SolarPro Solar Site Evaluation

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SolarPro| Decembe/Jnuy 2009

T

here are multiple actors to consider whenevaluating a site or a photovoltaic or solarthermal installation, and each may impactoptimal energy production. In addition tolatitude and longitude, which determine thesun path characteristics, panel or collectororientation—tilt and azimuth—deines theield o view that an array has o the sun. Shading romtrees, hillsides, buildings or other obstructions can causesigniicant degradation in energy production. Additionally,local and regional weather patterns result in site-speciicseasonal and daily luctuations in solar insolation.Tese actors combine and interact to determine thesolar energy incident on an array and thereore impact bothnancial returns and customer satisaction. ools and tech-niques used in site evaluation emphasize shade analysis andoptimizing solar access.

By Mark Galli and Peter Hoberg

Solar Site Evaluation

Improve system perormanceand energy harvestprojections with a thoroughsite evaluation that includesshading analysis andinsolation quantifcation.

Toos & Tiqs to Qti& Optiiz Potio

spfessin.cm |SolarPro55

The ImPOrTance O SITe evaluaTIOnS

An early and thorough site evaluation can lead to bettersystem designs that will result in the ollowing beneits:increased energy production by selecting the best loca-tion or the solar array; improved accuracy in energy pro-duction estimates due to better quantiication o shadingand other site-speciic issues; optimized inancial incen-tives, such as state-speciic rebates that adjust or panelorientation and shading; improved system installation andmaterials cost estimates; and increased customer satisac-tion and conidence, which in turn can lead to repeat orreerred business.Leading solar system designers and installers investsigniicant eorts into on-site data collection and evalu-ation, especially during customer qualiication, initialdesign and proposal preparation. he site inormationgathered includes:

•Measurementoflocationparameters,including

available area or the array, roo pitch or site grade,and azimuth.

•Measurementofsolaraccessandimpactofshade-

causing obstructions, as well as evaluation o shade-reduction strategies, such as tree trimming orremoval.

•Identicationofissuesthatcouldjeopardizethe

viability o a project or result in increased design andinstallation complexity and implementation cost,such as conductor and trench routing; proximity o array to inverter; roong material integrity; raterand beam spacing or engineering calculations; andsaety concerns and access issues.

•Directcontactwiththeclienttodiscussadditional

issues, including possible aesthetic concerns andnancing plan options.

Sun PaThS

Solar access will depend on the sun’s location, deinedby elevation angle and azimuth direction, as it variesthrough each day and throughout the year. his pathcan be plotted or a given latitude and longitude. Anexample sun path chart is shown in both rectilinear and polar ormats in Graphs 1a and 1b.

ypically, sun chartsare centered around south (180° azimuth) or sun path dia-grams in the Northern Hemisphere, and around north orsun path diagrams in the Southern Hemisphere. Examplesshown in this article are or the Northern Hemisphere withreerences to summer and winter rom a Northern Hemi-sphere view.he sun path is a unction o latitude and longitude, andit shits with changes in location. his eect is illustrated or

twodifferentlocationsinGraphs2aand2b(p.56).Moving

north toward higher latitudes, the annual sun path chart

shifts,indicatingthatthesunisatlowerelevations.Mov

-ing south, the chart shits, indicating higher sun elevations.

5am6am7am8am9am10am11am12pm1pm2pm3pm4pm5pm6pm7pm180º 210º 240º 270º 300º150º120º90º60º

S o l a r E l e v a t i o n

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Graphs 1a & 1b

A sun path chart or Portland, OR, in (a) rectilinear and (b) polar ormats.

D a t a  o u r t e s y s o l a r d a t . u o r e g o n . e d u ( 2 )

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SolarPro| Decembe/Jnuy 2009

Solar Site Evaluation

Movingwesttowardgreaterlongitude,thesun’spathremains

the same, but the time or each sun location is shited towardlater in the day.Note that a latitude shit o 2° to the north (138 miles)shits the noon elevation angle by less than 2°. A longitudeshit o 2° (108 miles at 38.6° N) causes a time shit o about10 minutes at noon. When making measurements at a site,using exact coordinates is ideal; but it is normally sucientto use the sun paths or locations within 50 miles o the sitebeing surveyed and in the same time zone.

ShadIng analySIS

Shade can have a dramatic impact on solar production.Evaluating it is critical beore getting too ar into the systemdesign process. Various on-site analysis

continueD on page 58

Defiitis:Tes Used iS Site Evuti

InSolaTIon.

th d slr rd  hrh’s sr   v m wdw, ylly xrssd kWh/m

2

/dy.

Solar accESS/ShaDIng.

Slr ss s hr  h sl   v l, ld shd, h sl vlbl  h l wh shd.Slr ss s ylly xrssd  r r  vm rd, sh s  mh, ss, r yr.

opTImUm TIlT anD orIEnTaTIon.

Fr y l, h mm l d r s hs xd l d r r slr rrys h bsrbsmxmm slr ry vr h rs   yr.

TIlT anD orIEnTaTIon FacTor (ToF).

toF s h slr sl  h

actual

l d rdvdd by h sl  h

optimum

l d r-, xrssd  r.

ToTal Solar rESoUrcE FracTIon(TSrF).

tSRF s h r  sl vlbl - r bh shd d toF, mrd  h l s-l vlbl   v l  h mm l dr d wh  shd. tSRF s ls xrssds  r. tSRF = slr ss x toF

magnETIc DEclInaTIon.

M dl- s h zmh s bw m rh dr rh, xrssd  drs s r ws.

TypIcal mETEorologIcal yEar (Tmy).

tMY s  ll  whr rm h ldsd b sl r vry hr   yl yrmd s hsrl whr d.

Image 1

Using a fsh-eye lens, solar access measurementsand computed results can be charted.

c o u r t e s y s o l m e t r i  .  o m

DecNo vOc tSep Aug Jul Jun

12:0014:0016:0018:0010:008:006:00

DecNo vOc tSep Aug Jul Jun

12:0014:0016:0018:0010:008:006:00

Graphs 2a & 2b

The polarsun path chart in 2a showsSacramento, CA (38.6N 121.5W,black lines), and a 2° shit inlatitude to the north (green lines).Graph 2b shows a 2° shit inlongitude to the west (greenlines) o Sacramento.