A group of 45 students from the Bachelor in Engineering program at the University of Luxembourg has developed personal wind turbines as part of a competitive project-based learning course. The objective of this interdisciplinary project was to charge their mobile phones with the smallest amount of wind kinetic energy.
The students carried out the project from a to z: they defined the concept, elaborated the design, and then built and assembled the turbines using mainly 3D printers. They also tested and optimized their design, taking into account possible marketing and commercialization aspects of the devices.
The group was divided into six teams, and each team successfully produced one functional prototype. The competition was based on the aesthetic of the designs and the performance of the devices. Claude Wolf, senior lecturer at the Department of Engineering at University, identified team #5 as winners.
When asked about their future plans for the project, the students said that they would like to create a community of wind turbine enthusiasts in Luxembourg and why not commercialize them in a near future.
The Department of Engineering at the University plays an active role in energy management, and more specifically in wind energy potential, research. In the past, the University has organized, with Faculty and high school students, a number of hands-on workshops on building smaller and potentially affordable wind turbines.