From Peter Greaves
In his recent letter, Gavin Lawrence asked if advances in modelling bee flight had been used in the design of wind turbines (1 December, p 31). The answer is sort of.
Vertical axis turbines in gustier areas are more effective if the blade is designed to be like a small bird’s wings, exploiting the unsteady aerodynamic effects that bees also benefit from. Fatigue testing of some turbine blades, in which a flapping motion is induced, is informed by the insect flight simulations he mentioned.
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
