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2022-08-15 8427
How to build a floating solar farm Follow the step-by-step how-to for a floating solar farm in our slide show
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An increasing number of solar farms is learning how to swim – and for good reason. Modules floating on a lake save space on land. In fact, this innovative technology, known as ‘floating solar,’ offers even more advantages. There is less shade on open waters and their cooling effect increases solar cell efficiency, which promises to deliver higher yields.
This is why floating technology is booming especially in Asia, which has many densely populated regions. We showcased some of the biggest farms on en:former. How are such solar farms built and how does their design differ from that of their conventional variants? Our image gallery presents answers to these questions and shows how RWE installed its first floating PV system in the Netherlands.
The construction of the floating photovoltaic system at the Amer power plant.
This is the lake on which a 6.1 megawatt floating solar farm is installed immediately neighbouring the Amer power station in Geertruidenberg in the Dutch province of Noord-Brabant. The company has already set up a ground-mounted PV array at this site. In addition, the power plant has gradually been converted to fire biomass.
A crane placing building material on a lakeside construction platform before construction begins.
These are the blocks of concrete to which the floaters, carrying the solar modules were anchored to. Each of the 52 blocks weighs 4.6 tonnes.
A crane parked on the platform lowered the anchoring blocks onto the bottom of the lake one by one.
Scuba divers also played their part, attaching anchor cables to the concrete blocks to keep the floaters in place later on.
The next step involved the floaters. They are made of durable plastic capable of easily withstanding the wind and weather for many years, which can be recycled at the end of their service life.
When the foundation is completed, the installation of the solar panels follow
Then electricians mounted the solar modules to the floaters that are arranged to form a square. The system is quite clever. Although the modules have firm connections, the lattice-like structure is flexible enough to adjust to water movements. The connecting elements double as standing areas for maintenance work.
The PV modules are slanted to maximise sunlight incidence. Each set of modules, referred to as a 'string,' has a dedicated cable running over the floaters to the shore.
Assembly was performed from the shore as the pontoons rested on wooden pallets and were guided onto the water using beams. The structure moved farther out onto the lake with every added row of modules.
The solar farm grew row by row. As soon as a square of modules was completed, it could be dragged from the shore to its intended location by boat. All panels are at least ten metres away from the shore to protect the animals and plants there.
Here is the finished floating solar farm. It remains connected to the lakeside via two catwalks. A total of 13,400 modules was installed on the lake near the power station and 25 kilometres of cable were laid.
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