| Work Detail |
Scientists tested the performance of floating photovoltaic panels at heights of 800 mm and 250 mm above their floating structures. Their thermal and electrical performance was compared with that of a reference land-based system, and the tallest panel was found to exhibit the greatest cooling effect. Researchers at Curtin University Malaysia have compared the thermal behavior of floating photovoltaic (FPV) systems at different heights, also comparing it with a land-based system. We analyzed these in a real-world setting, corresponding author Ramanan CJ told pv magazine . This study experimentally validates the results of our previous computational work, and as for the next step, were working on numerical estimates. The study was conducted in Miri, a city in East Malaysia, in a 5-meter-wide waterway. All configurations included a 100 W monocrystalline photovoltaic module with an efficiency of 15.5%. Its dimensions were 1,252 × 670 × 30 mm. Panel 1 was an FPV panel, installed 250 mm above the water, while FPV 2 was installed 800 mm above the water. Panel 3 was installed on land, also 800 mm above the ground. The ideal solar PV tilt angle for Malaysia is 15°, and the azimuth was kept at 0° South for all three systems. The FPVs were built using high-density polyethylene (HDPE) cans, plywood, steel band wrap, slotted angle bars, nuts, and bolts; while the terrestrial LPV was constructed using slotted angle bars. The measurement sensors were connected to a Raspberry Pi computer, with the electronics housed in a plastic case and the cables covered by PVC conduit. Data were collected over a total of six days, from July 16 to 23, 2024, and analysis showed that the high-altitude FPV exhibited the greatest cooling effect, followed by the identical ground-based photovoltaic (LPV) system, and then the low-altitude FPV. As a result, the low-altitude FPV achieved temperatures more than 2°C cooler than the LPV system, although this cooling advantage occurred primarily at dawn, when solar radiation was low and inadequate for effective power generation, the researchers explained. During the day, the high-altitude FPV provided a cooling benefit 57% of the time, maintaining a temperature range of 0°C to 2°C lower than the LPV at the same height. They also found that the cooling effect made the high-altitude FPV the most efficient system. In terms of power generation, the high-altitude FPV achieved a 2.45% peak efficiency improvement over the low-altitude FPV. It also achieved a 1.47% peak efficiency improvement over the LPV during the afternoon. In contrast, the low-altitude FPV demonstrated minimal cooling benefits for most of the day, with temperatures mostly ranging between 0°C and 1°C above the LPV, the scientists added. Their findings were presented in “ Thermal behavior of floating photovoltaics: A comparison of performance at varying heights and benchmarking against land-based photovoltaics,” published in Applied Energy . |
