The key step of the industrial development of tidal energy is testing the turbine in a controlled environment. At present, there is no available experimental protocol which address the differences between the facilities currently employed for this type of technology in a quantitative manner. It has been difficult to compare the results obtained in the different facilities, therefore there has only been sensitive comparisons of their efficiency. In order to evaluate the ability of different experimental facilities, a comparative "Round Robin" testing programme has been conducted by MaRINET. The aim of the trials was to test the tidal turbine model in four different test facilities. The results obtained in each facilities showed a near identical key performance. The expected differences appeared in the fluctuations of torque and drag measurements between the different tank designs (circulating and towing). The main facility parameters which can influence the behaviour of the turbine were identified.
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