Solar powered artificial floating island for landscape ecology and water quality improvement

This study uses solar artificial floating islands (SAFI) for water purification and biological conservation. The site of experiment is set up on a lake shore on a university campus, where the eutrophic contents of lake and sewage from the student dormitory are used for result assessment. The study demonstrates that the SAFI is able to reduce the EC of the eutrophic contents by 30% and enhance dissolved oxygen (DO) by 2.8 times. The SAFI is also able to reduce electric conductivity of dormitory sewage by 34% and increase dissolved oxygen by 982 times. After the improvement, the oxidation–reduction property is above +100 mV and the oxidation activities in samples are vigorous. The habitation of Ischnura senegalensis, Leucauge magnifica Yaginuma, and Duttaphrynus melanostictus can be observed in the SAFI enhanced water area, while the area without the influence of the SAFI lacks dissolved oxygen and water plants, which results in the common Culicidae, Hirudo nipponica Whitman, and Chironomida in rotten water. This research shows that the SAFI has determinant influence on the ecology and water quality improvement.