Evaluation of the different aerodynamic databases for vertical axis wind turbine simulations

A review on a wide number of different aerodynamic coefficient databases to be used for vertical axis wind turbine simulations is conducted in this work. The databases are adopted in conjunction with a Blade Element-Momentum algorithm, a commonly used tool to design and verify the aerodynamic behaviour of these machines. Experimental data derived from field test available in the literature for a wide range of rotor sizes are considered and compared to the simulation results. The aerodynamic databases provide strongly different estimations due to the different working conditions: in each case suggestions on their use are provided based on their reliability. Finally, resuming all the conducted validations, practical general considerations are proposed to the wind turbine designer to conduct reliable simulations.