DC bus platform for Floating Solar powered Aeration

The health of water bodies in the US depends on a balance of biological activity, which in turn depends on ensuring a lack of toxic elements, balanced pH, and proper mixing. As farm and industrial runoff has increased, this balance can be impacted. This can lead to stratification of the water body into anaerobic and aerobic layers that can then lead to fish kills and toxic algae blooms. One of the best ways to combat this is to add aerators to the water body to prevent the formation of the anaerobic layer. However, the addition of aerators is not without complexity as it adds capital and operational expenses. This proposal is focused on the facile mechanical and electrical integration of the aerators into floating solar power plants through the use of a common DC bus. By integrating into the installation, the additional expense can be blended into the capital costs for the solar power plant and the energy to run the aerators can be drawn from energy that would otherwise have been clipped by the inverter. Therefore, this combination will allow water body operators to not only benefit from low-cost solar energy but to also get aeration equipment at no or marginal costs. Throughout Phase I of this project, the concept will be demonstrated on a water body. This will involve the development of the ideal mechanical attachment methods for several aerator types and their associated peripheral equipment (e.g. compressors). Phase I will also start the collection of data to understand the efficacy of coupling the aeration with the other benefits associated with floating solar (reduced evaporation, reduced algae growth, etc). Following the demonstration of the integration and efficacy of the innovation, the next steps will focus on development of the DC bus architecture to further improve the integration. Successful completion of the Phases II and III will enable a low-cost aeration option on all future floating solar installations.