Sunengy, Australia, partners with India’s largest integrated private power utility, Tata Power to build its first floating solar plant in India

                   

In India, a pilot plant for the low-cost, floating-on-water, solar technology is to be build by the end of this year.  This, floating-on-water, solar technology is developed by Sunengy, Australia. Sunengy, Australia, partners with India’s largest integrated private power utility, Tata Power to build its first floating solar plant in India and construction will commence in August 2011. This project allows Sunengy to demonstrate the practicality of its technology in one of the world’s most promising solar power markets. This nascent technology will be demonstrated in the natural environment; it utilises the water surface for mounting and does not compete with land that can be used for other purposes The Liquid Solar Array (LSA) technology uses traditional Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV) technology – a lens and a small area of solar cells that tracks the sun throughout the day, like a sunflower. Floating the LSA on water reduces the need for expensive supporting structures to protect it from high winds. The lenses submerge in bad weather and the water also cools the cells which increases their efficiency and life-span. LSA effectively turns a dam into a very large battery, offering free solar storage and opportunity for improved water resource management. LSA needs no heavy materials or huge land acquisitions and is effectively cyclone proof. If India uses just one percent of its 30,000 square kilometers of captured water with this LSA system, the power generated will be equivalent to 15 large coal-fired power stations.

 

Liquid Solar Array (LSA) Technology:- LSA is a new PV concentrator using relatively lightweight plastic concentrators that float on water, mounted on anchored rafts. A thin plastic focusing concentrator lens rotates slowly to track the sun both daily and seasonally. A minimal amount of silicon (or other types of) photovoltaic cells are housed in a PV container that sits in the water where the cells are kept cool and efficient, through convective heat flow to the surrounding water. In bad weather the lens is protected by rotating it under the water to avoid damage in high winds, so the water becomes the vital structural component, cooler and protector. It is these applications of the water that are the basis for IP protection (patented so far in 10 countries including USA). The key feature of the LSA is its very low usage of materials and the simplicity of the materials used. Any further improvements in solar energy converter technology can be leveraged to reduce the LSA’s cost per watt. LSA is not bound by any particular solar technology, and in addition to generating electricity, the technology could potentially be applied to other energy systems as well (such as the solar synthesis of fuels). 

                 Core process:- The solar energy from direct sunlight is focused by a thin acrylic lens down through a glass lid, into a sealed, partially submerged metal well, containing photovoltaic cells. Collectors rotate tracking the movements of the sun by both a light sensor and dead reckoning software. A wind sensor is connected to the sun tracking software to submerge each unit into the water should winds rise above a predetermined force and return the lens to its tracking position once the winds have abated. The lens is water-sealed and is cleaned automatically. An inverter converts LSA power from direct current to alternating current, which is then connected to the power supply system (Grid).                

                     Limitations of conventional solar technology:- High structural cost per watt of traditional solar power systems and available supply of silicon for the photovoltaic cells has limited its widespread acceptance.

                      Superiority over other solar technologies:- LSA is a solar concentrator with medium to high efficiency; reduced structural cost through the use of water; lower silicon cost by using concentrators and eliminating overheating through the dual use of water. Experiment results (as reflected in the graph right) comparing flat plate photovoltaic system (pink line) and a LSA system that tracks the sun (blue line).There is significant difference in power produced and longer peak power output. Daily/seasonally tracking improves the efficiency and provides more peak hours of solar energy generation compared to flat plate PV cells

Source (For more information):- Sunengy, Australia