Simulating Snow Loss at Utility PV Installations in Michigan: An Annual and Hourly Analysis
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Publication Date
11-15-2024
Department
Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
Abstract
Utility-scale photovoltaics in northern climates is increasing, which introduces a new concern in PV generation - production loss from snow cover during snow events. In a grid that relies more on utility-scale solar, snow events may cause resource adequacy issues as well as grid operation challenges. This research uses PySAM to simulate yearly production loss from snow cover at fifteen existing and 163 queued utility solar sites in Michigan over ten years of historical weather data. The analysis estimated that some of the existing sites could lose as much as 19% of annual DC power production during a heavy snow year. When grouped by existing fixed and tracking systems, the fixed-tilt systems lost as much as 13.3% and the tracking systems as much as 10.5% of their possible annual production. When modeling all the queued sites as fixed-tilt systems, their combined loss was 12.8%. Modeling the queued sites as single-axis trackers showed a combined loss of 11.3%. Snow loss was also simulated during two historical snow events on an hourly scale, which showed that snow cover extended beyond the days of snowfall. On average, the simulation showed fixed-tilt systems shedding snow before single-axis tracking systems. Because production data at individual sites is not widely available, these estimates provide valuable insight into the magnitude of snow's impact. With the increase in utility solar installations, this study highlights the possibility of production loss due to snow cover in northern climates with high utility PV grid injection.
Publication Title
Conference Record of the IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference
ISBN
[9781665464260]
Recommended Citation
Wickett, S.,
&
Dyreson, A.
(2024).
Simulating Snow Loss at Utility PV Installations in Michigan: An Annual and Hourly Analysis.
Conference Record of the IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, 332-337.
http://doi.org/10.1109/PVSC57443.2024.10749210
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p2/1307
