Elevated solar panel installation not only saves money on electricity costs but also improves the building’s environmental credentials. This aids in the certification process for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). Should we go for an elevated design structure?
Deploying solar power for high-rise constructions is challenging, since these buildings have a small rooftop area in comparison with their indoor space. Also consider that tall buildings normally have many types of mechanical equipment on their rooftop, since there is no space for them elsewhere.
Finally, high-rise buildings have great potential to gain solar radiations because of their vast facades. Analyzing case studies illustrate that applying solar passive strategies in high-rise buildings have a meaningful effect on reducing the total annual cooling and heating energy demand.
When considering solar power for a high-rise building, managers often find that the return on investment is attractive in spite of the space limitations. Tall buildings tend to have very high air conditioning expenses during summer, since they have an ample wall area that is constantly reached by sunlight.
If we go with a traditional solar installation, it takes up the entire rooftop space and only gives us a height of 500mm above the ground (it is for cleaning purposes to remove dust and debris). If we choose an elevated design, we will have a clearing distance of 2000 mm (depending on the consumer’s needs) from the ground level.
Although high-rise buildings have a small rooftop area compared with total indoor area, a solar photovoltaic system can still achieve an excellent financial performance. The electricity generation will be small compared with the total building consumption, but also keep in mind that the installation is affordable due to its small size.