Assessment of the Current State of Photovoltaic Panel Mounting Systems and Related Concerns in Northern Cyprus
, oraz | 24 kwi 2023
O artykule
Data publikacji: 24 kwi 2023
Zakres stron: 131 - 142
Otrzymano: 28 sie 2022
Przyjęty: 24 lut 2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/acee-2023-0010
Słowa kluczowe
© 2023 Shaghayegh Ostovar Ravari et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Figure 1.
![Share of electricity production by different sources in the world from 1985 to 2021 [10]](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/647071cd71e4585e08a9d416/j_acee-2023-0010_fig_001.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20240622T091913Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=18000&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKP25APDM2%2F20240622%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=acb13434edec2838fa475b7e104a743dcd13f15542004907edcf06e77784c82e)
Figure 2.
![The share of each North Cyprus power plant in electricity production [27]](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/647071cd71e4585e08a9d416/j_acee-2023-0010_fig_002.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20240622T091913Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=18000&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKP25APDM2%2F20240622%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=fb9b11189c6032681028d23c452feabb221f37ed49b81ac3086b6e03b4cc638f)
Figure 3.
![Global horizontal irradiations (GHI) in Cyprus [29]](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/647071cd71e4585e08a9d416/j_acee-2023-0010_fig_003.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20240622T091913Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=18000&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKP25APDM2%2F20240622%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=784b2831128d60df9f2a3ff1f59ad6c00ad36054287f9fbb0ae6f7769d1dc547)
Figure 4.
Figure 5.
Figure 6.
Responses of PV panel users to the conducted survey
| Criteria | Description | Results | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mounting system problems | Mounting system problems | The mounting systems of PV panels have problems during or after installation. | 53% |
| Side effects of mounting systems | Roof problems | The roof has some problems such as water leakage due to the installation of solar panels. | 31 % |
| Impact on aesthetics | The solar panel system affected the beauty and aesthetics of the building. | 72% | |
| User concerns | Concerns about maintenance | Users are concerned about maintaining solar panels. | 34% |
| Concerns about PV panels on very windy days | Users have ever been worried about solar panels on very windy days. | 63% | |
| Occasional inspection of PV panels | Users have been on the rooftops regularly to inspect the panels and are worried about everything going well. | 66% |
Problems of mounting systems of PV panels based on inspections
| Problem | Explanation | Photo |
|---|---|---|
| Rust problems | Rust problems are due to weather conditions and the lack of galvanized elements. While based on the Northern Cyprus Solar Power Generation Plant Technical Specification, which in Turkish is called “Kuzey Kibris Güneş Enerjisi Üretim Santrali Teknik Şartnamesi”, the service life of mounting systems of PV panels is at least 25 years and all elements of the mounting system must be made of galvanized steel. | |
| Connection problems | The design and implementation of connections between system members and connections between the system and the roof are crucial. But the following problems were observed in some installation systems: A large number of members are connected at one point. The implementation of joints, especially in welded joints, is extremely inappropriate. |
|
| Height of the mounting system | The height of mounting systems affects the aesthetics of the building and its surrounding area. In addition, as the height of the mounting system increases, the effect of wind load increases. Several high-rise mounting systems are seen in Northern Cyprus, while the effect of the height of the mounting system was not been considered during the design phase. | |
| Distance to the edge | The distance between the rooftop PV panels and the roof edge is significant for several reasons, including: It affects the aesthetics of buildings and urban areas. Provides convenient access for maintenance and cleaning PV panels. Provides access to all parts of the roof in case of danger. |
|
| Aesthetics | It is crucial to preserve the aesthetics of buildings and the surrounding area after installing rooftop PV panels, however mounting structures sometimes cause visual pollution due to the disorganized state of the panels or high-rise and bulky mounting systems. | |
| The tilt angle of PV panels | The recommended tilt angle range for Northern Cyprus, according to YEK data, is 25 to 35 degrees. However, panels are installed in this region at a variety of tilt angles, and installation companies do not take the recommended tilt angles into account. |
Results of interviews with PV panel installation companies
| Category | Criteria | Number of companies out of 7 |
|---|---|---|
| Roof considerations | Available roof area | 7 |
| Locations of the project | 5 | |
| PV arrays and other equipment | 7 | |
| Size of electrical services | 4 | |
| Roof condition | 7 | |
| Roof orientation | 7 | |
| Roof age | 7 | |
| Proximity to other equipment | 7 | |
| Risk assessment | 6 | |
| Accessibility | 5 | |
| Working spaces | 6 | |
| Installation considerations | Shading issues | 5 |
| Architectural and aesthetic | 3 | |
| Codes and local standards | 0 |
|
| Mounting system | Materials of the mounting system | 4 |
| The tilt angle of PV panels | 3 | |
| Height of the mounting system | 3 | |
| Mounting system calculations and analysis methods | Consideration of related design loads | 3 |
| Suitable loads calculation methods | 2 | |
| Appropriate load-resisting system | 3 | |
| Structural analysis for each case | 2 |