Numerical Simulation of Wind Loading on Photovoltaic Panels

In this study, 3D unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulation is performed to predict the wind loading on a set of ground mounted photovoltaic (PV) panels immersed in atmospheric boundary layer. Attention has been given to proper modeling of inlet profiles, boundary conditions and turbulence model constants to minimize stream-wise gradients between the inlet and incident profiles. Distributions of pressure coefficients on top and back surfaces of the panel are investigated. Force and torque coefficients are also reported and the effect of Reynolds number on these coefficients is also discussed.