Wind Loads on Solar Panels Mounted on Facade of High-Rise Residential Building

Wind effects on solar panels mounted on facade of high-rise residential building are studied through wind tunnel test. The model with scale ratio of 1:80 is adopted. Results show that the top floor panel is dominated by the upward negative wind load, and the panel at the mid height floor suffers the downward positive wind load, when the panels are mounted on the windward face. The influence of different inclination angles on force coefficient of the panel is also studied. It is found that positive peak force coefficient increases with the increase of panel's inclination angle, most unfavorable extreme wind suction decreases with increase of panel's inclination angle. Results show that the location of panels has significant effect on the design wind load. The peak force coefficient values of -3.50 and +1.50 can be used as the recommended values for design wind coefficients of the top floor panels. Peak force coefficient values of -3.0 and +2.5 can be used as the recommended values for design wind coefficients of the mid floor panels. The correlations between wind loads on different panels are also examined to check the flow mechanism around the panel. Different trends can be clearly checked from the results for different incident wind directions, suggesting the complex flow condition near panels. The greater the panel inclination is, the higher the correlation of net force coefficient between two adjacent panels is.

Automated summary

This study investigates the wind effects on solar panels mounted on the facade of a high-rise residential building through wind tunnel testing. The location and inclination angle of the panels are found to have significant effects on the design wind load. Additionally, the study examines the correlation between wind loads on different panels and the complex flow conditions near the panels.