Impact of Solar PV Laminate Membrane Systems on Roofs

In 2008, CH2M HILL performed a solar site analysis of the HP Pavilion facility for the City of San José under the Department of Energy’s Solar America Showcase program. Based on weight loading requirements of the facility’s roof, CH2M HILL recommended a building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) product that consists of thin-film, flexible photovoltaic modules that can be thermally welded to rolls of roofing membrane. The City of San José has requested information from the Tiger Team to address the following question: “The HP Arena is due for roof improvements. If this roof work is done prior to the installation of the recommended thin-film products, can the DOE Tiger Team estimate what affect (if any) would the proposed PV thin film installation have on the lifetime of the new roof?”