Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1253-139X

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 4-4-2025

Abstract

Solar panels are a cornerstone of renewable energy infrastructure, playing a pivotal role in global sustainability efforts. To ensure their resilience and long-term viability, accurate wind load estimations are essential for designing supporting structures, which account for nearly 50% of their total cost. However, traditional building codes lack comprehensive guidance for solar panels, resulting in inconsistent estimations due to discrepancies in scaled wall-bounded wind tunnel testing methodologies. These inaccuracies pose safety risks, increase costs, and hinder adoption. Emerging technologies like computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations offer a promising alternative by enabling full-scale analysis under realistic conditions of complete turbulence. This paper explores the impact of geometric scale and inflow turbulence on wind load estimation, providing actionable insights to standardize testing protocols, improve reliability, and advance codification efforts for engineers, policymakers, renewable energy stakeholders, and the public.

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