HAMILTON, ON — Cleanfield Alternative Energy Inc., a manufacturer and developer of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) technology solutions, has been involved in a research collaboration project with McMaster University's Department of Mechanical Engineering, and Ontario Centres of Excellence's (OCE's) Centre for Earth and Environmental Technologies. As a result, Cleanfield has made design improvements to various components of its initial VAWT and increased its power generation performance by approximately 50%.

Cleanfield CEO Tony Verrelli said, "All the leading-edge work we've done with the help of McMaster's engineering expertise and the OCE's financial support since 2005 is paying off by making an Ontario made product globally competitive. The sophisticated testing and technical modifications to the blades, struts and shaft have further established our V3.5 as a leading, high performance product. Cleanfield's V3.5 is capable of performing well on rooftops or on ground mounted towers, thereby reducing property owners' dependence on utility grid electricity. Cleanfield continues to see an increase in the adoption of its V3.5 around the world."

Dr. Stephen Tullis, leader of the research project and Assistant Professor at McMaster said, "The project team has achieved several key improvements to the V3.5. It is now much better structurally, and we have raised the power curve - increasing power performance by approximately 50% from that of Cleanfield's previous commercial turbine — as measured in large-scale wind tunnel tests. With Cleanfield's control system, the turbine can operate with low vibration and very low noise levels which are practically unnoticeable."

Cleanfield Chief Technology Officer Mihail Stern added, "We have a resonant frequency band skipping algorithm that protects against detectable vibration and sound for various rooftop applications, which further differentiates our technology in the marketplace. This translates into smooth and quiet rotation of our turbines in urban settings. For example, within the auditorium of Mohawk College, directly below two of our rooftop VAWTs, neither vibration nor sound is perceptible on a windy day."

"Having been involved with Cleanfield and McMaster for almost five years, it's so encouraging to see this collaboration produce an ever-improving technology that is poised to make an impact on the growing global clean energy market," said David Choat, OCE's Interim President and CEO. "This shows what can be achieved when you bring together a top academic research institute with a dynamic company."

The V3.5 system consists of a VAWT, sensor board and inverter, which have been developed as a fully integrated offering, which distinguishes it from competitor VAWTs. Cleanfield's proprietary inverter technology and customized, permanent-magnet generator have received Underwriters Laboratory (UL) certification in the US, and the Wind Energy Institute of Canada is testing Cleanfield's VAWT and the test results will be submitted to the Small Wind Certification Council.

For further information visit www.cleanfieldenergy.com.

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