NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

National University of Singapore
AY 2016/2017 Semester 2

CN4248 Sustainability Project

Group 3 Report

Floatovoltaics Solar System Innovation

Loo Xuan Chen | A0096543X

Muhammad Rias B Sahul Hameed | A0111151E

Ong Zhi Hao | A0119670A

This report is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of
Engineering
Executive Summary
This paper analyses the real-life performance of a floating photovoltaic (floatovoltaic) system based on
the technologies of the TwinPeak 2 Series from the Renewable Energy Corporation and the Hydrelio
solar PV floating system from Ciel & Terre. While the efficiency of solar cells are typically reported in
the product datasheet, the actual performance throughout the day will necessarily vary with local weather
conditions. Using satellite data retrieved from RETScreen, a clean energy software, the actual
performance for the solar cell with water cooling will be evaluated. It was found that the average
efficiency of the solar cell was only 12.36% compared to the rated 17% on the product datasheet. By
further considering how such a technology can be implemented on a wider scale to satisfy Singapore's
2020 target of achieving 350MWp energy from solar sources, it was found that the levelised cost of
electricity (LCOE) based on this technology was $0.266/kWh, compared to the electricity tariff in
Singapore of $0.2139/kWh. Nevertheless, it is estimated that with the current technological trends in PV,
grid parity could be achieved by 2050. An additional benefit from implementing the floatovoltaic system
is the water savings from evaporation. Since the floatovoltaic system acts as a cover over the water
surface, it will help reduce water loss from evaporation. The amount of daily water savings from
evaporation was found to be approximately 33,221m3, which is enough to provide for 55000 households
of four people each day. Furthermore, such a large-scale implementation of the floatovoltaic system also
serves to increase the demand for workers, leading to positive social impacts in the form of job creation.
Finally, many existing policies and initiatives by the government, such as SolarNova and research
funding for solar technologies, were found to be beneficial to the successful implementation of the
floatovoltaic system as these policies serve to create a direct market for electricity generated using the
system, and improvements to the existing technologies which could help drive down the LCOE in the
future.

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Contents
Executive Summary ...................................................................................................2
1 Introduction..........................................................................................................4
2 Floatovoltaic Design ............................................................................................4
3 Floatovoltaic Performance ...................................................................................6
3.1 Performance Evaluation ................................................................................6
3.2 Feasibility Study Site Selection..................................................................8
4 Economic & Sustainability Analysis ...................................................................9
4.1 Environmental Sustainability Analysis .......................................................10
4.2 Social Sustainability Analysis .....................................................................11
5 Policies and Recommendations .........................................................................11
5.1 Other Policy Recommendations ..................................................................11
6 Conclusion .........................................................................................................12
7 References ..........................................................................................................12

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1 Introduction
Harnessing of solar energy as a form of renewable and clean energy has been a key focus area in
Singapore's technological development in recent years. In July 2016, the Ministry of Environment, and
Water Resources (MEWR) has released Singapore's climate action plan, and the target for solar energy
was set to achieve 350 MWp energy capacity by 2020. In October 2016, the Economic Development
Board (EDB), Public Utilities Board (PUB) and the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore
(SERIS) have collaborated and constructed the world's largest floating photovoltaic test bed in Tengeh
Reservoir under the SolarNova program [1]. In a highly dense city-state like Singapore where land space
is scarce, the under-utilized inland waterbody of approximately 20 km2 [2] can serve as a platform for the
development and future expansion of solar energy technologies in Singapore. Besides saving land space,
the floating photovoltaic beds are reported to have additional benefits of potentially yielding higher
efficiency due to the cooling effect of water and the ability to reduce evaporation rates of the reservoir
water, which is aligned with PUB's goal for water conservation.

This study aims to estimate and analyze the real-life performance of a large-scale floating photovoltaic
system under the dynamic environmental conditions of Singapores tropical climate, along with the
potential economic and environmental savings if this system were to be implemented. The rest of the
paper is organized as follows: Section 2 presents in more detail the floatovoltaic system that will be
evaluated in this paper, Section 3 assesses the technical performance of the floatovoltaic system and
evaluates if the system is able to achieve Singapores 2020 solar capacity goals, Section 4 investigates
recommendations that might facilitate the success of a floatovoltaic system.

2 Floatovoltaic Design
The main idea of this report is to consider the benefits and assess the possible shortcomings of installing
solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on the under-utilized water bodies within Singapore, by mounting these
panels on floating devices, such as floating pontoons. The solar PV model, which this report uses, is the
latest model from the Renewable Energy Corporation (REC) The REC TwinPeak 2 Series. This is a
brand new solar panel development that features new technologies, such as the Passivated Emitter Rear
Cell (PERC), four bus bars cell configuration, half-cut cells and split junction box design, which provides
higher power output and efficiency performance. The respective advantages of each technology are
summarized in the table below [3].
Table 1: Advantages of new technologies in REC TwinPeak 2 Series

Technology Advantages
PERC Increase capture of light falling on cell surface by reflecting light
Reduce heat generation in the cells
Four bus bars Decrease distance of electron travel, hence reducing resistance in cells
Decrease finger width, hence exposing more cell surface area to sunlight
Split junction Reduce internal resistance and saves space
box Larger gap between cells increases internal reflection of light
Reduces panel internal temperature
Half-cut cells Less power loss due to smaller current
Enables power output even under shaded conditions

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The TwinPeak Solar PV will be mounted on the Hydrelio solar PV floating system, developed by Ciel
and Terre International [4]. The High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) material used for the rails and
pontoons of the floating system prides it with the reported advantages of its durability and resistance to
UV and corrosion, its safe mounting, deployment procedures and ease of maintenance, its high
recyclability at end-of-life and its compliance with drinking water regulations. The solar PV will be railed
onto the floating device parallel to the long side as shown in the figure below to ensure minimal shading
over the solar cells.

Figure 1: Rail Position of Solar Panels (Top) and Proposed Design of PV Panels on Floating Platform
(Below)

The placement of this floatovoltaic system will be in an enclosed reservoir, where it will be anchored to
stay on a static position. The location chosen will be one that avoids shade casted by the forest canopy
from the surroundings throughout the entire sunshine period of the day. The panels will be installed
parallel to the water surface, such that there is no inclination and the panels are in full contact with the
surface of the water. This is to harness the maximum cooling effect of the water, which will be covered in
the subsequent section of the report.

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3 Floatovoltaic Performance
The solar arrays performance is evaluated as per IEC 61724 standards [5]. The quantities calculated are
shown in table. The aim is to determine if the percentage demand for Singapore could be met with
currently available waterbody area of 20km2 being fully utilized. Sample calculation for each derivative
will be shown in subsequent section. Lastly, the values derived will be verified with literature values. All
assumptions and limitations will be discussed for improvement in future studies.
The objective of the technical evaluation is to simulate a real-world scenario. The monthly irradiance data
is simulated using a software. To better represent the irradiance per square meter incident upon
Singapore, the tropical climate and weather conditions wind speed, shade and ambient temperature
were integrated in the software with empirical correlations. The monthly irradiance data is shown in Table
2 and illustrated in Figure 2

Table 2: Monthly Irradiance for Singapores Climate [6]

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

kWh/ 178.9 196.5 209.1 204.2 198.4 199.1 210.5 224.3 226.5 217.0 188.3 175.6
m2 3 4 5 1 1 7 7 2 3 6 0 0
kW/m2 0.48 0.56 0.52 0.57 0.53 0.55 0.56 0.60 0.63 0.58 0.52 0.47
372.0 348.0 399.0 361.0 372.0 360.0 374.0 372.0 360.0 372.0 360.0 372.0
Hours
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Figure 2: Monthly Average Irradiance Graph

3.1 Performance Evaluation

The performance evaluation of the floatovoltaic array is performed with the following assumptions:
1. tilt angle is 0, floating parallel to water surface without solar tracking

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 2. Average monthly values for solar irradiance is representative of respective month
3. Passive water and air cooling is constant when determining TC.
For a more rigorous and accurate performance analysis, forecasting should be done with location specific
meteorological data. Moreover, anomalies such as extreme weather and/or climate such as EI Nino/La
Nina phenomena should be considered if possible.

Equations (1) to (4) are used to determined selected parameters for performance evaluation of the REC
twin peak solar panels. Table 3 summarizes the key parameters, especially the array size which is
essential in the site selection (refer to section 3.2).
480.98
=
( ) = 800
(7.07 29.20)(0.75) = 92.98 W (1)

where G, Gstc, Imp, Vmp and d, are monthly average irradiance (W/m2), irradiance of 1000 W/m2, maximum
power current (A), maximum power voltage (V), and derate ratio of the PV module, respectively. The
solar cell temperature, Tc, is determined after considering the water and wind cooling effects. The overall
heat transfer coefficient is determined as per the equations in Duffie and Beckman [7] and is used to
calculate the Tc instead of the general formula given in the IEC standards. This method of calculation is
more applicable for the floatovoltaic.

, = [(1 + ( )] = 92.98 0.75 [(1 + 0.39(52.13 25)]

485.04 (2)
=
1.62 2

where Pmp is the maximum power output, d is the deration ratio, is the temperature coefficient of power
(/). Tc and TSTC is the cell temperature at operating and standard conditions (TSTC = 25)

The power output of each module, power output per square meter and the size of array required for the
target P is give summarized in the table below. A more accurate sizing will consider the additional area
occupied by the Hydrelio floating mounts considering the physical limits to maximum loading.
8% 5.60109
= (1.62 2 ) = 0.08 (1.62 2 ) (3)
, 485.04

The module efficiency is given by equation (4).

7.07 29.2
= 2
= = 0.1236 = 12.36% (4)
1000 / 1.62 1000

Table 3: Performance Parameters

Module Efficiency (%) 12.36

Cell T Tc 52.14
Cell T at Standard Condition TC,STC 25.00
T Coefficient of Power 0.39
Electrical Conversion Efficiency STC (%) 94.00

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3.2 Feasibility Study Site Selection

A preliminary selection of 9 reservoirs was done to cover the area requirement of the floatovoltaic array.
The list of selected reservoirs is given in Table 4. The area zones of Tengeh and Serimbun reservoir is
highlighted in Figure 3.

Table 4: Preliminary Site Selection

Bedok Reservoir 0.88

Jurong Lake 0.7
Kranji Reservoir 4.5
Lower Peirce Reservoir (former Peirce Reservoir) 0.06
Lower Seletar Reservoir 3.6
Marina Reservoir 2.4
Sarimbun Reservoir* 1.48
Tengeh Reservoir 2.19
Upper Peirce Reservoir 3.04
Total Area (km2) 18.85

Figure 3: Tengeh & Serimbun Reservoir

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Although the area calculated covers the requirement, government regulations might limit the area usable
in each zone. Moreover, the site location may not be suitable due to other geographical condition. For a
conservative approach to site selection, an estimated fraction of selected areas used instead for the
rigorous feasibility analysis. The associated government bodies should be also consulted for site use
regulations.

Bedok Reservoir 0.88

Jurong Lake 0.7
Kranji Reservoir 4.5
Lower Peirce Reservoir (former Peirce Reservoir) 0.06
Lower Seletar Reservoir 3.6
Marina Reservoir 2.4
Sarimbun Reservoir* 1.48
Tengeh Reservoir 2.19
Upper Peirce Reservoir 3.04
Total Area (km2) 18.85

4 Economic & Sustainability Analysis

The Levelised Costs of Electricity (LCOE) is a metric widely used to evaluate the cost of electricity
generation by different technologies over their economic life. The LCOE takes into consideration the
entire cost of generating electricity over the floatovoltaic system lifetime, from the initial construction
costs, operations and maintenance, to its end-of-life decommission costs. These costs are also subjected to
relevant interest rates and contingency costs, which are set aside for any technical or regulatory
difficulties that may arise in the future. The calculation of the LCOE of the system serves as a
measurement against the current grid electrical prices of $0.2139/kWh [8] in hope that this new
innovation is able to achieve comparable results. The computation of the LCOE is given by the equation
below for a lifetime of 25 years and discount rate of 10%.

(Investment t + O&Mt + carbon cost t + decommissioning t ) (1 + r)t

LCOE = (5)
t t(Electricityt (1 + r)t )

There are multiple factors that contribute to the LCOE of the floatovoltaic system and the table below
summarizes these factors with their associated literature-based estimated costs.
Table 5: Summary of LCOE Parameters and Associated Costs

Parameters Value Remarks

Total Module Cost (S$) 377,270.05 Scaled up to 250MWp capacity
Total Investment Cost (S$) 628,783.41 ~60/40 ratio for module cost/BOS cost
Contingency Cost (S$) 31,439.17 ~5% of total investment cost
Operations & Maintenance Cost (S$) 6,287.83 ~1% of total investment cost

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Decommissioning Cost (S$) 31,439.17 ~5% of total investment cost
Annual Electricity Output (kWh) 560,000 Output achievable with 250MWp capacity
Derating Factor (%) 69.2 Reported by EMA [9]
Calculated LCOE (S$/kWh) 0.266

With present technology and cost of operations, the LCOE of the floatovoltaic system is calculated to be
$0.266/kWh, which is approximately 25% higher than the current grid pricing. As such, this explains the
challenges of implementation of such technology currently. However, solar technology is expected to
become more efficient and cheaper with further advancement of technology in the future. Hence, an
approximate extrapolation of the LCOE of the floatovoltaic system, based on the solar road map of
Singapore [2] is carried out to see the breakeven period. The table below summarizes the results.
Table 6: Extrapolation of LCOE

Year 2020 2030 2050

Cost of PV Module ($/Wp) 0.490 0.420 0.350
LCOE ($/kWh) 0.266 0.238 0.211

4.1.1 {Tiwari, 2006 #116}Environmental Sustainability Analysis

In lieu of the Singapores current water situation, where water agreement with Malaysia will come to end
in 2061 [10], there have been efforts by government agencies, like PUB and NEWater to reduce
Singapores reliant on external water sources. Therefore, there has been an increase in emphasis on water
conservation countrywide. Additionally, Singapore loses 45 million cubic meter of water annually
through evaporation from our reservoir [11]. The floatovoltaic system proposed can contribute to this
movement by serving as a layer of water insulation on the open-air reservoirs. This insulation is reported
to be able to reduce the rate of evaporation, hence reduce the loss of water from the exposed surface
areas. Also, there is an added benefit of this insulation by improving water quality through the inhibition
of algae growth and chemical reactions caused by energy from the sun as well [12].
To quantify the potential water savings brought about by the installation of the floatovoltaic system, the
Shuttleworth modified Penman equation is used to account for the decrease in rate of water evaporation.
The equation used is given below [13]
+ 6.43(1 + 0.536 2 )
= (6)
( + )

Table 7: Calculations for Evaporation Rate

Parameters Symbol Units Value

Slope of Saturation Vapor Pressure m kPa/K 0.222
Net Irradiance Rn MJ/m2/day 0.00665
Psychrometric Constant 0.0724
Wind Speed U2 m/s 2.5
Vapor Pressure Deficit kPa 5.43E-20
Latent Heat of Vaporization MJ/kg 2.26
Evaporation Rate Emass mm/day/m2 0.00222

Using the Shuttleworth modified Penman equation, the evaporation rate of water in day without any
insulation is calculated to be 0.00222mm/m2. With the floatovoltaic system installed over the surface of
the water body, the evaporation rate over the covered area is assumed to be 20% of the actual evaporation
rate. This will result in an evaporation rate of 0.000444mm/m2/day, which amounts to approximately

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33,221m3 of water saved over an entire area of 18.7km2 of installation in one day. The PUB's record of
Singapore's per capita domestic water consumption of 151 liters, this amount of water saved is sufficient
to provide for approximately 55,000 households of average four people in one household a day [11].
4.2 Social Sustainability Analysis

The two social impacts that will be considered in this section are job creation and workers' safety. Firstly,
with the implementation of such a large-scale system, considerable manpower would be required in the
set-up and maintenance of the equipment. As such, this innovation could potentially create demand for
workers in both the manufacturing process of the equipment, as well as in the maintenance of the
equipment after deployment onto the reservoirs. Thus, many jobs could be created. Next, as the solar cell
modules will be exposed to irradiation throughout the day, the equipment will necessarily heat up,
reaching temperatures of 55. Thus, to ensure the safety of the workers, maintenance of the equipment
should only be done only during dawn or dusk when the modules are cooler, and personal protection
equipment such as gloves should be worn during maintenance.

5 Policies and Recommendations

In the recent years, Singapore has implemented several initiatives and policies that advocates the adoption
and development of the potential for clean energy systems in Singapore, of which many are targeted at
PV as solar energy remains the most viable source of renewable energy for Singapore. One such policy is
SolarNova, a government-led program that aims to accelerate the adoption of PV in Singapore through
aggregation of energy demands across government agencies, and the energy is obtained by purchasing
solar-generated electricity from private companies that own and operate solar systems. This aggregation
allows for agencies with limited space to implement PV systems or a smaller demand for energy to
benefit from economies of scale. In addition, Singapore is also improving its management of the
intermittent solar energy using smart controls, weather forecasting, and energy storage and demand
response.
Next, Singapore has been supporting clean energy companies project-financing capabilities by attracting
the renewable energy desks of financial organizations to develop new financial instruments such as
project bonds and green business trusts to be implemented here and in Asia.
There had also been significant investments in the research and development (R&D) scene in Singapore
around the idea of sustainability. For instance, SERIS is jointly funded by the National Research
Foundation and NUS, and has attained a leadership position in the field of crystalline silicon cells
research despite its short history of less than 10 years.
Lastly, Singapore has also announced of its intention to implement a carbon tax in 2019. The carbon tax
serves to increase the operating costs for industries with high CO2 emissions, and therefore helps to
promote the creation of new opportunities in green growth industries such as clean energy.
5.1 Other Policy Recommendations

Aside from the existing policies that have been mentioned, a few other measures could also be
recommended to help the floatovoltaic system succeed. Firstly, electricity generated from the
floatovoltaics system could be sold directly to contestable customers, instead of wholesale selling by SP
Services. This could be supplemented with a campaign to inform commercial and industrial customers of
the larger capacity of renewable energies in Singapore. This would potentially allow existing contestable
customers to make the switch to purchase renewable energy, or encourage eligible non-contestable
customers to become a contestable customer in the electricity market to purchase electricity generated
from floatovoltaics.

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Secondly, the carbon tax revenues could be further utilized. Currently, carbon tax revenues have been
designated to help fund measures by industries to reduce emissions. Instead of funding solely such
measures, the carbon tax could also be used to further fund R&D in solar technology, to potentially
improve the efficiency of the solar cells, or other related projects in the field of solar technology1.
Although the policies discussed are targeted towards PV, floatovoltaics are based on PV technology and
will directly benefit from these policies as well.

6 Conclusion
In this study, the real-life performance of a floating PV system incorporating technologies from the REC
TwinPeak 2 Series and the Hydrelio solar PV floating system was discussed. Using satellite data on the
hourly irradiation and air temperature retrieved from RETScreen, the actual performance of the PV cell
under the cooling effect of water was compared against the rated performance at standard conditions. The
average efficiency of the system was found to be much lower than the rated efficiency, which was to be
expected, as the real-world performance is subject to conditions that vary throughout the day and differ
significantly from standard test conditions. The floatovoltaic system was subsequently scaled up to meet
the 250MWp capacity gap between the existing 100MWp and the target 350MWp from solar energy by
2020, and the sustainability of such a system was evaluated against the three pillars of economics,
environment, and social. With the existing technology, the LCOE for the floatovoltaic system was
evaluated to be $0.266/kWh, which is approximately 25% higher than the current grid pricing.
Nevertheless, current advancement trends in the technology of PV suggests that grid parity could likely be
achieved by 2050. Furthermore, aside from energy generation, the floatovoltaic system also serves as an
insulation cover over the open surfaces of the reservoirs, and provides an additional benefit of reducing
water evaporation over these surfaces. The estimated daily water saving is 33,221m3 with the installation
size of 18.7km2. In addition, such a large-scale installation is expected to increase the demand for
workers in both the manufacturing and maintenance of the equipment, thereby bringing positive social
impacts in the form of job creation. Finally, existing policies that would help in the success of such a
large-scale installation were discussed, and two further recommendations involving a contestable market
for floatovoltaic electricity and better use of revenues from the carbon tax were suggested.

7 References
[1] S. Boh, "World's largest floating solar photovoltaic cell test-bed launched in Singapore,
Singapore News & Top Stories - The Straits Times," 2016-10-25T09:46+08:00 2016.
[2] J. Luther and T. Reindl, "Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Roadmap for Singapore," Solar Energy
Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS), 2013.
[3] REC. The new REC TwinPeak Series:
The combination of different technologies maximizes the power from a
polycrystalline platform and optimizes long term panel performance. Available:
http://www.recgroup.com/sites/default/files/documents/whitepaper_twinpeak_technology.pdf
[4] T. Ciel et. (2017). Available: http://www.ciel-et-terre.net/
[5] I. Commission, "International Standard IEC 61724: Photovoltaic System Performance
MonitoringGuidelines for Measurements, Data Exchange and Analysis," IEC, 1998.
[6] CanmetENERGY Research Centre, "RETScreen | Natural Resources Canada," ed, 2010.

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Although the policies discussed are targeted towards PV, floatovoltaics are based on PV technology and will
directly benefit from these policies as well.

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[7] J. A. Duffie and W. A. Beckman, "Design of Active Systems by Utilizability Methods," in Solar
Engineering of Thermal Processes: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2013, pp. 692-710.
[8] A. Energy Market. (2017). EMA : Electricity Tariffs. Available:
https://www.ema.gov.sg/Residential_Electricity_Tariffs.aspx
[9] T. K. Doshi, N. S. D'Souza, L. Nguyen, T. H. Guan, and N. B. Zahur, "The economics of solar
PV in Singapore," GSTF Journal of Engineering Technology (JET), vol. 2, no. 1, p. 53, 2013.
[10] S. K. Boon and A. Winsemius, "Singapore-Malaysia water agreements~ Recommendations~."
[11] Pub. (2017). PUB, Singapore's National Water Agency. Available: https://www.pub.gov.sg
[12] T. S. Hartzell, "Evaluating Potential for Floating Solar Installations on Arizona Water
Management Infrastructure," 2016.
[13] D. I. Stannard, "Comparison of Penman-Monteith, Shuttleworth-Wallace, and Modified Priestley-
Taylor Evapotranspiration Models for wildland vegetation in semiarid rangeland," Water
Resources Research, vol. 29, no. 5, pp. 1379-1392, 1993.

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