Company Develops "Solar Panel Carpet" to Generate Energy in Open Seas That Could Revolutionize the Market

Company Develops “Solar Panel Carpet” to Generate Energy in Open Seas That Could Revolutionize the Market

Written by Valdemar Medeiros

Published on 10/09/2022 at 13:47

Foto: The Agility Effect/Reprodução

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Dutch Company Developed a Floating Solar Mat Installed Offshore. The Equipment Offers Several Benefits and Technologies That Prevent Constant Maintenance.

A company from the Netherlands, called SolarDuck, developed a floating solar mat to generate renewable energy in open waters. A possibility that still faces several challenges, despite being very costly. Generally, floating solar power plants are combined with other modes of energy production, and this is the case for the Dutch company that will test its system off the coast of Belgium and also integrated among wind turbines in the Netherlands, in both cases in the North Sea.

Offshore Solar Mat Design Can Contribute to Its Easy Installation and Component Preservation

Developing an offshore solar power plant that can withstand heavy weather conditions, be resistant to strong winds and water, require little maintenance, and be durable in a corrosive environment is almost impossible.

With this in mind, SolarDuck’s aim is to develop a solar power plant in a triangular design, developed to float several meters above the water.

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Offshore Solar Mat Receives Certification from Bureau Veritas

*Floating solar prototype from SolarDuck installed in IJzendoorn (Photo: SolarDuck)*

According to SolarDuck’s CEO, Koen Burgers, the demand for clean, sustainable, and accessible energy requires new and immediate responses from the industry in Europe and globally. The company aims to provide this response by generating solar energy for its next frontier: the oceans.

The presentation of the robust technology in the adverse conditions of the North Sea will allow the company to install the technology practically anywhere in the world.

The model has received the world’s first certification for offshore solar energy from the Bureau Veritas organization. The aquatic environment, while presenting significant challenges, also offers various advantages. It optimizes the water space for energy generation, saving land use.

Solar Panels Contribute to Reducing Water Loss through Evaporation

In addition to these benefits, the panels of the ‘solar mat’ further contribute to reducing water loss from evaporation, especially when installed in hydroelectric reservoirs. Other advantages of installing solar panels on the surface of the sea include reducing the heat of photovoltaic panels, making them more efficient and helping to contain algae proliferation.

The installation of the solar mat off the coast of Ostend, Belgium, is expected to generate 0.5 MWh at peak production. This will be the company’s first offshore pilot.

After the experience at sea, the developer hopes to gain insights that will enable faster commercialization of the technology starting next year.

Company Develops “Solar Panel Carpet” to Generate Energy in Open Seas That Could Revolutionize the Market

Dutch Company Developed a Floating Solar Mat Installed Offshore. The Equipment Offers Several Benefits and Technologies That Prevent Constant Maintenance.

Offshore Solar Mat Design Can Contribute to Its Easy Installation and Component Preservation

Offshore Solar Mat Receives Certification from Bureau Veritas

Solar Panels Contribute to Reducing Water Loss through Evaporation

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Australia installs giant concrete structures on the seabed 800 meters from the shore to create an ocean intake for desalination that will draw in saltwater and produce 30 million liters of drinking water per day.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

A public school student single-handedly created a machine capable of treating water for up to 50 people using only solar energy. It was awarded third place at one of the most important science fairs in the world.

Germany installed vertical solar panels on a lake in Bavaria, and the result broke conventional logic: instead of producing energy at midday peak, the plant generates more early in the morning and in the evening, exactly when families turn on appliances and factories are in full swing.

While communities suffer from water scarcity and the advancing desert, women in Morocco use nets high up in the mountains to trap fog droplets, fill reservoirs, and transport drinking water through more than 10 km of piping.

The world’s smallest island nation approves a historic change to abandon the name inherited from the colonial period and redefine the identity of an island of just 21 km² that once became wealthy from phosphate and now faces an economic crisis and climate threat in the Pacific.

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Company Develops “Solar Panel Carpet” to Generate Energy in Open Seas That Could Revolutionize the Market

Dutch Company Developed a Floating Solar Mat Installed Offshore. The Equipment Offers Several Benefits and Technologies That Prevent Constant Maintenance.

Offshore Solar Mat Design Can Contribute to Its Easy Installation and Component Preservation

Offshore Solar Mat Receives Certification from Bureau Veritas

Solar Panels Contribute to Reducing Water Loss through Evaporation

A Chinese factory in Guangdong is assembling a humanoid robot every 30 minutes while Tesla, Figure, and Boston Dynamics still struggle to deliver 10 thousand per year.

While an average building in London or New York takes three years to be completed, in China a 26-story tower went up in five days with about 100 workers, and the global modular construction market already moves US$ 95 billion per year.

Australia installs giant concrete structures on the seabed 800 meters from the shore to create an ocean intake for desalination that will draw in saltwater and produce 30 million liters of drinking water per day.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

A public school student single-handedly created a machine capable of treating water for up to 50 people using only solar energy. It was awarded third place at one of the most important science fairs in the world.

Germany installed vertical solar panels on a lake in Bavaria, and the result broke conventional logic: instead of producing energy at midday peak, the plant generates more early in the morning and in the evening, exactly when families turn on appliances and factories are in full swing.

While communities suffer from water scarcity and the advancing desert, women in Morocco use nets high up in the mountains to trap fog droplets, fill reservoirs, and transport drinking water through more than 10 km of piping.

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The world’s smallest island nation approves a historic change to abandon the name inherited from the colonial period and redefine the identity of an island of just 21 km² that once became wealthy from phosphate and now faces an economic crisis and climate threat in the Pacific.

Dependent on imports, Brazil sees fertilizers becoming a concern in agriculture as the conflict involving Iran pressures freight, insurance, and agricultural production.

Work 14 days and rest 14 days: Engeman opens offshore position on a 14×14 schedule to work onboard as a Crane Operator in Rio de Janeiro.

China wanted to cut a 3-hour trip to just 20 minutes, so it had an idea: to build a R$ 20.2 billion tunnel spanning 22 km, crossing 16 geological faults in the Tianshan Mountains.

Young Ethiopian turns trash into fashion with tires, cardboard, and electrical wires, goes viral with videos that look like luxury editorials, and surpasses 5 million followers by catching the attention of artists, photographers, and designers.