INVESTIGATION OF THE AERODYNAMIC CHARACTERISTIC OF SOLAR POWERED LAWN MOWER BLADES

Gasoline lawn mowers release a significant amount of pollutants into the atmosphere, making them a contributor to environmental degradation. To address this issue, the focus shifts to enhance the cutting performance of manual lawn mowers powered by solar energy. Through careful design and fabrication, solar lawn mowers are developed to evaluate their effective field capacity, which refers to the area that can be effectively mowed within a specific period. In addition to assessing field capacity, a stress analysis of the mower blades is carried out to identify the most suitable materials and conditioning processes that will optimize their performance during operation. The investigation not only explores mechanical aspects but also delves into the aerodynamic properties of the blades, particularly those shaped like the NACA5616 airfoil, which is installed on the lawn mower. The aerodynamic analysis focuses on understanding the lift-drag performance of the airfoil section when exposed to airflow in a typical mowing scenario. The results are quantified through detailed CL (coefficient of lift) and Cd (coefficient of drag) graphs, which depict the relationship between these two critical factors. Validation of these graphs ensures accuracy in the findings and underscores the effectiveness of the airfoil design. Moreover, the study visualizes the velocity contours around the blade at several angles specifically 30, 60, and 90 degrees. This visualization is crucial for analyzing the vortex and wake effects that develop as the blade moves through the air. By examining these effects, insights are gained into how the design of the blades impacts performance, allowing for further optimizations to enhance both efficiency and effectiveness in lawn maintenance with reduced environmental impact. Overall, the findings demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in the lift to drag ratio, indicating that the aerodynamic design can lead to better performance in solar-powered mowing applications.