Advanced Design, Analysis and Optimization of HAWT Rotor Blades for Pakistan Wind Corridor

Abstract

Wind energy has emerged as a critical component of global renewable infrastructure, with horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) dominating installations worldwide. This study presents an optimized HAWT rotor blade design for the Jamshoro wind corridor in Pakistan using Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory and QBlade v0.96 simulation software. Eight NACA airfoils (00xx and 55xx families) were systematically analyzed across Reynolds numbers 4.0×10⁵ to 1.2×10⁶. Four 25-meter blade configurations were developed and evaluated under site-specific conditions (mean wind speed: 9 m/s, range: 5-14 m/s). Results demonstrate that the cambered 55xx blade configuration achieved maximum power coefficient Cp = 0.52 at tip speed ratio TSR = 9 (88 % of Betz limit), generating 500 kW at mean wind speeds and 1,373 kW at maximum conditions. The design outperformed symmetric configurations by 37 %. Parametric analysis revealed <5% performance variation with ±20 % chord/twist tolerance, validating manufacturing feasibility for emerging markets. Peak aerodynamic loading at 50-70 % span (3,423 N normal, 45,077 N tangential) provides structural design boundary conditions. The optimized blade enables 20-30 % cost reduction through indigenous manufacturing, supporting Pakistan's 30 % renewable electricity target by 2030.