Best Practices for Commercial Roof-Mounted Photovoltaic System Installation (SpringerBriefs in Fire)

This Springerbrief Presents Information On A Wide Variety Of Hazards And The Damage Potential Caused By Installation Of A Photovoltaic (pv) System. The Current Installation Practices For Pv Systems On Roofs Create Electrical, Fire, Structural, And Weather-related Hazards That Do Not Comply To Current Codes, Standards And Guidance Documents. Potential Dangers Include Structural Loading, Wind Loads, Hail, Snow, Debris Accumulation, Seismic Hazards, Firefighting Hazards, And Electrical Hazards. Despite The Increased Popularity Of Pv Systems After The Environmental Movement, Research Shows That The Costs Of Installing Pv Systems Outweigh The Benefits. Hazards Of Pv Systems On Roofs Have Caused Several Incidents In The United States; The Most Notable In Bakersfield, California, And Mount Holly, North Carolina. Designed For Fire Engineers And Professionals, Best Practices For Commercial Roof-mounted Photovoltaic System Installation Offers Recommendations To Set Up Pv Systems Safely And Sustainably. Introduction -- Structural Loading -- Wind Loads -- Hail -- Snow -- Debris Accumulation -- Seismic -- Fire Hazards -- Electrical Hazards Associated With Fire Fighter Operations -- Weather-related Maintenance Considerations -- Compilation Of Best Practices -- Hazard Gap Analysis. By Rosalie Wills, James A. Milke, Sara Royle, Kristin Steranka. Preface 6 Acknowledgments 7 Project Technical Panel 8 Project Sponsors 9 Contents 10 1 Introduction 12 1.1 Research Objective 12 1.2 Background 12 1.3 Overview of Previous Incidents 13 1.4 Overview of Photovoltaic (PV) Systems 17 2 Structural Loading 20 3 Wind Loads 24 4 Hail 33 5 Snow 36 6 Debris Accumulation 37 7 Seismic 39 8 Fire Hazards 44 8.1 Flammability of Components 44 8.2 Ignition Hazards 48 9 Electrical Hazards Associated with Fire Fighting Operations 54 9.1 Overview of Hazards 54 9.2 Mitigation Measures 55 9.2.1 Electrically Active PV Systems 58 9.2.2 Suppression Tactics 61 9.2.3 Ventilation Tactics 62 10 Weather-Related Maintenance Considerations 64 11 Compilation of Best Practices 66 11.1 Structural Loading 66 11.2 Wind Loads 66 11.3 Hail 67 11.4 Snow 68 11.5 Debris Accumulation 68 11.6 Seismic 68 11.7 Fire Hazards 69 11.7.1 Flammability of Components 69 11.7.2 Ignition Hazards 70 11.8 Electrical Hazards Associated with Fire Fighting Operations 72 11.9 Weather-Related Maintenance Considerations 74 12 Hazard Gap Analysis 75 12.1 General Knowledge Gaps 75 12.2 Testing and Calculation Gaps 76 12.3 Structural and Wind Loads 76 12.4 Hail Impact Forces 76 12.5 Snow Loads 77 12.6 Seismic Hazards 77 12.7 Fire Hazards 77 References 79 Front Matter....Pages i-xiv Introduction....Pages 1-8 Structural Loading....Pages 9-12 Wind Loads....Pages 13-21 Hail....Pages 23-25 Snow....Pages 27-27 Debris Accumulation....Pages 29-30 Seismic....Pages 31-35 Fire Hazards....Pages 37-46 Electrical Hazards Associated with Fire Fighting Operations....Pages 47-56 Weather-Related Maintenance Considerations....Pages 57-58 Compilation of Best Practices....Pages 59-67 Hazard Gap Analysis....Pages 69-72 Back Matter....Pages 73-76