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Floating Solar Panels - Solar Novus Today

Floating Solar Panels

Written by Jane Morrill
28 February 2011

Developed by a Franco-Israeli partnership, this new solar power technology introduces a new paradigm in energy production.
The project is the result of collaboration between Solaris Synergy from Israel and the EDF Group from France. Eureka provided the supporting platform that allowed to enhance the companies’ partnership. After receiving the Eureka label, the project, called “Aquasun,” also found support from the Israeli Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor. “We are very pleased with the collaborative dimension of the project,” says Dr. Elyakim Kassel, coordinator of the Aquasun project and business development manager at Solaris Synergy.

Soon after the design phase was over, at the end of March 2010, the fabrication of a prototype began and the team is aiming to launch the implementation phase in September 2011. The tests will take place at Cadarache in Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur, France. The site has a privileged position on the French electric grid and is close to a local hydro-electric facility providing the water surface to be used to install the system. It will operate on-site for a period of nine months, while assessing the system’s performance and productivity through seasonal changes and various water levels. The research team members believe that by June 2012 they will have all the information they need to bring the technology to market.

The project team identified the almost untouched potential of solar installations on industrial water basins already in use for other purposes. This ensures that the new solar plants will not have a negative impact on natural landscapes.

After solving the question of space, the team took on the problem of cost. The developers were able to reduce the costs linked to the implementation of the technology in two ways:

• First, they reduced the quantity of solar cells used, thanks to optical mirrors that concentrate the sun, while keeping steady the amount of power produced.

• Second, the team implemented a creative cooling system using the water on which the solar panels are floating.

Thanks to this efficient cooling method, the PV system can use silicon solar cells, which tend to experience overheating problems and need to be cooled in order to allow the system to work correctly. The particular type of solar cell used also allows a higher efficiency than usual, achieving both reliability and cost-reduction.

Still for the purpose of making the technology efficient and ready to market, the system is designed in such way that it is possible to assemble as many identical modules on a solar platform as needed for the power rating desired. Each module produces a standard amount of 200 kilowatts (kW) of electricity, and more power can be achieved by simply adding more modules.

The team also worked on the environmental impact of the technology. The floating panels work as a breathing surface through which oxygen can penetrate to the water. This feature ensures that sufficient oxygen will maintain the underwater life of plants and animals. Dr. Kassel adds, “One of the implementation phase’s goals is to closely monitor the possible effects of this new technology on the environment with the help of specialists [and] a preliminary check shows no detrimental environmental impact on water quality, flora or fauna. Our choices of materials were always made with this [environmental] concern in mind.”

The project was featured at the 4th International Eilat-Eilot Renewable Energy Conference last week on 22-24 February 2011 in Eilat, Israel, giving the public the opportunity to observe how the floating concentrated PV system functioned. According to Yossi Fisher, Solaris Synergy’s chief executive officer, the installation in Eilat was a milestone.

Dr. Kassel sees a final benefit to his project: “Today, each country must consider the best resources it has … to produce clean energy. For example, hydroelectric power is good where there are waterfalls, geothermic is productive for countries with thermal springs and solar power is very efficient where there is sun. Our system could be of great use in places that are exposed to sun, but [don't] necessarily have sufficient natural water. Even dry countries, such as Israel or the North African countries, have industrial waters that are not rain-dependent. This fact makes the floating solar power plant a reliable [way] for them to produce renewable energy.”

Written by Jane Morrill, Special Projects Editor



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