Wind pressure characteristics and wind vibration response of long-span flexible photovoltaic support structure

Uong-span flexible photovoltaic support structures have been increasingly used because of their good site adaptability and economy. For improving the wind resistance design method of such structures, wind tunnel pressure test was conducted on a long-span flexible photovoltaic support structure with variable inclination angles, so as to investigate the distribution characteristics of mean and fluctuating wind pressure coefficients of photovoltaic panels under different wind azimuths as well as the extreme wind pressure change law of photovoltaic modules under full range wind azimuths. The power spectrum of the fluctuating wind pressure under typical wind azimuth was also given. On the basis of the wind pressure distribution characteristics of photovoltaic modules, the finite element software ANSYS was employed to simulate the wind-induced response of the flexible photovoltaic support structure, and the corresponding vibration coefficient was obtained. Research results show that at wind azimuths of 0° and 180°, the mean wind pressure coefficient appeared gradient distribution along the incoming flow direction and the absolute value decreased rapidly. With the increase in wind azimuth, the maximum absolute value of the wind pressure coefficient moved from the windward leading edge to the corner of the windward end. The trend of fluctuating wind pressure distribution on photovoltaic panels was similar to that of mean wind pressure distribution. Compared with structural displacement response, the cable tension response was not sensitive to the changes in wind speed. The wind vibration coefficients of the downwind and vertical displacements achieved maximum values at U = 8 m/s, and the values were 2.11 and 1. 98. The research can provide reference for wind-resistant design of similar photovoltaic structures. © 2022 Harbin Institute of Technology. All rights reserved.