Improving Efficiency in Power Production and Transmission for Offshore Solar Farms using Bifacial Panel Design and HVDC

Abstract

As higher demand for power becomes a global concern and offshore power generation becomes more popular, more options should be explored. This study investigates the use of bifacial photovoltaic (PV) panels for offshore solar farms. In addition, it explores the use of HVDC for transmitting the solar power to onshore grid. The results show that bifacial panels have much higher efficiency compared to monofacial panels where the efficiency improvement ranges from 8.5% to 24.8% for a wide range of irradiance (100-1000 W/m2). The newer Voltage Source Converter (VSC) HVDC has high potential for future deployment thanks to its advantages. However, the harmonics from a considered VSC-HVDC system is severe. Some fitters have been designed to mitigate the harmonics. LC low-pass filters are proved to be most effective where they reduce the Total Harmonics Distortion (THD) of the system output voltage from 68.84% to 2.93%. The results are supportive for developing offshore solar farms that provide green energy while preserving land for other purposes.