Design and Simulation of Grid-Connected Vertical Axis Wind Turbines for Roadside Energy Harvesting from Vehicle-Induced Airflow
No Thumbnail Available
Authors
Alajmi, Mansour
Almutairi, Saud
Alsahli, Abdullah
Buolayyan, Saleh
Sultan, Khalid
Issue Date
2026-01-02
Type
Conference contribution
Language
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
This paper presents a grid-connected energy harvesting system that utilizes vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs) to convert vehicle-induced airflow on highways into usable electrical power. A detailed MATLAB/Simulink model was developed to simulate a system comprising 30 Savonius-type VAWTs driving induction generators, capacitor-based power factor correction, roadside lighting loads, and bidirectional grid interaction. The system was evaluated under varying wind speeds, turbine inertia constants, and with/without reactive power compensation. Results show that increasing wind speed significantly enhances power generation and power factors, higher inertia improves dynamic stability, and capacitive compensation reduces reactive power drawn from the grid. A prototype of the system is implemented and illustrated. The proposed approach demonstrates technical feasibility for roadside renewable energy integration, with potential environmental and economic benefits.