A Study on a Floating Solar Energy System Applied in an Intertidal Zone

Abstract

This study was aimed at investigating a floating solar photovoltaic (FPV) system by numerical and experimental simulations under wave and wind loads to analyze the motion characteristics of the platform, the tension of the mooring line, and the pressure and uplift coefficient of panels at 2.5 m/5 m water depth conditions. The floating platform was installed with four rows of solar panels, each row with five panels, attached with four catenary types of mooring lines at the corner of the platform. The numerical model was based on ANSYS AQWA and ANSYS FLUENT (ANSYS Inc., Canonsburg, PA, USA). The experiment model was a scaled FPV platform with four rows of panels scaled in the 1:4 scale ratio. The results obtained from the experiment and numerical simulation achieved a good agreement. The results show that under normal sea conditions, the FPV system may resonate in a high frequency of wave condition, and a larger lift force occurred at the windward surface. Under extreme sea conditions, the pitch motion of the floating platform changed about ±6° without overturning; however, the wind will cause a large drift of the floating platform and the vortex area formed, which will cause damage to the solar panel.