International Journal of Engineering Research and Advanced Technology (IJERAT) E-ISSN : 2454-6135 DOI: 10.31695/IJERAT.2020.3675 Volume.6, Issue 12 December -2020 www.ijerat.com Page 63 Licensed Under Creative Commons Attribution CC BY * Corresponding author email: auwalwdl@gmail.com Design of Self-erecting Tower for a Wind Turbine Auwal Ibrahim 1 , I. S. Diso 2 , S. T. Auwal 1 , Musa Alhaji Ibrahim 1 , M. S. Dambatta 1 , and S. Ramesh 3 1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kano University of Science and Technology, Wudil, 3244 Kano, Nigeria 2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Bayero University 3011 Kano, Nigeria 3 Center of Advanced Manufacturing and Materials Processing (AMMP), Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia ______________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT The rise in total installed wind energy structures globally demonstrated the dominance of wind energy among the means of sustainable energy production. However, the major challenge in the installation of horizontal-axis wind turbines is the use of mobile cranes to install the components. This research reports on a new method of installing the wind turbine without the use of a mobile crane. A self-erecting design was proposed, in which the whole components of tower and turbine will be assembled at the installation site. The highest peak wind speed adopted for the site under research was 56 km/h, the thickness of base plates material that connected the tower to the base was 11 mm, and the calculated size of jack recommended to lift the tower was 2575 kg. Also, the stiffness of the weak section of the tower was calculated to be 8633 kN/m, and the frequency of vibration of the tower was found to be 191 Hz. A 48 V, 1600 W A.C wind turbine was selected to be installed on the tower under design for the analysis of forces acting on the tower. The wind speed data used for the chosen site was recorded during the raining season in Kano. The design considered a tubular steel tower, from steel pipes that are symmetrical in diameter, but with the diameter of the pipes increasing toward the base: 51 mm, 73 mm and 89 mm. The pipes were to be assembled together using steel reducer sockets, and then to be welded to obtain a permanent solid tower. The erection of the tower was designed to be achieved by the use of a jack, preferably electric jack that requires less effort to operate, attached at the fulcrum, while the tower tilted at the pivot that connected the tower to the base. The proposed structural advancement can meet the design requirements and lower the construction cost of the tower significantly. Key Words: Self-Erecting, Electric Jack, Wind Turbines, Structural Design, Steel Tower. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1. INTRODUCTION In recent years, the need for sustainable energy resulted in a plethora of innovative technological solutions. Thus, the clear energy sources (the wind and the sun) have received considerable attention. Among the latter efforts, the wind plays a predominant role on the scene of clear energy production [1, 2]. To further exploit the wind potential, the actions on the towers equally increased and their safe and economical design became essential for increased advancement of the wind energy sector [3]. Nowadays, the cost of the tower constitutes more than 25% of the initial wind turbine system [4, 5]. Therefore, a considerable number of authors have focused on improving the structural designs of wind turbine towers in recent years to reduce the cost of the tower. Generally, a tower is a tall structure, taller than its width, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings and self-supporting structures. Towers can be stand-alone structures or be supported by adjacent buildings or can be a feature on top of a large structure or building. Towers are specifically distinguished from buildings in that they are not built to be habitable but to serve other functions. The principal function of towers is the use of their height to enable various functions to be achieved including visibility of other features attached to the tower such as clock towers, as part of a larger structure or device to increase the visibility of the surroundings as in a fortified building such as a castle, or as a structural feature as an integral part of a bridge, and can also be used to harness the available sources of energy in