• Composites Research
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.103-108
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• 2014

Fiber reinforced polymer plastic (FRP) structural members are recently available in construction industries due to various material properties such as high specific strength and stiffness, light-weight, and corrosionresistance. The floating PV generation structure can also be an illustration for applying FRP in construction applications. The floating PV generation structure has been recently issued as a representative item for the low carbon and green growth campaign and many related studies have been conducted for the structural safety and commercial viability. Moreover, the floating PV generation structures for the commercial purpose have been constructed. In this paper, the investigation and development processes of elements for the floating PV generation structure are presented during commercialization.

• Composites Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.105-110
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• 2013

In this study, we suggest the new floating PV generation structure which is improved the structural and economical efficiency compared with the system developed in the previous research. Pultruded FRP has superior physical and chemical material properties compared with those of conventional structural materials. Especially, pultruded FRP has an excellent corrosion-resistance, light-weight, and it also has high specific strength and stiffness which are highly appreciated for the design and fabrication of floating PV generation structure under harsh environmental condition. In this study, structural analysis using the finite element method has been performed to investigate the safety of new floating PV generation structure and newly applied structural members.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.1353-1362
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• 2014

In recent years, numerous environmental problems associated with the excessive use of fossil fuel are taking place. For an alternative energy resource, the importance of renewable energy and the demands of facilities to generate renewable energy are continuously rising. To satisfy such demands, a large number of photovoltaic energy generation structures are constructed and planned with large scale. However, because these facility zones are mostly constructed on land, some troubles are occurred such as rising of construction cost due to the cost of land use, environmental devastation, etc. To solve such problems, the floating type photovoltaic energy generation system using FRP members have been developed in Korea. FRP members are recently available in civil engineering applications due to many advantages such as high strength, corrosion resistance, light weight, etc. and they are suitable to fabricate the floating structures because of their material properties. In this study, the analytical and experimental investigations to evaluate the structural performance of floating PV generation structure and SMC FRP vertical member which is used to fabricate the structure were conducted. The static and dynamic performances of floating PV generation structure are evaluated through the FE analysis and the experiment, respectively. Moreover, the structural safety evaluation and buckling analysis of SMC FRP vertical compression member are also conducted by the FE analysis, and the structural behavior of SMC FRP member under compression and pullout is investigated by the experiments. From this study, it was found that the structural system composed of pultruded FRP and SMC FRP members are safe enough to resist externally applied loads.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.10
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• pp.229-235
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• 2019

A floating photovoltaic generation system is a new concept that combines existing photovoltaic generation technology with floating technology. This is installed in the water not on conventional land and a building. The system is designed as a unit module type that can be connected to other modules according to the power generation capacity, thereby forming a large-scale power generation facility. As a renewable energy source, it is composed of a floating structure, mooring device, photovoltaic power generation facility, and underwater cable. Because this system is installed outdoors, the effect of the wind load on the structure is very large. In this study, the wind loads most affected on the floating photovoltaic generation structure were obtained by computational fluid dynamic analysis. The flow characteristics and wind loads were analyzed for a range of wind orientations and angles of inclination. The analysis showed the position and magnitude of the maximum wind load to the wind direction and the flow characteristics around the solar panel and floating system. The wind load increased with increasing angle of inclination of the panel to the ground.

• Composites Research
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.59-65
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• 2014

Most of energy are obtained from oil, coal, and natural gas, most likely, fossil fuel which is limited throughout the world. Recently, high crude oil price, climate change, oil depletion, etc. are main reason to get attention to non-fossil energy including renewable energy in the world. In this study, we studied analysis and design of structure system composed of pultruded fiber reinforced polymer composite (PFRP) which has many advantages such as high specific strength and stiffness, high corrosion resistance and chemical resistance. For the design and construction of floating-type structure, PFRP structural members may be the first choice. Design of tracking-type floating PV generation structure was performed by using the results of the finite element analysis. The structure is fabricated and installed on the water surface. Before the installation of the structure, safety related problems associated with installation and operation are investigated using the finite element simulation and it was found that the structure is safe enough to resist externally applied loads.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.109-117
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• 2022

There has been an increasing number of studies on photovoltaic energy generation system in an offshore site with the largest energy generation efficiency, as increasing the researches and developments of renewable energies for use of offshore space and resources to replace existing fossil fuels and resolve environmental challenges. For installation and operation of floating photovoltaic systems in an offshore site with harsher environmental conditions, a stiffness of structural members comprising the total system must be reinforced to inland water spaces as dams, reservoirs etc., which have relatively weak condition. However, there are various limitations for the reinforcement of structural stiffness of the system, including producible size, total mass of the system, economic efficiency, etc. Thus, in this study, a floating breakwater is considered for reducing wave loads on the system and minimizing the reinforcement of the structural members. Wave reduction performances of floating breakwaters are evaluated, considering size and distance to the system. The wave loads on the system are evaluated using the higher-order boundary element method (HOBEM), considering the multi-body effect of buoys. Stresses on structural members are assessed by coupled analyses using the finite element method (FEM), considering the wave loads and hydrodynamic characteristics. As the maximum stresses on each of the cases are reviewed and compared, the effect of floating breakwater for floating photovoltaic system is checked, and it is confirmed that the size of breakwater has a significant effect on structural responses of the system.

• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.16-23
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• 2021

Recently, the Korean government announced a plan to activate renewable energies, with focus on clean energy sources such as solar and wind power as the core and the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Unlike other photovoltaic (PV) systems, offshore PV installations are advantageous for large-scale expansion because of the ease of securing sites; they also enable lowering the power generation costs based on construction of large-scale power facilities of megawatt class or higher owing to low noise and landscape damage. However, any power generation should proceed with consideration of the special environmental conditions of the ocean. Above all, when installing large-scale facilities, it is important to reduce fluctuations of the structure and secure stability to actively respond to waves. This study is concerned with the development of a floating body technology that actively responds to waves so as to enable commercialization of offshore solar power. A unit platform for research and development on offshore PV generation was installed in the Saemangeum sea, and the structural fluctuations and stability were analyzed to ensure conformity with the major performance indicators.