Critical Wind Direction Angles and Edge Module Vulnerability in Fixed Double-Row Photovoltaic (PV) Arrays: Analysis of Extreme Wind Conditions Based on CFD Simulation

Yuheng Hu, Hongzhou Zhang (), Zhenwei Luo (), Yupeng Zhou and Guoshun Yuan
Additional contact information
Yuheng Hu: Collage of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Tarim University, Alar 843300, China
Hongzhou Zhang: Collage of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Tarim University, Alar 843300, China
Zhenwei Luo: Collage of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Tarim University, Alar 843300, China
Yupeng Zhou: Collage of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Tarim University, Alar 843300, China
Guoshun Yuan: Collage of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Tarim University, Alar 843300, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 9, 1-26

Abstract: Fixed double-row photovoltaic (PV) arrays are susceptible to wind-induced damage, while their wind load characteristics remain inadequately investigated. This study employs computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations to systematically analyze wind load behavior under varying operational conditions, aiming to identify critical scenarios and structural vulnerabilities. First, the validity of the CFD methodology was verified through direct comparison between wind tunnel pressure measurements of an isolated PV module and corresponding numerical simulations. Subsequently, scaled PV array models were constructed to replicate practical engineering configurations, enabling a systematic evaluation of wind direction effects on mean net wind pressure coefficients and three-component force coefficients. Finally, surface wind pressure distribution patterns were examined for four representative wind angles (0°, 45°, 135°, 180°). Results demonstrate that edge-positioned modules exhibit maximum mean net wind pressure coefficients and three-component force coefficients under oblique wind angles (45° and 135°), which are identified as the most critical operational conditions. In contrast, minimal wind loads were observed at a 90° wind angle, indicating an optimal orientation for array installation. Additionally, significantly higher surface wind pressure coefficients were recorded for edge modules under oblique winds (45°/135°) compared to both interior modules and other wind angles. It was found through the study that under upwind conditions (0–90°), the lower-row components are capable of withstanding greater wind loads, whereas under downwind conditions (90–180°), an increase in the loads exerted on the upper-row components was observed.

Keywords: double-row photovoltaic panels; CFD; wind pressure distribution; wind direction angle (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/9/2330/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/9/2330/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:9:p:2330-:d:1648442

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().