What are vertical and horizontal axis turbines?
There are two common wind turbine designs: horizontal and vertical. While many vertical axis turbines have been constructed over the years, horizontal axis turbines have been in commercial operation much longer. All commercial wind turbines in Saskatchewan are horizontal wind turbines. Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) A vertical axis turbine uses the wind to spin on a centre point on the ground, resulting in the whole construction spinning round. A significant advantage to this design is the turbine will rotate regardless of the wind direction, thus requiring simpler controls and making them less affected by turbulent wind. Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine HAWTs use propeller type blades to create friction when facing the wind, resulting in the spinning motion.
