TY - GEN
T1 - Impact of Manufacturing Methods on the Aerodynamic Performance of the SG6043 Airfoil
T2 - 24th LACCEI International Multi-Conference for Engineering, Education and Technology, LACCEI 2026
AU - Jiménez-Ceciliano, Maximino
AU - José Montero-Jiménez, Juan
AU - Richmond-Navarro, Gustavo
AU - Calderón-Muñoz, Williams
AU - Uchida, Takanori
AU - Miguel Sánchez-De-La-Hoz, José
AU - Fernando Montoya-Vallejo, Miguel
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2026 Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions. All rights reserved.
PY - 2026
Y1 - 2026
N2 - Prototyping is a fundamental tool in airfoil design and aerodynamic research, enabling rapid evaluation of geometry, manufacturing constraints, and performance through experimental testing. Among commonly used prototyping techniques, laser cutting and fused deposition modeling (FDM) are widely adopted in airfoil development. This paper presents an experimental comparison of two prototyping manufacturing methods applied to SG6043 airfoil models for small-scale wind turbines operating under low wind speed conditions. The airfoils were fabricated using laser cutting with medium-density fiberboard (MDF) and FDM with polyethylene terephthalate glycol-modified (PETG). Their aerodynamic performance was assessed in a wind tunnel, focusing on lift, drag, and lift-to-drag (L/D) ratio. Experimental results show that the FDM-manufactured airfoil outperforms the laser-cut prototype, achieving an L/D ratio approximately 20% higher. These findings highlight the influence of prototyping methods and material selection on airfoil aerodynamic performance and support the use of FDM for rapid prototyping in airfoil design and research.
AB - Prototyping is a fundamental tool in airfoil design and aerodynamic research, enabling rapid evaluation of geometry, manufacturing constraints, and performance through experimental testing. Among commonly used prototyping techniques, laser cutting and fused deposition modeling (FDM) are widely adopted in airfoil development. This paper presents an experimental comparison of two prototyping manufacturing methods applied to SG6043 airfoil models for small-scale wind turbines operating under low wind speed conditions. The airfoils were fabricated using laser cutting with medium-density fiberboard (MDF) and FDM with polyethylene terephthalate glycol-modified (PETG). Their aerodynamic performance was assessed in a wind tunnel, focusing on lift, drag, and lift-to-drag (L/D) ratio. Experimental results show that the FDM-manufactured airfoil outperforms the laser-cut prototype, achieving an L/D ratio approximately 20% higher. These findings highlight the influence of prototyping methods and material selection on airfoil aerodynamic performance and support the use of FDM for rapid prototyping in airfoil design and research.
KW - Prototyping
KW - Rotor
KW - SG6043 Airfoil
KW - Wind tunnel
KW - Wind turbine
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105048854711
U2 - 10.18687/LACCEI2026.1.1.1589
DO - 10.18687/LACCEI2026.1.1.1589
M3 - Contribución a la conferencia
AN - SCOPUS:105048854711
T3 - Proceedings of the LACCEI international Multi-conference for Engineering, Education and Technology
BT - Proceedings of the 24th LACCEI International Multi-Conference for Engineering, Education and Technology - Engineering without Borders
A2 - Petrie, Maria M. Larrondo
A2 - Texier, Jose
A2 - Matta, Rodolfo Andres Rivas
PB - Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions
Y2 - 16 June 2026 through 18 June 2026
ER -