The essence of engineering submersible FPV, some thoughts

Johan Bakker, INNOZOWA, 6-12-2023
‘Hide and Shine’

Essential for engineering Submersible Floating Solar is to determine the right balance between weight (F gravity), Archimedes (F buoyancy) and flexible buoyancy for example with tubes (F b.flex)

Here are some interesting facts, right after engineering our third raft, the basic and scalable one.

• Both F gravity (minus F b.flex) in surfaced position and F buoyancy (plus F.b.flex) in submersed position must be a positive numerical value to respectively submerse and surface. Otherwise, it will not work. it’s better to do your homework in advance.
• When the numerical value is large ( >5 kg/panel/2 m2 ) the submersible raft is robust, generously sized, has ample load capacity but is less efficient for pumping and sizing possible limit height buoys. When the water is deep, limit height buoys are necessary.
• When the numerical value is small, the design is sophisticated. The raft will be slim, more cheap and has fast response time. This generates desired applications.
• The smaller the diameter of the limit height buoys, the calmer their behavior in the rough waves.
• With size of flex tubes and other buoyancy ‘robust’ can be converted in more ‘sophisticated ‘ but not in slim or optimized. 

• If there is still a feeling of a ‘Titanic risk’ for this new technical approach (not based on the facts, but still), it is even possible to design inherently floating but submersible floating solar rafts, with the same calculation methodology. The design will be also storm safe but less light weight and less cheap. You have to create f.e. extra buoyancy and flex weight as well. 

• For stabilized submersing and surfacing is the air/water distribution, so the (flex) buoyancy, in and on the raft at that moment of vertical movement, something to engineer. Some buoyancy works automatically correct, others is challenging to find out. It is a puzzle in 3D space.
• Light weight panels, glass-glass, offshore, composites, are all possible variables for design.
• Submersible FPV and semi-submersible FPV is calculable and adjustable and are of the same. The difference is only the flex load. Submersing half way down is to lower ‘high heels FPV’ f.e. when risky strong wind occurs.
• The extent to which the flex tubes are filled and emptied with water, air or in combination, is easily controlled with a few sensors, time settings or AI. Capacity in the tubes is one, required volume is two. Both have their function and contribution. Wolf