Solar Panel Wind
Loading Demo
MingYao Ding
Applications Engineer
ANSYS Inc.
ANSYS,
Inc
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Content
• Solar Power Challenges
• ANSYS Simulation Capabilities
g example
p on a single
g
• Wind and solar loading
assembly
• Wind loading on a 3x3 solar assembly array
• Design Exploration
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Solar Power Industry Business
Challenges
g
• Decrease time to market
– Accelerate testing and certification processes
• Optimize (enhance) performance
• Increase reliability
y and q
quality
y
– 20-30 years of expected operational life
• Decrease manufacturing costs
– Millions of units manufactured mean small savings
add up quickly.
photo © Marli Miller
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ANSYS Simulation Capabilities
• Structural Design
g
– Seismic safety
– Reliability in high wind
conditions
• Manufacturing
g costs
– Traditional silicon
– Thin film
– Nanostructures
• Performance
Structural
Mechanics
Fluid
Dynamics
Lower photo © Georg Winkens,
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Wind and solar loading case
Wind and solar loading on
a single solar panel
assembly
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Geometry
Glass Solar Panel
Heat sink
• Solar Panel on
supports with a
heat sink
Steel Support
Concrete Footing
Air around the solar panel
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CFD Analysis
•Conjugate heat transfer model
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CFD
Pressure profile
CHT temperature and streamlines
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Mechanical Analysis
Imported
p
Temperature
p
Imported Pressure
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Mechanical Results
Deformation
Stress
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Wind Loading of an Solar Array
3x3 solar arrayy
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3x3 Solar Panel Array
Solar panels shield one another from the wind.
We can simulate this behavior by analyzing an array of solar panels.
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Problem Setup
Fluid region only
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Solar Panel Array Loading
Pressure and streamline
Wind induced deformation
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Design Exploration
Design Exploration
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Design Exploration
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GDO
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Conclusion
• Demonstrated Capabilities
– Fluid-thermal-structural coupling of solar
panels
– Efficient analysis for solar assembly arrays
while taking into account fluid structural
interaction
– Efficient Design exploration
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Thank You
• Questions?
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