Use of calculus of variations to determine the shape of hovering rotors of minimum power and its application to micro air vehicles

In this paper, calculus of variations and combined blade element and momentum theory (BEMT) are used to demonstrate that, in hover, when neither root nor tip losses are considered; the rotor, which minimizes the total power (MPR), generates an induced velocity that varies linearly along the blade span. The angle of attack of every blade element is constant and equal to its optimum value. The traditional ideal twist (ITR) and optimum (OR) rotors are revisited in the context of this variational framework. Two more optimum rotors are obtained considering root and tip losses, the ORL, and the MPRL. A comparison between these five rotors is presented and discussed. The MPR and MPRL present a remarkable saving of power for low values of both thrust coefficient and maximum aerodynamic efficiency. The result obtained can be exploited to improve the aerodynamic behaviour of rotary wing micro air vehicles (MAV). A comparison with experimental results obtained from the literature is presented.

Smoothing of PV power fluctuations by geographical dispersion

The quality and the reliability of the power generated by large grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) plants are negatively affected by the source characteristic variability. This paper deals with the smoothing of power fluctuations because of geographical dispersion of PV systems. The fluctuation frequency and the maximum fluctuation registered at a PV plant ensemble are analyzed to study these effects. We propose an empirical expression to compare the fluctuation attenuation because of both the size and the number of PV plants grouped. The convolution of single PV plants frequency distribution functions has turned out to be a successful tool to statistically describe the behavior of an ensemble of PV plants and determine their maximum output fluctuation. Our work is based on experimental 1-s data collected throughout 2009 from seven PV plants, 20 MWp in total, separated between 6 and 360 km.

Contribution sharing of a fuel mixture components to the fuel cell potencial of a direct alcohol fuel cell

The increasing worldwide demand for electricity impels to develop clean and renewable energy resources. In the field of portable power devices not only size and weight represent important aspects to take into account, but the fuel and its storage are also critical issues to consider. In this last sense, the direct methanol (MeOH) fuel cells (DMFC) play an important role as they can offer high power and energy density, low emissions, ambient operating conditions and fast and convenient refuelling.