The Whale and the Turbine
I have decided to start a new series of posts about how engineers can be inspired by nature! This first post is about whales and turbines. Some wind turbines have been designed with the flippers of a humpback whale in mind. These flippers have bumps on their rear edge which cause a smooth flow of water over the flippers so that the whale can swim in tight circles around prey. These bumps specifically mean that a smooth flow can be maintained even when the flippers are tilted at higher angles which explains the ability to swim in tight circles. One company claimed that their industrial fan with flipper-like blades could move the same amount of air with half the number of blades. Whale flippers are very aerodynamic and so are perfect for these applications!
#fromwhichitallSTEMmed
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[Accessed: 21/02/2022]