Energy production and water savings from floating solar photovoltaics on global reservoirs

Jin, Yubin; Hu, Shijie; Ziegler, Alan D.; Gibson, Luke; Campbell, J. Elliott; Xu, Rongrong; Chen, Deliang; Zhu, Kai; Zheng, Yan; Ye, Bin; Ye, Fan; Zeng, Zhenzhong

doi:10.1038/s41893-023-01089-6

Cited by 36 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Among different techniques, modular floating covers offer an efficient and scalable solution for suppressing evaporative losses from small reservoirs. Mechanistic modeling accompanied by laboratory and field measurements indicate that floating covers may suppress evaporative losses by Earth's Future 10.1029/2023EF004050 more than 80% while supporting multiuse applications (e.g., fish cultures and floating photovoltaic plants) and maintaining water quality for certain purposes (e.g., drip irrigation) (Aminzadeh et al, 2018;Bakhtiar et al, 2022;Jin et al, 2023;Lehmann et al, 2019;Pourmand et al, 2022).…”

Section: Water Management Implications Of Evaporative Water Loss In S...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaporation Loss From Small Agricultural Reservoirs in a Warming Climate: An Overlooked Component of Water Accounting

Aminzadeh,

Friedrich,

Narayanaswamy

et al. 2024

Earth's Future

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Small agricultural reservoirs support water demands during dry spells. However, evaporative losses that are often overlooked in water accounting and management diminish the storage efficiency of these popular but un‐inventoried resources. We developed a predictive framework to identify the spatio‐temporal extent of small reservoirs (900–100,000 m2) and quantify their evaporative losses using a physically‐based model. Focusing on water‐stressed regions of Europe (Italy, Spain, and Portugal), our results indicate that the total number and cumulative area of small reservoirs in drier areas of Europe almost doubled in two decades from about 6,200 reservoirs with the cumulative area of 46 km2 in 2,000 to 11,800 reservoirs with the cumulative area of 93.5 km2 in 2020. We observed climate‐driven trends in the expansion of agricultural reservoirs and their evaporative losses which exceeded 72 million cubic meters during warm months (April to September) accounting for 38% of their total storage capacity.

show abstract

Section: Water Management Implications Of Evaporative Water Loss In S...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaporation Loss From Small Agricultural Reservoirs in a Warming Climate: An Overlooked Component of Water Accounting

Aminzadeh,

Friedrich,

Narayanaswamy

et al. 2024

Earth's Future

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Technological limitations: FPV technology is still in its early stages of development. Improvements in efficiency, durability, and reliability are necessary to compete with other renewable energy sources [168,169] The need for environmentally friendly materials: [170] To comply with water protection regulations and local standards, FPV systems must use environmentally friendly materials.…”

Section: Prospects Challenges and Possible Integration With Other Sys...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Prospects Challenges and Possible Integration With Other Sys...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This technology involves installing solar panels on floating platforms in water bodies such as lakes, ponds, and reservoirs. FPV systems have several advantages over traditional solar installations, including a higher energy yield due to the cooling effect of the water, reduced land use, and the ability to install panels in areas where land is scarce [2] . FPV systems can be particularly useful for buildings that are located near water bodies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…FPV systems have several advantages over traditional solar installations, including a higher energy yield due to the cooling effect of the water, reduced land use, and the ability to install panels in areas where land is scarce. [2] FPV systems can be particularly useful for buildings that are located near water bodies. By installing FPV systems, these buildings can generate their own electricity without relying on the grid.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Recent Advances in Floating Photovoltaic Systems

Ahmed,

Elsakka,

Elminshawy

et al. 2023

The Chemical Record

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In recent years, floating photovoltaic (FPV) technologies have gained more importance as a key source of clean energy, particularly in the context of providing sustainable energy to buildings. The rise of land scarcity and the need to reduce carbon emissions have made FPV systems a cost‐effective solution for generating electricity. This review article aims to explore the rapidly growing trend of floating PV systems, which can be a practical solution for regions with limited land areas. The article discusses the structure of the PV modules used in FPV plants and key factors that affect site suitability choice. Moreover, the article presents various techniques for cooling and cleaning FPV to keep optimal performance and discusses feasible trends and prospects for the technology. Finally, this paper proposes the potential integration of FPV systems with other technologies to enhance energy generation efficiency and discusses other research aimed at the advancement of the technology. By examining the various features of FPV systems, this review article contributes to understanding the advantages and challenges associated with using this sustainable energy technology in different regional contexts.

show abstract

Helical Micropillar Processed by One‐Step 3D Printing for Solar Thermal Conversion

Li,

Ye,

Jiang

et al. 2024

Small

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Solar thermal utilization has broad applications in a variety of fields. Currently, maximizing the photo‐thermal conversion efficiency remains a research hotspot in this field. The exquisite plant structures in nature have greatly inspired human structural design across many domains. In this work, inspired by the photosynthesis of helical grass, a HM type solar absorber made in graphene‐based composite sheets is used for solar thermal conversion. The unique design promoted more effective solar energy into thermal energy through multiple reflections and scattering of solar photons. Notably, the Helical Micropillar (HM) is fabricated using a one‐step projection 3D printing process based on a special 3D helical beam. As a result, the solar absorber's absorbance value can reach 0.83 in the 400–2500 nm range, and the surface temperature increased by ≈128.3% relative to the original temperature. The temperature rise rate of the solar absorber reached 22.4 °C min−1, demonstrating the significant potential of the HM in practical applications of solar thermal energy collection and utilization.

show abstract

Energy production and water savings from floating solar photovoltaics on global reservoirs

Cited by 36 publications

References 49 publications

Evaporation Loss From Small Agricultural Reservoirs in a Warming Climate: An Overlooked Component of Water Accounting

Evaporation Loss From Small Agricultural Reservoirs in a Warming Climate: An Overlooked Component of Water Accounting

Recent Advances in Floating Photovoltaic Systems

Helical Micropillar Processed by One‐Step 3D Printing for Solar Thermal Conversion

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About