Performance analysis of a vertical axis micro wind turbine coupled with two different batteries serving a single-family house in Italy and Norway

The performance of a commercial Savonius vertical axis micro wind turbine (characterized by a maximum power output of 2.2 kW) has been analysed via the software TRNSYS while serving a typical house as a function of weather conditions of 3 Norwegian and 5 Italian cities. The selected wind turbine has been investigated while coupled with an electric battery; in particular, two different electric storages (with capacity of 2.4 kWh and 5.1 kWh) have been considered. The related performance has been contrasted from energy, environmental and economic points of view against a reference scenario (assumed as baseline) corresponding to the case where the same building's electric demand is entirely met by the central grid. The results underlined that the selected wind turbine integrated with a battery can decrease the annual electricity purchased from the central grid, global equivalent carbon dioxide emissions and operational costs up to –88.9%, –87.9%, and –106.2%, respectively, with a minimum simple payback period of 4.2 years.