Floating Solar Power Plants for Rural Electrification with IoT Based Cleaning and Monitoring of It - A Review

Abstract

Floating Solar Photovoltaic (FPV) systems have emerged as an innovative solution to the growing challenges of land scarcity, increased energy demand, and environmental degradation. Integrating FPV with Internet of Things (IoT)-based automated cleaning and real-time monitoring significantly enhances system performance, particularly in rural regions where accessibility and maintenance remain major constraints. This review consolidates recent advancements (2017–2025) in floating solar systems, IoT-enabled monitoring, automated dust-cleaning mechanisms, and hybrid intelligent diagnostic frameworks. A total of fifteen peer-reviewed studies areanalyzed to evaluate the technological developments, performance benefits, and implementation challenges associated with FPV and IoT automation. The review identifies research gaps related to long-term environmental impacts, predictive cleaning models, sensor reliability in aquatic environments, and rural deployment strategies. The study concludes that integrating FPV systems with intelligent IoT-based cleaning and monitoring provides a reliable, sustainable, and scalable pathway for rural electrification.

Introduction

The text provides a comprehensive review of recent advancements in floating solar photovoltaic (FPV) systems, IoT-based solar monitoring, and automated maintenance technologies, especially in the context of rural electrification. FPV is highlighted as a promising solution to land scarcity and unreliable grid access, offering advantages such as improved energy efficiency due to water-based cooling and reduced evaporation losses. Studies show FPV’s potential to enhance agricultural productivity, conserve water, and support rural development.

Parallel developments in IoT, AI, and machine learning have transformed solar monitoring by enabling real-time data acquisition, remote supervision, predictive maintenance, and automated cleaning systems to mitigate dust-related energy losses. These technologies improve energy output, reduce operational costs, and minimize manual intervention—critical for remote and floating solar installations.

The literature review covers multiple studies that explore IoT-based monitoring systems, automated panel cleaning, FPV design, environmental impacts, and solar-assisted technologies. While these studies reveal strong progress, they also expose significant research gaps:

• Limited integration of IoT with FPV systems for continuous real-time monitoring.

• Insufficient use of AI/ML-based predictive analytics for maintenance and performance optimization.

• Few systems link dust detection, environmental forecasting, and automated cleaning cycles.

• FPV research rarely includes cloud-based analytics, multi-sensor fusion, or fault detection.

• Most water-conservation and economic assessments lack field-based IoT validation.

• No existing model integrates FPV, IoT monitoring, predictive cleaning, and climate-based optimization into a unified system for rural electrification.

The review concludes that combining FPV technology with advanced IoT, AI, and automated maintenance frameworks could establish a scalable, efficient, and sustainable energy solution—especially for rural communities facing land constraints, water scarcity, and unreliable electricity access.

Conclusion

The overall review of the existing studies shows that solar energy systems—whether rooftop, floating, or off-grid—are becoming more efficient and reliable because of the integration of modern technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and advanced sensors. Researchers like Rumbayan et al. (2022) and Anbarasu et al. (2023) have shown that IoT makes real-time monitoring much easier, especially in remote areas where manual checking is difficult. Similarly, studies by Biswas et al. (2023), Dini?? et al. (2025), and Dhankar et al. (2025) prove that automated cleaning and predictive maintenance significantly improve power generation by reducing dust-related losses. Floating solar systems, as discussed by Bhasme et al. (2023), Huang et al. (2023), Ramanan et al. (2024), and Mouhaya et al. (2025), also offer strong potential to increase renewable energy production while saving land and reducing water evaporation. Reviews by Khare et al. (2023) and Bossi et al. (2024) highlight that the future of solar power lies in combining innovative solar designs with intelligent monitoring, data analytics, and environment-responsive technologies.Although all these studies show great progress, the literature also makes it clear that more work is needed to develop standardized monitoring methods, low-cost intelligent systems, advanced rainfall-based irrigation controls, and strong environmental assessment frameworks. Many researchers have successfully demonstrated prototypes and experimental systems, but large-scale field deployment, long-term performance testing, hardware durability, and integration with power grids still need further improvement. Overall, the combined findings indicate that IoT-based solar monitoring, floating PV systems, automated cleaning mechanisms, and smart irrigation systems are highly promising technologies that can support sustainable development, especially in rural, coastal, agricultural, and water-stressed areas. With continued research, collaboration, and innovation, these technologies can help achieve higher energy efficiency, improved reliability, reduced maintenance efforts, and stronger adoption of renewable energy across different sectors.

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2025 Tejaswini Devidas Bombilwar , Rajendra Bhombe, Swati Gajbhiye, Saurabh Bagde . This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.