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CFD ANALYSIS OF SINGLE MODULE DESIGN FOR FLOATING SOLAR POWER
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[email protected] CFD ANALYSIS OF SINGLE MODULE DESIGN FOR FLOATING SOLAR POWER
PLANTS
Haydar KEPEKCİ
Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Engineering and Architecture Faculty, Nişantaşı
University
ORCID: 0000-0002-0037-8332
Ahmet YURTSEVEN
Department of Marine Engineering, Naval Architecture and Maritime Faculty, Yıldız
Technical University
ORCID: 0000-0003-2561-1783
Levent BARBAK
Kontrolmatik Technology Energy and Engineering Inc. ORCID: 0000-0001-5588-3056
ABSTRACT
PV panels are used to generate electricity from solar energy, which is one of the renewable
energy sources. PV panels produced using semiconductor materials can directly convert
photon energy into electrical energy. The main problem with these systems is their low
efficiency. One of the reasons for this is dust in the air. Especially due to some advantages
such as avoiding dust in the air and cooling, the idea of establishing power plants consisting
of PV panels on water rather than terrestrial regions has emerged. This idea both increases
system efficiency and provides benefits against climate change as it reduces evaporation in
water in the region where they are installed. The most important forces acting on floating
solar power plants (SPP) modules are acceleration and wind loads during swimming. Within
the scope of this study, the swimming process of a single SPP module has been modeled and
its movement under external forces has been examined. The panel, skeleton, and buoyancy
components of a single module have been modeled and CFD analysis has been performed. As
a result of the study, it has been seen that the current force in the water on the floating SPP
modules is much more effective than the wind force. In addition, it has been concluded that
both the current and the wind force coming from the north direction increased both the drag
and lift forces acting on the floating SPP modules more than the forces coming from the
south direction. Another result obtained from the analysis is that the external forces acting on
the floating SPP module increase with the increase in wind speed, but this increase is not
linear.
Keywords: Renewable energy sources, Floating SPP, Module design, Aerodynamic forces.
1.Introduction
With the increase in population worldwide, industrial expenditures also increase. This
increases the amount of energy used exponentially. Today, 81% of the energy consumed is
obtained from conventional fuels. Most of the natural disasters that occur in the world are
classified as hydrometeorological disasters. Examples of these are tornadoes, hurricanes,
storms, floods, and floods. Hydrometeorological disasters are directly related to climatic
conditions. Climate changes are one of the negative consequences of greenhouse gases
released into the atmosphere while using fossil fuels.
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The increase in the use of coal, lignite, oil, and natural gas threatens not only our present but
also our future. In order to eliminate all these negativities, it is imperative to turn to
renewable energy sources immediately [1].
Solar energy-based systems are the most widely used renewable energy sources. In addition
to being an unlimited source of energy, the sun is in a more advantageous position than others
as it can be easily accessed everywhere. Throughout history, people have obtained energy
from the sun in various ways. While the first people used the sun only for heating and
lighting, in the modern age people realized that the sun can be used wherever energy is
needed. Today, solar energy still has not seen the value it deserves in underdeveloped
societies. The reason for this is that an installed system is needed to benefit from solar energy
[2]. There are various ways to generate electricity from solar energy. The most widely used
of these are photovoltaic (PV) cells. The most important factor of efficiency in solar energy
systems containing PV is the total amount of radiation on the panels. Shadow or dust on the
panel surfaces reduces the efficiency of the system [3]. Efficiency is not at the desired level
in solar energy systems installed on or around the roofs of buildings. The ideal installation
location of PV panels is open areas. Solar fields established in large areas on land are also
common. Examples of this exist in Spain, Morocco, and the United States. However,
metropolitan areas with a small surface area and a large number of buildings due to their
dense population are not suitable for the installation of PV panels. In this case, floating SPP
systems that can be installed on hydrographic surfaces such as seas, lakes, dams, and canals
have emerged as a solution [4].
Another advantage of these systems is to prevent evaporation in dams or seas installed on
them. Evaporation is a physical phase change that takes place at any temperature. It is known
that the amount of evaporation increases with the increase of the temperature of the sun's
rays. If the sun's rays come on the floating SPP, it will not be able to directly affect the sea
and heat the water [5]. The resulting shading will reduce evaporation. Evaporation is
considered negative as it reduces the amount of water contained in seas, rivers, or dams. The
increase in water vapor in the air is also one of the factors that directly affect climate change
[6]. Another advantage of floating solar energy systems installed on hydrographic surfaces is
that the PV panels are cooled by water. Thus, they produce more energy than terrestrial
systems [7]. Floating SPP is becoming increasingly common in countries such as the USA,
Japan, China, India, and Brazil. Floating SPPs, which are becoming more and more common,
operates in 35 countries as of 2021 with a total installed capacity of 2.6 GW [8].
There are many studies on this subject in the literature. In their study, Golroodbari and Sark
found that the performance of floating PVs increased by approximately 18% due to the
cooling effect of seawater [9]. A similar result has been obtained in a study conducted in
Singapore, one of the Far Eastern countries. They have seen that the performance of floating
power plants installed on the sea is 10% higher than the types installed in buildings, due to
the panel temperature being approximately 10 °C lower [10]. According to a study conducted
in another Far Eastern country, South Korea, when terrestrial PV and floating SPP PVs,
where the temperature is the same, are compared; It has been determined that the one
installed on the sea has 11% higher efficiency [11]. In their study, Ryu and Lee calculated the
effect of wind load on the PV panel using the CFD method. As a result, they determined that
the tilt angle of the PV panels they used for floating SPP is one of the factors that increase the
wind load. They added that since the wind load is an undesirable situation, it is necessary to
keep the inclination angle of the PV panels to a minimum [12].
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Trapani et al designed and analyzed a flexible PV panel floating on water. As a result, they
have shown that these systems can be used in moving streams if the necessary design is made
[13].
The most important effects on floating SPP systems are the acceleration and forces that occur
during swimming and the wind loads [14]. Within the scope of this study, the floating process
of an odd number of floating SPP modules has been modeled and their movement under
external forces has been examined. Current and wind speeds are considered external forces.
The panel, skeleton, and buoyancy components of a single module have been modeled with a
computer-aided design program. The prepared model has been analyzed numerically by
computational fluid dynamics methods and the results have been examined. According to the
results obtained, improvements will be made in the design. As a result of the study, it is
aimed to reach a final floating SPP system design.
2. Materials and Methods
Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software has been used in this study. Examination of
any design by the CFD method has become increasingly preferable in recent years, as it is
more time and cost-saving than the experimental process. After the boundary conditions are
defined correctly, the same results that can be obtained from the experimental study can be
obtained from the CFD method. In order to be able to analyze any system in the CFD
method, the relevant geometry must first be created and then divided into small pieces called
mesh. These parts are called grids. The high number of grids in the created mesh file means
an increase in the accuracy of the analysis result [15]. The domain geometry and boundary
conditions of the module used in the analysis are given in Figure 1 and Figure 2.
Figure 1. Domain geometry and boundary conditions
Figure 2. 3D view of domain geometry
The mesh file used in this study contains 1,857,914 grid cells. The created mesh structures
include tetrahedral and hexahedral grids. The size of the module studied has been determined
as 4.5x6.5 [m]. In this study, mesh independence has not been made and mesh size has been
determined with the information obtained from the literature. The y+ value, which is another
factor that determines the mesh quality, has been calculated as 35 in this study. It is
calculated by multiplying the frictional velocity y+ by the distance of the mesh center from
the solid surface divided by the kinematic viscosity of the fluid [16]. The general view of the
created mesh structure and the zoomed view around the module are given in Figure 3 and
Figure 4, respectively.
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Figure 3. General view of the mesh structure
Figure 4. View of the mesh structure around the modüle
Since the realizable k–ε has been chosen as the turbulence method used in this study and the
STAR-CCM+ program used in the analysis did not require as much precision in the mesh as
other CFD programs commonly used in the market, the y+ value did not need to be too low.
However, if one of the DNS, LES, or DES methods has been chosen as the turbulence
method in the study, the y+ value would have to be less than 1 [16]. Boundary conditions
used in the analysis are shown in the figure below. "Intel Core i7-11800H CPU @ 2.30GHz,
8-core" notebook has been used for calculations made using current with wind speed and
only wind speed values of different values. In the analysis, a transient has been chosen as the
time solver and 1x10e-4 [s] has been determined as the time interval. Analyzes continued up
to 2 [s] periods, each lasting approximately 72 hours.
3. RESULTS
In the analysis, it is necessary to examine the effect of the wave in the calculation of the
forces on the module. Figure 5 shows the free water surface deformation image of the object.
The meaning of position y in these images represents the wave height in the water. When
examining the movement of floating SPPs, we have to follow the waves. Because the
reproduction of these waves creates wave resistances.
Figure 5. Free water surface deformation
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Figure 6 shows the image of the air side of the stream. As a result of the analysis, it has been
seen that the edges of the module behave like wings. Air currents entering under the panel
and through the side openings overlap and form the wing vortex. The resulting vortices affect
the formation of cd and cl forces.
Figure 6. Airflow over the module
The main forces acting on the structure under analysis are generally caused by air. In this
study, the flow has been used in only one of the analyzes, and only the aerodynamic effect of
air has been examined in the others. In Figure 7, the lift force generation process of the air
entering under the plate is shown in vector. When the PV panel winds from the north (from
the left side), the force pushing the object up is obtained because the air outlet area is
narrowed. This is all about momentum. However, when the PV panel winds from the south
(from the right), the air moves by pressing on the panel. This reduces the lift force.
Figure 7. The formation process of the lift force
As a result of the analyzes made, it has been determined that the current speed especially
affects the forces on the module. The drag force on the module as a result of the result of the
combination of a northward flow of 1 m/s and a wind of 1 m/s has been 393.15 N, while the
drag force of a 10 m/s wind alone on the module has been calculated as 205.35 N. Based on
this result, it can be said that the drag forces in floating SPP modules are directly related to
the flow of the hydrographic surface they are on. The drag force formed on the module as a
result of the combination of the south-directed current with a speed of 1 m/s and the wind
with a speed of 1 m/s has been 418.68 N, while the drag force created by the wind with a
speed of 10 m/s alone on the module has been calculated as 136.26 N. The values obtained
from the analyzes performed are shown in Table 1. Based on this result, it can be said that the
drag forces in floating SPP modules are directly related to the flow of the hydrographic
surface they are on.
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Table 1. Comparison of the effects of current and wind velocities on drag force
Wind Velocity Current
Direction Fdrag Force [N]
[m/s] Velocity [m/s]
1 1 393.15
North
10 0 205.35
1 1 418.68
South
10 0 136.26
When the north wind speed is 5 m/s, the drag force is 52.74 N, when the wind speed is 10
m/s, the drag force is 205.35 N, and when the wind speed is 20 m/s, the drag force is 820.73
N. Calculated values are shown in Figure 8.
Figure 8. Variation of drag force with wind velocity from the north direction
The drag force has been calculated as 36.1 N when the south wind speed has been 5 m/s, the
drag force when the wind speed has been 10 m/s has been 136.26 N, and the drag force has
been 533.14 N when the wind speed has been 20 m/s. Calculated values are shown in Figure
9.
Figure 9. Variation of drag force with wind velocity from the south direction
It has been observed that the drag forces on the module increase in direct proportion to the
wind speed. When the data obtained from the analyzes have been compared with each other,
it has been determined that this increase could be considered linear.
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When the north wind speed is 5 m/s, the lift force is 12275.39 N, when the wind speed is 10
m/s, the lift force is 12589.98 N, and when the wind speed is 20 m/s, the lift force is
calculated as 13825.65 N. Calculated values are shown in Figure 10.
Figure 10. Variation of lift force with wind velocity from the north direction
The lift force is calculated as 12116.16 N when the south wind speed is 5 m/s, the lift force is
11960.11 N when the wind speed is 10 m/s, and the lift force is 11346.88 N when the wind
speed is 20 m/s. Calculated values are shown in Figure 11.
Figure 11. Variation of lift force with wind velocity from the north direction
When both cases are examined, it is seen that the lift force on the module increases with the
increase in the north wind speed, and the lift force on the module decreases with the increase
in the south wind speed. In addition, when the data obtained from the analyzes have been
compared with each other, it has been seen that the changes in both directions have not been
linear.
4. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
In this study, CFD analysis of a single module carrying a total of 12 PV panels, 6x2, in
"North" and "South" direction current+wind and wind only conditions for the floating SPP to
be installed on the water has been carried out. In the simulations, the panel tilt angle of the
floating SPP is accepted as 5°.
As a result of the analysis, it has been determined that the effect of the current speed on the
drag force on the module is higher than the wind speed.
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Based on this situation, it can be said that the drag forces in floating SPP modules are directly
related to the flow of the hydrographic surface they are on. It has been observed that the drag
forces on the module increase in direct proportion to the wind speed coming from both the
north and the south, regardless of the direction. When the data obtained from the analyzes
have been compared with each other, it has been determined that this increase could be
accepted as linear. It has been observed that the lift forces on the module increased in direct
proportion with the wind speed coming from the north direction, while it decreased with the
increase in the wind speed coming from the south direction. In addition, when the data
obtained from the analyzes have been compared with each other, it has been seen that the
changes in both directions have not been linear.
As a result, it has been concluded that the floating SPP systems are negatively affected by the
current state. It can be said that these systems are more suitable for stagnant hydrographic
surfaces such as lakes and ponds. If it is to be established in the seas, coastal areas where
there is no current should be preferred. Open seas and areas affected by ocean currents should
be avoided. Otherwise, the drag force on the module may cause the module to sink. It is
known that floating solar systems will also have positive effects on the region where they are
installed, as they reduce evaporation in the water and prevent algae formation in the water
[17]. In addition, the elimination of shading due to being in areas far from buildings and the
elimination of cooling problems due to being in water can be considered as the main
advantages of these systems [18]. It is thought that this study will contribute to the literature
on floating power systems, which will become more and more widespread day by day.
Acknowledgment
We thank Yıldız Technical University Technology Transfer Office for supporting this study.
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