**6. Aswan Reservoir**

A similar but slightly different numerical analysis of the floating PV system is performed on covering Aswan Reservoir. Figure 7 shows the FPV location on Aswan Reservoir that is decided based on the ease of grid connection and undulated water surface for effective mooring. In this study, the system set to have equal DC power capacity in portrait as well as landscape orientation with the percentage of area covering the total reservoir varied eventually. The electrical performance of the FPV system on Aswan Reservoir of 5 MW installed capacity with various orientations and tracking mechanism is simulated, and the results are listed in Tables 4 and 5. The annual GHI of Aswan Reservoir is the same as Aswan High Dam, while varied POA irradiance, annual energy generated from the installed FPV capacity with their PR and specific yield is listed. For a fixed FPV system, the optimal tilt angle of the module is kept as 25◦, with the floating platform design similar to the aforementioned study.

**Figure 7.** Location of FPV on the Aswan Reservoir of 5MW capacity.

**Table 4.** Electrical performance of FPV system for various panel types and orientation of Aswan Reservoir—5 MW capacity.


**Table 5.** Electrical performance of FPV system for various panel types and orientation of Aswan Reservoir—5 MW capacity.


In all types of PV panels, the area required to install the PV modules in landscape orientation is higher than the portrait orientation. The reservoir area covered by the FPV system results minimum in portrait orientated thin film PV modules and maximum in landscape-oriented mono-crystalline modules. However, with the equivalent number of modules in both orientation type, the annual energy generated from the horizontally oriented crystalline array results higher. This higher energy yield from the FPV system in landscape orientation irrespective of their panel type is mainly due to the reduced shading losses (See Table 6). The amount of water saved per year by the FPV covering system is calculated by the actual annual evaporation rate when the reservoir is uncovered. The volume of water prevented from evaporation varies with respect to the area covered in each type of FPV system, as given in Table 5. The inverter nameplate is selected by keeping the constant DC to AC ratio as 1.24 and the total number of inverters required, and their associated losses are calculated. The major losses in the FPV system affecting the energy generated are irradiance, shading and temperature loss. Shading losses in the PV modules are comparatively high in the fixed mount tracking system in comparison to the single axis tracking system. The position of the floating platform is fixed on the reservoir with zero or fewer impacts of short and long-distance shadows such as hills, trees, and dam walls. However, the shading losses due to the adjacent panels even at optimum tilt angle are unavoidable. In contrast, the temperature losses in the system with a tracking mechanism experiences higher levels than the system without a tracking mechanism. The continuous exposure to the irradiation from the sunlight in order to enhance the energy yield results in an increase in the operating temperature of the PV cell and the module. However, the water evaporative cooling of the FPV modules boosts the energy generated from the system.


