Solar Power Analysis
In this project, I​ have chosen three cities across England—Newcastle, Sheffield, and Bristol, representing the north, middle, and south of the country—as the focus of my study. This project aims to analyse and compare the solar energy potential of these cities, assessing their feasibility for solar panel installation across different geographical regions in England.
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Highlights:
Raster Solar Radiation
Surface Parameters
Con
​Zonal Statistics
This project strengthened my enthusiasm for leveraging GIS as a tool for sustainable urban development and energy planning.
​Map 1 provides a general visualisation of building footprints within our three study wards: Watergate, Ashley, and Broomhill. A dark grey basemap was used to enhance visual contrast and readability. This stylistic choice was consistently applied throughout the report to maintain visual coherence and appeal. In addition to introducing the study area, this map establishes the design language used across the report.
Map 2 illustrates the distribution of solar radiation across the study wards. It was generated using the Raster Solar Radiation tool in ArcGIS Pro. The resulting map visualises both the intensity and spatial distribution of solar radiation within the study area.
In the next stage of analysis, we will apply surface parameters and the Con tool to identify cells most suitable for solar energy generation. The selection criteria are as follows:
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Solar radiation values must exceed 800 kWh/m²
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Slope must be less than 45 degrees
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Cells must not be north-facing
We applied the Zonal Statistics tool to assign raster values to each building footprint. This process allowed us to calculate the average solar radiation received by each building. Only buildings with a footprint larger than 30 m² were selected as suitable for solar installation. The result is shown in Map 3. Using the average radiation values, we then estimated the potential electrical power each building could generate. The radiation-to-power conversion was based on parameters from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, which specify the following criteria:
Solar panel efficiency: 21.6%
Performance ratio: 83%
Discussion
Our results showed that Ashley, a ward in Bristol, gets the most solar radiation, while Watergate in Newcastle gets the least. However, solar power potential depends on more than just radiation levels. Other important factors include the size and type of buildings, the slope of the surfaces, and the direction they face. Our results show, even though Watergate is in the North and gets less sunlight, it has more potential for solar power than the other two wards. This shows how useful spatial analysis can be for finding good opportunities that might not be obvious at first.