Predicted Slip of Ballasted Solar Arrays on Angled Roofs Due to Seismic Motion

摘要

During the design and installation of rooftop solar systems, it is often desirable for architectural reasons to support the solar panels without anchors attached to the structure, depending on friction for lateral resistance. This scenario has previously been studied with shake table tests and analysis in OpenSees and SAP 2000, resulting in the publication of a SEAOC standard. This paper contributes closed-form equations and fast-running code that will allow the development of simple design equations and probabilistic approaches. The proposed governing equations are presented then validated by comparison to an equivalent analysis with SAP 2000. Once validated, the equations are used to produce parametric plots of slip as a function of friction coefficient, roof slope, and intensity of roof shaking. This study is a proof of concept using a single earthquake record scaled to various intensity levels; other limitations and planned future work are detailed.