Patent ID: 8267665

Claim:
A rotor blade comprising: a root attachable to a rotor hub; a tip; a plurality of channels aligned within the blade extending lengthwise, parallel to one another, and generally between the root and the tip, at least one of said channels having a sealed first end and a second end vented to outside the blade; the at least one channel being vented to one or more exterior surfaces of the blade through a plurality of apertures in the one or more exterior surfaces such that rotation of the root of the blade results in centrifugal force acting on a fluid moving over said apertures, to produce a suction of the fluid through said apertures into the at least one channel and outwardly through the second end to the outside of the blade; and wherein the suction is produced by a pressure differential existing within the at least one of the channels when rotation of a hub to which the root of the blade is attached moves a fluid in the at least one of the channels toward the tip of the blade.