Downburst-Induced Loads on a Six-Row Array of Ground-Mounted Solar Trackers

Abstract

[Abstract]: This work presents the preliminary analysis of the tests conducted at the WindEEE Dome in the framework of the ERIES-SOLAR project for downburst flow. The wind tunnel characteristics, the instrumentation and reduced scale model of a six-row array of solar trackers is briefly described. The flow, similar to a vertical downburst with impinging jet velocity Uij = 8.6 m, is characterized based on the velocity records at various heights and distances from the downburst axis, obtaining the ensembles of several repetitions, PDFs, spectra and Morlet wavelets, identifying the ramp-up, plateau and decay stages. The downburst action on the array of solar trackers is assessed based on the time-dependent pressure coefficients recorded simultaneously by 576 pressure taps. In this work, the results are presented for one case of a vertical downburst, with the center of the six-row array model located at a distance 0.7D from the downburst vertical axis. Strong increments in the net pressure coefficients are identified, associated with the effect of the deflected flow and the primary vortex reaching the vicinity of the panels. The detailed analysis of the large amount of data generated will be instrumental to identify the peak actions on solar trackers due to downburst occurrences, enabling the recommendation of load cases to be included in the best practice guidelines and structural codes for storm-prone regions.