Development and Feasibility Analysis of Floating Solar Panel Application in Palembang, South Sumatra

PV system utilize the photovoltaic effect to generate electricity directly from the energy brought by the sunrays. However, the normal ground installation of PV panel is prone to several effect reducing the power output and efficiency, such as the overheated panel surface that can lead to malfunction of a cell. The alternative for ground installation is installing the PV panel on the surface of a water body such as river or lake, and called Floating Solar Panel. This paper presents the pilot project for application of floating solar panel in Palembang. This setting is also functioning as passive or natural cooling for the panel and increase the power output. The pilot project was conducted on August 2-8, 2019 by comparing two 100 Wp Poly-crystalline PV panels. The passive cooling of floating solar panel can reduce surface temperature by 2^oC compared to ground installation. The experiment shows the most effective time to harvest the power from the sun is from 11.00 AM to 02.00 PM. The average output power generated by Floating Solar Panels is 51.6 Watts, compared to 42.9 Watt Ground Solar panels.