3 ms·
Shrouds do two things: 1) they improve the efficiency by reducing tip vortex losses; 2) they increase the effective diameter of the turbine, so Betz' law is cir
by D_Alex 15y ago
Shrouds do two things: 1) they improve the efficiency by reducing tip vortex losses; 2) they increase the effective diameter of the turbine, so Betz' law is circumvented to SOME degree.
I worked for a time on shrouded propellers for ship propulsion and studied ducted propellers for aircraft. These are more efficient than unshrouded propellers - but in each case the difference is under 10% - this is combined gain from reduced losses and larger apparent diameter. With turbines, things are a bit more complex, because with a well designed duct you achieve an effective diameter actually larger than the duct itself, and capture the additional wind energy from that extra area. Taking things to absurdity, I am fairly sure (without doing the math...) that you could have a relatively small turbine inside an enormous duct, and achieve 3x the power of an unshrouded turbine of that diameter. But this is a poor solution, because the large duct will surely cost a lot more than a larger conventional wind turbine.