Floating solar power as an alternative to hydropower expansion along China's Yellow River

Chen，Kai1; Jin，Yubin2; Feng，Yueyang1; Song，Wen1; Li，Yingjie3; Zhou，Yanxi4; Guo，Xiaona1; Li，Yinshuai1; Kou，Xiaomei5; Zhu，Annah Lake6; Chen，Ruishan1

2024-08-01

10.1016/j.resconrec.2024.107689

Resources, Conservation and Recycling   影响因子和分区

0921-3449

1879-0658

Hydropower provides a growing renewable energy source, yet remains controversial due to its environmental impacts. We demonstrate a potential solution to hydropower growth that integrates solar power and hydropower by installing floating photovoltaic (PV) infrastructure at existing hydropower reservoirs. This solution circumvents new hydro-dam construction by supplying the same amount of energy from new floating solar power installations. We simulated this solution in the upper main stream of China's Yellow River, where 15 new hydro-dams are planned. We find that installing floating PV on 25.3 % of the existing hydropower reservoirs would provide enough energy to replace all new hydro-dam construction and save 497.1 km of land compared to land-based PV replacement. Although floating PV as an alternative to hydropower expansion could slightly increase the initial investment (up to 9.0 %), it would avoid the adverse impacts hydropower poses to the Yellow River basin and alleviate land pressure for PV development.

Dam construction Ecological impacts Floating photovoltaics Hydropower Renewable energy transition Solar power

SCI ; EI

英语

其他

20242016099681

Dams ; Environmental impact ; Expansion ; Hydroelectric power ; Hydroelectric power plants ; Investments ; Reservoirs (water) ; Rivers ; Solar power generation

Dams:441.1 ; Reservoirs:441.2 ; Environmental Impact and Protection:454.2 ; Hydroelectric Power Plants:611.1 ; Solar Power:615.2 ; Solar Energy and Phenomena:657.1 ; Materials Science:951

ENVIRONMENT/ECOLOGY

2-s2.0-85192902702

Scopus

1.School of Design,Shanghai Jiao Tong University,Shanghai,200240,China
2.School of Environmental Science and Engineering,Southern University of Science and Technology,Shenzhen,518055,China
3.Natural Capital Project,Woods Institute for the Environment,Stanford University,Stanford,94305,United States
4.Power China Kunming Engineering Corporation Limited,Kunming,650051,China
5.Power China Northwest Engineering Corporation Limited,Xi'an,710065,China
6.Environmental Policy Group,Wageningen University,Wageningen,6706KN,Netherlands

Chen，Kai,Jin，Yubin,Feng，Yueyang,et al. Floating solar power as an alternative to hydropower expansion along China's Yellow River[J]. Resources, Conservation and Recycling,2024,207.

Chen，Kai.,Jin，Yubin.,Feng，Yueyang.,Song，Wen.,Li，Yingjie.,...&Chen，Ruishan.(2024).Floating solar power as an alternative to hydropower expansion along China's Yellow River.Resources, Conservation and Recycling,207.

Chen，Kai,et al."Floating solar power as an alternative to hydropower expansion along China's Yellow River".Resources, Conservation and Recycling 207(2024).