A canton in Switzerland commissioned a challenge by which photo voltaic panels have been hooked up vertically to a roadside retaining wall.
The canton of Appenzell Ausserhoden in northeastern Switzerland is aiming to generate at the very least 40% of its electrical energy from renewables by 2035. So, it exercised slightly creativity and coated a roadside retaining wall with 756 glass-glass photo voltaic panels.
The panels have an output of 325 kW and an power yield of round 230,000 kWh yearly. That is equal to the consumption of about 52 Swiss households. The power will likely be fed into the grid of power provider St. Gallisch-Appenzellische Kraftwerke, and the canton will get a feed-in tariff in return.
German mounting system supplier K2 Methods and Swiss contractor Solarmotion put in the vertical system on the 75-degree retaining wall. The panels have been anchored on a mounting rail with HUS screw anchors, and Lichtenstein-based Hilti supplied mechanical dowels.
The PV system was anchored on and within the masonry utilizing an adhesive method. An anchoring depth of a most of 90 mm couldn’t be exceeded in order that the retaining wall wouldn’t be adversely affected.
Because of the shut proximity to the asphalt, the photo voltaic panels’ elements are topic to distinctive corrosion necessities and are anodized for cover. Oblique elements are product of aluminum – solely the screw anchors are product of chrome steel.
K2 Methods says that “particularly within the winter months (when consumption and dependence on international electrical energy imports are at their highest), the vertically aligned modules will obtain a superb electrical energy yield.”
Electrek’s Take
This isn’t a giant challenge, but it surely’s a delightfully artistic one, which is why it caught my eye. A retaining wall is lifeless area, and snow will slide off the panels in Swiss winters.
We at Electrek adore it when photo voltaic is put in in clever and ingenious methods. Warehouse rooftops? Cowl them. Freeway medians? Canal covers? Field shops? Put photo voltaic on them. It simply is smart.
Learn extra: In a US first, California will pilot solar-panel canopies over canals
Picture: K2 Methods
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