Shadow on adjacent rows for mounted structures

Can SAM evaluate the losses due to self-shadowing on adjacent rows if the PV array is mounted, say, 3 meters above the ground? Design of Agrivoltaics. If so, can you assist?

Thanks
Claud

Hi Claud,

Yes. For the Detailed PV model, you can enable self shading on the Shading and Layout page. Please refer to the Help topic for that page for details.

Best regards,
Paul.

Thank you, Paul.
I could not find where to include an elevation for the solar array to calculate self-shadowing to adjacent rows accurately. 
Is there an example or documentation on how this is done?

Regards
Claud  

Hi Claud,

The elevation of the array above sea level is determined by the elevation value in the weather file, which you can see on the Location and Resource page. This value is used with the time stamp, latitude, and longitude values from the weather file to determine the sun position. You can see the value of sun angles in the simulation results.

Best regards,
Paul.

 

Thanks once again Paul.

The elevation I am referring to is the mounting of the PV panels above the ground and not the elevation of the land. Please see the attached diagram.
I want to place the PV panels on stilts that is approximately 3m high. As such it will cast a longer shadow as opposed to placing it just above ground level.

Regards
Claud

Hi Claud,

The ground clearance height input on the Module page describes the distance between the ground and the bottom of modules (fixed) or tracking axis (one-axis tracking), but that input only applies to bifacial modules.

For self-shading calculations, SAM assumes that the ground under the modules is flat and uniform, and that all modules are the same distance from the ground.

I would expect the distance between the ground and the modules to affect shadows on the ground, but not shadows on neighboring modules because the distance between modules is not affected by their height from the ground.

If you are using the spatial albedo option on the Location and Resource page (under "Albedo - Sky Diffuse Model - Irradiance Data (Advanced)" on the Location and Resource page) to estimate solar energy available on the ground under the array, then the ground clearance height does affect the irradiance on the ground shown on the "Spatial" tab of the Results page. If you are modeling non-bifacial modules with the spatial albedo option, you have to temporarily enable the bifacial option on the Module page, set the ground clearance height, and then disable it.

Best regards,
Paul.