Post #3798556
2026-07-06 21:49 UTC
Concrete has a lot of thermal mass. I could believe that it stays warm enough that ice can’t stay on the surface, especially with a reservoir of non-frozen water behind it.
The steel brackets and aluminum panel frames will get a lot colder, especially with wind blowing around them. Basically the same principle as a bridge forming ice before the road on either side of it. An exposed metal frame with a wind chill can develop ice even if the average temperature around it is above freezing.
Hmm… and that makes me wonder if the solar array bolted to the concrete surface acts like a heatsink? That would be an interesting unintended consequence.
Replies (2)
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@MangoCats@feddit.it 2026-07-07 02:57
I could believe that it stays warm enough that ice can’t stay on the surface When the sun shines, yes. After 30 days of straight overcast? Not so much.
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@brucethemoose@lemmy.world 2026-07-06 21:58
Interesting indeed. They should have bolted the panels closer, with shrouds flush with the concrete around the edges! Or maybe add a coolant loop? Perhaps the concrete helps with that already, but is just too technical to include in this article.