• 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.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Industry Convergence
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.227-233
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• 2014

Information presented in this study is intended to inform candidates as they prepare to design and structure the floatovoltaics solar power system. A developed floatovoltaics solar power generation results from the combination of PV plant technology and PV floating technology. This floating-based PV system is a new concept for PV development. The PV floating technology opens new opportunities to give value to unused areas so far while preserving valuable land for more adapted activities. Therefore the land-use conflicts are avoided and the environmental impact is minimized. Therefore the technology offers an interesting opportunity to regions facing on drought during summer time without any negative impact to the eco-system. This study describe the basic components of a floatovoltaics solar power system. A typical system consist of floating system and solar modules, a control device, rechargeable batteries, a load or device and the associated electrical connections. The floating system is specifically designed to keep all metallic components above water leaving only 100% recyclable, closed cell foam filled HDPE plastic floats in contact with the water. As the first case that can maximize the power generation efficiency of PV internationally, it is expected that this study will be utilized as a primary guide for future development of floating type PV system.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Advanced Composite Structures
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2014

Pultruded glass fiber reinforced polymeric plastic (PFRP) and FRP member manufactured by sheet molding compound (SMC) have superior mechanical and physical properties compared with those of conventional structural materials. Since FRP has an excellent corrosion-resistance and high specific strength and stiffness, the FRP material may be highly appreciated for the development of floating-type photovoltaic (PV) power generation system. In this paper, advanced floating PV generation system made of PFRP and SMC is designed. In the design, it includes tracking solar altitude by tilting photovoltaic arrays and tracking solar azimuth by spinning structures. Moreover, the results of the finite element analysis (FEA) are presented to confirm stability of entire structure under the external loads. Additionally, installation procedure and mooring systems in the Hap-Cheon Dam are discussed and the measurement of strain under the actual circumstances is conducted for assuring stability of actually installed structures. Finally, by comparison with allowable stress, appropriate safety of structure is confirmed to operate the system.

• 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.

• 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.

• 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.

• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.60-68
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• 2013

In recent years, green house effect related natural disasters occur throughout the world. Carbon dioxide, mainly comes from the fossil fuel burning, is suspected to be the cause of green house effect. To reduce the emission of carbon dioxide, we need to find alternative energy resources such as photovoltaic energy. In this paper, the basic characteristics of wind force coefficient on a PV panel installed on the floating type PV energy generation system are investigated though the two-dimensional wind tunnel tests. Test variables included the angle of PV panel, direction of wind, number of rows of PV panel and attached or not attached frame. Based on the results obtained through the wind tunnel tests, it was found that the wind force coefficient can be used as a preliminary data in the design of the structure.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.9
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• pp.4447-4454
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• 2013

In October 2011, a commercialized 100kW class floating photovoltaic system positive plant was installed at Hapcheon dam a multi-purpose reservoir the first time ever in the nation. Floating photovoltaic system differs in water float, mooring device and underwater cable process from land photovoltaic system. As for land and building photovoltaic power generation equipments, many installation cases and skilled experiences are available, and thus installation is not difficult. However, commercial power generation floating photovoltaic system, which is attempted for the first time in the nation, requires to be designed and installed through a series of processes like technical review and verification of data by process in comparison with similar cases. The structure of floating photovoltaic system, an equipment for float photovoltaic module and other electrical equipment, is required to withstand weather environments like wind or typhoon etc and yet not affect water quality negatively, and for implementation of this system, construction efficiency and economy etc should be considered comprehensively. In this paper, the techniques of installing floating photovoltaic structure, mooring device, underwater cable, electrical equipment and remote monitoring control system are explained. The 100kW floating PV system is operating with 15% average capacity factor.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.66 no.10
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• pp.1532-1539
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• 2017

The floating photovoltaic system is a new concept in the renewable energy technology. That is similar to land based photovoltaic technology except floating system. So the system needs buoyant objects, mooring, ect, besides modules and supports, and that is able to withstand in water level changes and wind strength. Therefore the floating photovoltaic system is much different from land photovoltaic system. K-water (Korea Water Resources Corporation) has been operating two floating photovoltaic system that's capacity is 100 kW and 500 kW respectively since in summer 2011 for commercial generation, and have construction project for 2,000 kW in Boryeong multipurpose Dam and other areas. Furthermore K-water was developing a tracking-type floating photovoltaic system at Daecheong multipurpose Dam and developed and installed an ocean floating photovoltaic demonstration plant at Sihwa Lake in October 2013 for R&D. In this paper, we introduce that structure of floating photovoltaic system include buoyant structure, mooring system and auxiliary device. Especially the rope which is in part of mooring should be always maintain tension under any water level. Also we explain about structure design concept to wind load in an every loading condition and a kind of structure materials and PV structure types used in water environment. Especially ocean floating PV system is affected by tidal current and typhoon. So there are considering the elements in design. Finally we compare with floating and land photovoltaic on power amount. As a result of that we verified the floating photovoltaic system is more about 6.6~14.2 % efficiency than a general land photovoltaic system.