Effect of snow loads on structural systems of solar power plants

Energy has become one of the fundamental factors that determine the living standards of societies, as well as their economic and political power at the global level. In this context, societies aiming to meet their energy needs in line with the principles of environmental sustainability are turning to developing renewable energy technologies Solar energy technologies play an important role in the development of sustainable energy systems by minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and negative effects on the ecosystem caused by fossil fuels. For this reason, the number of studies on solar energy-based electricity generation technologies is increasing considerably. In this study, Turkey's potential to benefit from solar energy is evaluated; the ratio of solar energy-based electricity production and the installed power of the solar power plant is investigated. The snow load that may affect the structural strength of the load-bearing systems of ground-mounted solar power plants has been discussed. In this context, the causes of damage due to snow load such as incorrect determination of ground snow load, structural design deficiencies, material and workmanship errors, problems between the carrier system and the ground, and maintenance and cleaning deficiencies are examined. The calculation methods of the standards TS 498-1997, TS 498-2021, TS EN 1991-1-3, ASCE 7-22 and NBCC 2020, that can be used in snow load calculations are compared; and it was determined that the snow load values calculated according to these standards are different significantly. The structural effects of snow loads obtained from the standards in question are evaluated on the example ground-mounted solar power plant. For each standard, the purlin, beam and column capacity ratios obtained from static analyses using the SAP2000 program are compared in different design scenarios. As a result of these comparisons, it is concluded that designs made according to different standards may show significant differences. In addition, it has been observed that parameters such as the slope and the exposure to wind significantly affect the design of ground-mounted solar power plant.