concurrent double rotor wind
turbine.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The wind speed inside the wind tunnel was measured. Based on
this value, the wind power is calculated using Equation 1.
Figure 3. Wind tunnel testing of the counter current Figure 4. Wind tunnel testing of the concurrent double

33
double rotor horizontal axis wind turbine rotor horizontal axis wind turbine
34 Energy Engineering Vol. 116, No. 1 2019

Figure 5. Hub and blades produced using 3D printing technology

Pin = ½ ρ A ν3 Equation 1

where
Pin = Wind power input (Watt)
ρ = Air density, 1.23 (kg/m3)
A = Swept area of front blade (m2), defined as A = πR2 and R is
the rotor radius
ν = Wind speed (m/sec)

The wind turbine efficiency in general can be calculated using

Equation 2.

η = [(Pout)/(Pin)] * 100% Equation 2

Where Pout is obtained by measuring the output electrical power of the

wind turbine. For the single rotor arrangement, the measurements con-
ducted in the ACK wind tunnel is listed in Table 1.
It can be clearly seen that the power output and thus the efficiency
is increasing with increasing the wind speed.
The same procedure is applied to the double rotor arrangements.
However, the exit speed from the first rotor ν2 is the input speed to the
second rotor. The output powers of double rotors are determined by:

Pout1 = ½ ρ A1 13 Cp1 Equation 3

 35

Table 1.
Wind speed, power, and efficiency for single rotor 3-bladed HAWT.

Velocity Ptn Pout Efficiency

(m/s) (Watts) (Watts) (%)
3.5 0.83 0.02 2.5
4 1.24 0.04 3.1
4.5 1.76 0.06 3.5
5 2.41 0.10 4.2
5.5 3.21 0.16 4.9
6 4.17 0.23 5.5
6.5 5.3 0.35 6.7
7 6.62 0.47 7.1
7.5 8.15 0.68 8.3
8 9.89 0.86 8.7
8.5 11.86 1.20 10.1
9 14.08 1.60 11.4
9.5 16.56 2.30 13.9
10 19.31 2.90 15.0

Equation4

EquationS

In the above relations, the following terms are used:

Pout Output power (Watts)

A Swept area of first and second rotors (m2)
v Wind speed after hitting the first and second rotors (m/ sec)
a Axial induction coefficient
CP Performance coefficient of rotors
Subscript 1 refers to the first rotor, while subscript 2 refers to the
second rotor.
Based on that, the efficiency for the double rotor wind turbines is
defined in Equation 6.

'Y] = [(Poun) + CPout2)]/CPin) * (100%) Equation6

The results of testing the double rotor wind turbines concurrent

36 Energy Engineering Vol. 116, No. 1 2019

and counter current are listed in Tables 2 and 3, respectively.

It is noticed that an increase in the efficiency of the double rotor
designs is observed, as shown in Tables 2 and 3. This is because the sec-
ond rotor extracts additional energy from the wind stream that leaves
from the first rotor. In the original design where single rotor is used, the
wake stream energy from the rotor is lost because there is no second ro-
tor. The second rotor acts like a second harvesting tool that extracts the
energy stored in the exiting stream from the first rotor. This increases the
efficiency of the turbine. As can be seen in Tables 1 and 2 at 10 m/s wind
speed, the efficiency was increased from 15% in Table 1 to 17.4% in Table
2 when the second rotor is added.
In Table 3, the same trend is noticed, which is increasing the power
output and the efficiency with increasing the wind speed. However, the
efficiency recorded in the counter-current double rotor rotation is higher
than the concurrent rotation and higher than the single rotor turbine. In
the counter-current rotation, the efficiency reaches 18.1% at same wind
speed compared to 17.4% and 15% in concurrent rotor and single rotor
wind turbine designs, respectively.
The counter-current rotation makes the two shafts of the genera-
tors rotate independently with different speeds; thus, each one of the
generators produces independent power, where it can be simply added.
However, in the concurrent rotation, the shaft of the generator is affected
by the movement of the second rotor. The larger rotor will dominate the
motion, which will convert the turbine into a single rotor in some stages,
mainly at low speed. Thus, the concurrent motions of the two rotors in-
terferes and affects the rotation of the generator shaft. The efficiencies of
the three wind turbine models are compared in Figure 6.
It should be mentioned here that the input energy into the double
rotor concurrent rotor is smaller than the single rotor and double rotor
counter current rotation. This is attributed to the second rotor, which
is smaller than the original rotor, is added in front of the original rotor,
which will decrease the swept area and thus reduce the power input.
The extracted energy is low; however, it will interact with the second
rotor directly and the energy stored in it will be extracted and thus the
energy lost is still less than the single rotor wind turbine. If the second
rotor is inserted behind the original bigger turbine, its performance
might be similar to the single rotor because the bigger rotor will domi-
nate the motion, and the energy extracted is negligible from the second
rotor because there is only one generator shaft.
 37

Table 2. Wind speed, power, and efficiency for double rotor concurrent rota-
tion 3-bladed HAWT

Velocity P;n Pout Efficiency

(m/s) (Watts) (Watts) (%)
3.5 0.21 0.009 3.1
4 0.31 0.014 3.2
4.5 0.44 0.021 3.3
5 0.60 0.036 4.2
5.5 0.80 0.060 5.2
6 1.04 0.080 5.4
6.5 1.33 0.130 6.9
7 1.66 0.203 8.6
7.5 2.04 0.280 9.6
8 2.47 0.367 10.4
8.5 2.96 0.539 12.7
9 3.52 0.738 14.7
9.5 4.14 0.904 15.3
10 4.83 1.201 17.4

Table 3. Wind speed, power, and efficiency for double rotor counter current
rotation 3-bladed HAWT

Velocity P;n Pout Efficiency

(m/s) (Watts) (Watts) (%)
3.5 0.83 0.02 2.5
4 1.24 0.04 3.1
4.5 1.76 0.06 3.5
5 2.41 0.10 4.2
5.5 3.21 0.16 4.9
6 4.17 0.23 5.5
6.5 5.3 0.38 7.2
7 6.62 0.60 9.1
7.5 8.15 0.84 10.3
8 9.89 1.16 11.8
8.5 11.86 1.57 13.2
9 14.08 2.20 15.6
9.5 16.56 2.80 16.9
10 19.31 3.50 18.1
 38
Energy Engineering
Vol. 116, No. 1
Figure 6. Efficiency of three wind turbine designs versus wind speed

2019
 39

CONCLUSION

An experimental study was conducted for three designs of single

rotor, double concurrent, and double counter current three-bladed
horizontal axis wind turbines. The ACK wind tunnel was used to test
the three wind turbine designs at wind speeds up to 10 m/s. The results
of wind tunnel tests are obtained to measure output wind power and ef-
ficiency of wind turbines. The results indicated that efficiency increased
when a second rotor was added to the single rotor wind turbine. Also,
the efficiency of the counter rotating double rotor prototype was higher
than the efficiency of the single and the concurrent double rotor.
The results for efficiency of the single and counter rotating wind
turbine designs indicated that they were equal until velocity of 6 m/s.
After 6 m/s, the counter rotating prototype produced higher efficiency
values. Efficiencies of the counter rotating prototype and the single rotor
turbine were 18.1% and 15.0% respectively, at the speed of 10 m/s.
The concurrent wind turbine prototype, when compared to the
counter-rotating prototype, also showed slightly higher efficiency but
fell below the counter-rotating design. In this work, the double rotor
wind turbines were found more efficient than the single rotor wind
turbine. The trends show that at higher wind speeds, the efficiency of
double rotor wind turbines may continue the same increasing trends
compared with single rotor.

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————————————————————————————————
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Ahmad Sedaghat, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Australian
College of Kuwait (ACK). He has over 25 year’s experiences in computa-
tional and experimental techniques in mechanical, aerospace, and mari-
time engineering. He has developed courses and supervised engineering
students in thermo-fluid and aerospace subjects and obtained industrial
funds in renewable energies of wind, solar, wave and geothermal. Dr.
Sedaghat obtained his Ph.D. in aerospace engineering and M.Sc. in ap-
plied mathematics & fluid mechanics at the University of Manchester in
the United Kingdom. He is a Fellow Member of Engineers Australia and
Adjunct Professor of CQU. Contact him at a.sedaghat@ack.edu.kw.

Ehab Hussein Bani-Hani, Ph.D., is an assistant professor at the

Australian College of Kuwait (ACK). He has 15 year’s experiences in
combustion and environmental management, water and waste water
treatment. Dr. Ehab received his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at the
University of Jordon and Master’s degree in chemical engineering at the
Jordan University of Science and Technology. He currently researches
energy and renewable energy systems. He may be contacted at e.hani@
ack.edu.kw or at ehabhbanihani@gmail.com.