Study shows Brazil’s floating solar potential – pv magazine International

March 10, 2023 Beatriz Santos

From pv journal Brazil

Researchers on the Federal College of Rio de Janeiro developed a mathematical mannequin to calculate the potential for floating photo voltaic era in Brazil, detailing the outcomes for every state.

The research solely thought of the potential era of synthetic water our bodies, resembling hydroelectric vegetation and dams, and just one% of their usable space. The crew used the Nationwide Water Company database and QGIS software program to filter synthetic water our bodies, which totaled 174,526, excluding these on place of origin.

The enter variables of the mannequin should not solely photo voltaic irradiance in Brazil but in addition temperature, together with annual common floor air temperature and annual common wind pace. “This paper is completely different from different research that often think about solely photo voltaic sources, ignoring that the effectivity of photovoltaic modules may be very delicate to temperature,” the researchers stated.

The floating photovoltaic system mannequin makes use of modules from the Brazilian module producer Globo Brasil with a capability of 320 W and an effectivity of 16.49%. The mannequin assumes that every megawatt of floating photo voltaic covers roughly 10,512 sq. meters.

The outcomes present that Brazil can generate 79.37 GWh of electrical energy from floating photo voltaic yearly, akin to a possible put in capability of 43.28 GW. Roughly 72% of this potential corresponds to hydroelectric vegetation, with a possible put in capability of 31.5 GW and era of 57.38 GWh per 12 months.

This floating photo voltaic potential is equal to virtually all the annual electrical energy era of Brazil’s largest hydroelectric plant Itaipu, and 12.7% of all electrical energy era in Brazil. It’s going to present electrical energy to 41 million households in Brazil, 56% of the overall.

The area with the best potential is the Northeast, which mixes the most effective photo voltaic irradiance and the biggest synthetic water our bodies, with 10.58 GW or 24.5% of the overall. It’s adopted by the Southeast with 10.08 GW (23.3%), the North with 8.5 GW (19.7%), the Heart with 8.2 GW (18.9%), and the South with 5.93 GW (13.7%).

The outcomes for every state are as follows:

1. Minas Gerais: 6 GW
2. Bahia: 4.59 GW
3. São Paulo: 3.87 GW
4. Mato Grosso do Sul: 3.73 GW
5. Para: 3.23 GW
6. Peak: 3.16 GW
7. Paraná: 2.82 GW
8. Amazonas: 2.69 GW
9. Rio Grande do Sul: 2.65 GW
10. Value: 2.40 GW
11. Tocantins: 1,214 GW
12. Mato Grosso: 1,211 GW
13. Rondônia: 1.18 GW
14. Rio Grande do Norte: 816 MW
15. Maranhão: 812 MW
16. Paraíba: 666 MW
17. Energy: 623 MW
18. Pernambuco: 516 MW
19. Santa Catarina: 463 MW
20. Rio de Janeiro: 141 MW
21. Alagoas: 120 MW
22. Capability: 88 MW
23. Espírito Santo: 68 MW
24. Capability: 63 MW
25. Federal District Brasilia: 59 MW
26. Sergipe: 32 MW
27. Hectares: 5 MW

“By masking just one% of the floor of synthetic water our bodies, it’s attainable to produce 39% of the electrical energy consumption within the Heart-West, 25% within the Northeast, 42% within the North, 8% within the Southeast, and 12 % within the South. The state of Mato Grosso do Sul (MS) has all of the consumption offered and may even export the generated power to a different state,” commented the scientists.

They introduced their ends in “Technical potential of floating photovoltaic methods on synthetic water our bodies in Brazil,” revealed in Renewable Vitality.