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Design Guide for Rooftop Solar

INTRODUCTION
Climate change and an increasing awareness on sustainability, RJC must provide industry leading
the economics and sustainability of solar energy information to our clients on the structural impact of
has brought the use of solar power to the forefront solar panels on existing construction, new construction
of the building industry. Industry professionals and and future installations. The following white paper
building owners are increasingly considering solar provides recommendations on the structural design of
power as an alternate or supplemental form of energy roofing systems when considering solar panels.
to their buildings. To remain at the leading edge of
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BACKGROUND
Solar power is produced by converting sunlight into nights buildings must rely on other forms of energy
electricity. The two major methods of converting that come from a power grid. Also, a large surface
sunlight into electricity are photovoltaics (PV) and area is also often required to effectively capture solar
concentrated solar power (CSP). CSPs utilize mirrors energy [2].
and tracking systems to concentrate sunlight onto
a small heat collector. The concentrated heat is Critics of solar power have brought into question the
then used in conventional power plants [1]. CSPs are material and energy used to produce PV panels. The
typically used for large scale power production plants production of Solar PVs involves many materials that
and are not commonly used in the building industry can be hazards to the environment and to producers
[2]. PVs are more common in the building industry and through accidental or fugitive emissions especially in
utilize the photovoltaic effect to create voltage through regions where low environmental regulations exist.
certain materials (i.e. silicon, arsenide, etc.) when For example, Gallium Arsenide, an important material
exposed to light. Essentially, photons of light excite used in high-efficiency solar cells, is considered a
the surface of a semiconductor, knocking electrons known carcinogen and is listed in The California
loose to become part of a charged electrical field. This Environmental Protection Agencies’ list of chemicals
field generates an electromotive force that can be known to cause cancer. Silicon tetrachloride, a by-
tapped by wires into a useable form of electricity. This product of the production process, is also an extremely
electricity is typically created and supplied from the toxic substance and can be an extreme environmental
roof using solar panels and distributed to the building hazard. Furthermore, the purification of silicon requires
using electrical wiring [3]. high temperatures which are achieved by highly energy
intensive and expensive processes. This process
Solar power has both benefits and limitations. also results in up to 80% of the initial metallurgical
Once installed, solar power installations have very grade silicon being lost in the production process. It is
low operation and maintenance costs. They do not imperative that technological innovation lead to safer
produce air pollutants or carbon dioxide and have a and more efficient means of producing solar panels.
minimal impact on the environment when located Excessive waste, environmental hazards and potential
on buildings. It is considered a renewable and fairly health hazards resulting from the production process
sustainable source of energy [6]. However, the sun can significantly undermine the environmental gains
is not available at all times of the day and during the realized by using solar power [4].

DEVELOPMENT
As with any form of energy conversion, solar conversion has an efficiency rate. Ongoing advances in
manufacturing and materials have resulted in current efficiencies of up to 22% for silicon based panels. Cells in
the R&D phase have been known to reach up to a 40% efficiency [5]. These advancements in solar technology
and improvements in efficiencies are decreasing costs for the use of solar power. Building owners and industry
professionals are increasingly considering and using solar panels as a preferred method of energy production
in their buildings as efficiencies increase. Designers must design roofing systems for the structural impact of
existing, new and future solar panel installations.

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TYPES OF SOLAR PANELS

Roof mounted PV Solar Panels are typically supported flat roofs. They can be easily installed on the roof
by racking systems which come in two basic forms. surface and are usually more economical. The average
The first is a mechanically fastened system and the weight of a ballast system can range from .17 kPa to
second, the more common of the two, is a ballast .34 kPa which includes the racking, the panels, and the
restrained system. The mechanically fastened system average weight of the ballasts over the surface area
penetrates through the roofing membrane and can of the PV system. The distribution of the ballasts on
be used in pitched roofs and flat roofs. A complete a roof is typically not uniform and usually has more
mechanically fastened PV system, including the panels weight concentrated along the edges and corners
and the racking, weighs between .1 kPa to .24 kPa [7]. of a building, where wind loads are higher. In high
The more common systems are restrained on the roof seismic zones and post-disaster buildings, special
by ballast weights and has no roof penetrations. These consideration may also be required to prevent sliding
systems are typically low profile and are installed on of the PV system.

Part of the limitations of solar panels is that the sun is not available at all times of the day and a large surface
area is required to capture a usable amount of the suns energy. The larger the surface area required to support
the PV system, the greater the potential impact on the building structure.

STRUCTURAL IMPACT (ECONOMICS)

The use of rooftop solar panels increases the the roof structure. However, when considered in light of
superimposed dead load (SDL) of the roofing system the total building costs, this additional costs may prove
and can have varying impact on a building depending to be minimal. Unlike new construction, upgrading for
on what material is being used for the structural solar panels on an existing steel or wood roof can lead
system. For concrete buildings, which intrinsically have to significant renovation costs. In new construction
a higher structural self-weight, the relative additional projects, the designer should always consider alerting
weight of the solar panels will generally prove to be an the owner and design team to the long-term savings
insignificant portion of the building’s total structural that potentially result from designing new roofs for
costs. For a steel or wood low rise building, the relative future a PV installation, considering the anticipated rise
additional weight from rooftop solar panels can add in the use of solar energy in the future.
approximately 10% to the total factored design load of

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STRUCTURAL IMPACT (ECONOMICS) - continued

It is also important to note that the installation of solar panels supported by low profile racking systems will
typically not increase the snow loading on a structure. The apex of the solar panels is usually designed to be just
below that of basic snow depth on a flat roof. The designer should confirm this with the solar panel supplier.
Higher profile stand mounted PV arrays can have a greater impact on roof snow loads and wind loads and
should be individually investigated. As well, solar panel installations on sloped roofs can act to trap snow that
otherwise may have been considered to slide off the roof structure.

Finally, roofing systems installed in new buildings are typically designed to outlast or at least match the average
life of the new solar PV system which is about 25 years. Depending on the type of panel installation used this will
allow for synergies to be realized in replacement cost.

CONCLUSION
Solar power as an alternative source of energy is coming to the forefront of the building
industry. Owners are becoming more aware of the benefits and potential cost savings from the use of PV solar
panels. Although solar panels have significant cost savings throughout the life of the building, upgrading existing
buildings for solar panels can prove to be a costly undertaking. Considering making buildings solar ready early in
the design process of new building projects can save building owners and operators significant future upgrading
costs. The design and construction of solar ready buildings will add additional costs to the structural, mechanical
and electrical systems and should therefore be discussed with the design team as to the impact on all building
systems.

In anticipation of future solar installations, we recommend that new buildings be designed with reserve capacity.
An additional superimposed dead load allowance of 0.25 kPa should be used in the design of the roofing
structure for future installations. It is important to note that the distribution of ballast weight is not uniform and
may, in future, still require localized upgrades to the structure. For this reason, consideration should be given to
increasing the superimposed dead load allowance for individual roof members for wood or steel joist systems
to 0.50 kPa. This increased allowance would be for the individual joist members only and would not impact the
design loading of roof beams, building columns, and supporting foundations.

The owners of solar ready buildings should be advised to work with the solar panel supplier to attempt to stay
within the load allowance when designing PV systems to be installed on solar ready buildings.

For assessment of existing buildings and solar panel installations on new buildings, we recommend that
designers obtain system specific information on weights from the PV supplier. The information contained in this
paper may be used for preliminary design.

To find out more about rooftop solar design, visit: www.rjc.ca or contact Jeff Rabinovitch directly.

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REFERENCES

[1]S. Association, ‘Concentrating Solar Power’, SEIA, 2015. [Online]. Available:

http://www.seia.org/policy/solar-technology/concentrating-solar-power. [Accessed: 15- Sep- 2015].

[2] Eia.gov, ‘Solar - Energy Explained, Your Guide To Understanding Energy - Energy Information Administration’,
2015. [Online]. Available:
http://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=solar_home. [Accessed: 15-Sep- 2015].

[3]D. Roberts, ‘A solar future isn’t just likely it’s inevitable’, Vox, 2015. [Online].
Available: http://www.vox.com/2015/4/28/8506953/solar-photovoltaic-future.
[Accessed: 15- Sep- 2015].

[4]D. Mulvaney, ‘Hazardous Materials Used in Silicon PV Cell Production: A primer’, Solar Industry Magazine, 2013.

[5]A. Carrere, Solar Panel Design Decision and General Information Sheet, 1st ed. iSAT Group, 2015, p. 7.

[6]G. Solar, ‘Custom Solar Electric Systems in Alberta | Great Canadian Solar’,
Greatcanadiansolar.com, 2015. [Online]. Available:
http://www.greatcanadiansolar.com/solar-photovoltaic/. [Accessed: 15- Sep- 2015].

[7]Flat Mounting Solution, 1st ed. SOLARDOCK, 2014.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

U.S. Department of Energy, ‘Solar Ready Buildings Planning Guide’, National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
Golden, Colorado, 2009.

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