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Cantide756 t1_jdoets2 wrote

If I had time I would. Closest I have is accidental, with my 75g aquarium and losing 1 of my 4 grow lamps. But since it wasn't controlled, the results are speculative. It had been at equilibrium for 3 years after 5 of trying to reach balance. All that work thrown out of whack and ended when the algae and plants weren't able to produce more than they were fed upon. They died out, and then the tank starved from the bottom up. Can it be transferred to scale? Probably not. But cutting out energy from a system will not have zero effect, it just can't.

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TurretLauncher OP t1_jdoiizh wrote

I'm an aquarist (55g) myself. Adding younger, hungrier fish, or suffering micro-organism invasions, or chemistry fluctuations, can all cause the effects you describe.

The question is not whether changes in solar energy have effects, but rather whether or not these effects will be adapted to such that the lake remains healthy.

This is precisely what this multi-year (2020 – 2023) UCF / US DoE study across four existing floating photovoltaic system installations within three Köppean climate regions is currently documenting: "Harmful algae growth, a nutrient pollutant, is a costly nuisance for water bodies. It clogs pumps, blocks filters, and produces odors. It is also linked to severe illness and death in animals and humans. Floating solar systems may significantly reduce light exposure and lower water temperatures, thereby minimizing algae growth."

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Cantide756 t1_jdoj9iv wrote

After I reached equilibrium I sealed the tank. Only input was light and an external heat source. Maybe some sloshing around from a magnet scrubber

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TurretLauncher OP t1_jdokn9w wrote

Tanks are shaped in certain ways precisely in order to ensure a water surface which permits sufficient interactions with the atmosphere, enabling oxygen and CO2 exchanges etc. If you seal off the tank, this can no longer happen. Death would actually be the expected result of doing that.

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