In August 2023, a severe storm caused the failure of many PV trackers of a solar park near Jeddah, KSA. sbp sonne was commissioned by the client to conduct a root cause analysis (RCA) for the failed PV trackers.
One reason cited for the damage to many PV modules and tracker constructions was that the wind speeds measured during the wind storm were greater than the design wind speed at some measuring points in the solar field. It was also recognised that the greatest damage was caused by the failure of the steel structure and not the PV modules. Their damage was a consequence of the failure of the steel structure. Different degrees of damage were observed in different areas of the solar field. Corresponding investigations showed that there were correlations between the panel tilt angles during the wind storm and the damage caused. One particular tracker type was most affected by the wind storm. Its stow position and component dimensioning were assumed to be decisive in terms of its failure. Apart from this, there were other findings from the tracker design documentation that were linked to the damage. These included the applicability of the aeroelastic wind tunnel test and its results with regard to critical wind speed in relation to the design speed. The verification of the stability of some components was also scrutinised. The testing was carried out in accordance with the tried and tested German testing system, which offers reliable control and guarantees independence by applying the dual control principle.
