The ability to charge battery-powered gadgets and appliances from sunshine is extremely valuable for preserving the continuity of electrical supply when away from a grid. Many types of appliance are now on the market that come readily adapted for solar power. Some have integrated solar panels, like radios, televisions and lamps. Most of the lamps are LED lamps; LEDs, or light Figure 7.3 Solar lantern using 32 LEDs, which give a long life of around 100,000 lighting hours,
compared with halogen lamps which provide around 1000 hours, and U-type lamps giving around 5000 hours. The solar module is rated at 2.5W and the lamp has an integral battery with a capacity of 2.5Ah.
hours, 22W is sufficient, which a solar module can supply with an output of 30W. Wind-up radios and lamps also come with solar panels on the top.
For appliances that consume more power, such as laptops, televisions and fridges, specially tailored modules supplying the correctly modulated current are available. For hikers, flexible panels can charge electrical equipment while they are walking. For boats, caravans and yachts, combined micro-wind turbine and PV modules systems are available with batteries for storage. That way, power can be supplied both when the wind is blowing and when the sun is shining. Wind power and solar power can make ideal companions in a so-called hybrid system because often when the sun isn’t shining, the wind is blowing and vice versa.
In this context, the modular aspect of PV power comes into its own. It is quite common for systems to start small, and grow as budget allows, or as loads are added. (A ‘load’ is shorthand for ‘electrical load’ or any device which consumes electricity that is added to a circuit.) PV modules can be added to a system to increase the amount of power available. The simplicity of this, not to mention its user-friendliness, cannot be overstated.
Telecoms and weather stations
It is for their reliability and low maintenance requirements that PV is often chosen to power remote repeater stations and other components of a mobile phone network. (A repeater is a device that picks up, amplifies and transmits cellphone signals to and from the nearest base station.) Weather monitoring stations are another popular application. After all, there is some elegance about a weather monitoring station powered by the weather. Power supplies for these are frequently combined with wind turbines and backup diesel generators.
For example, in Hilaire, in northeastern Haiti, accessible only by a four- hour ride on horseback, is a telecoms tower at the summit of a mountain that rises to 914.4m (3000ft). A PV-battery system gives it completely autonomous operation, with a generator for back-up in the winter. In the mainland US, at a similarly remote location, Cedar Mountain, one of the highest peaks in Pennsylvania’s Tioga State Forest, sits a microwave repeater station. The cost of extending utility power to this location over a distance of 11.3km (7 miles) was prohibitive compared to the cost of a solar/wind/generator hybrid system. This system operates autonomously from solar/wind power during summer. During winter, it operates approximately 65 per cent of the time from the generator and 35 per cent from the solar/wind combination.
There are plenty of examples of fuel cell power systems that supply back-up power to a remote PV-powered radio-telephone repeater or microwave relay station, where reliability is paramount. In this type of system, the fuel cell starts automatically when solar insolation is insufficient to maintain the state-of- charge of the system’s battery. A cellular modem commonly permits remote monitoring and control of the system.
Figure 7.4 A bus shelter
in Berlin, Germany, with PV-powered lighting, and a PV-powered parking meter in Rome, Italy.
Source: © Frank Jackson
Figure 7.5 A speed warning system
Pumping water
Many parts of the world do not have a reliable supply of drinking water; water scarcity is an increasing problem. This can seriously affect people’s health. However, solar power can be used to pump water from boreholes in situations where demand is too high or the well is too deep for the use of a hand pump. It is an ideal solution because systems can be easily sized to meet demand and are reliable – the only moving parts are in the pump itself; if that breaks down, it is relatively easy to repair. Other forms of power supply, such as a wind turbine or diesel generator, require higher levels of maintenance. Nevertheless, diesel can usually deliver water in greater quantities and from greater depths than PV, while PV is good for small- to medium-scale solutions where there is sufficient sunshine. Mechanical windmills can function very well; electrical ones often suffer because of the extreme conditions – high winds and dust can cause parts to wear out quickly. However, wind power may be cheaper where the wind resource is good. PV can be combined with either of these if required. Solar electricity is not normally cost effective for use with deep boreholes, such as those over 150m (500ft).
The relatively high initial cost of the modules (perhaps three times the cost of a diesel generator) is offset by considerable lifetime savings on fuel and reduced maintenance expenditure, and will soon make up for this initial outlay. The systems are ideal for meeting drinking water requirements for villages of up to 2000 inhabitants. The pumped water can also be used for animal watering crop irrigation (up to 3ha or 7.5 acres in scale, at low heads (vertical heights), depending on water requirements).
The water is pumped when the sun is shining and stored in an elevated tank for use when there is no power. The system is consequently relatively simple; it operates on DC, and an inverter is not required. The tank must be appropriately sized to store sufficient water for overnight and cloudy periods. The water in the tank is able to be gravity-fed to the taps or watering points for livestock, or the irrigation system, provided that the tank is located at least 30m (100ft) above the homes to be supplied; this will provide the necessary 20psi pressure. The only maintenance required for the modules is regular cleaning, but the modules must be placed in a secure position. A 1kWp array will, on clear sunny days in hot regions of the world, pump the following volume of water, the following vertical distance, per day:
volume height
50m³ 10m
15m³ 30m
10m³ 50m
Adding further kilowatts simply multiplies the volume or the distance linearly. For example, a 2kWp system will pump enough water to supply a community of about 1400 people. However, this is a rough guide only and it is crucial that the system is correctly sized to the local conditions.
There are different types of pumps for different applications, such as submersible and surface pumps. It is important to match the components in a solar pumping
system. For example, the correct choice of pump and motor depends on the quantity of water and the depth from which it is to be pumped. Normally the entire system is purchased as a kit, and selected once the local insolation figures, type of pump, daily water requirement and the head (vertical height) are known.
Desalination or distillation
PV can also be used to provide drinking water in another way, through the desalination of water. In this application it is also powering a pump, but this time to push the water through a reverse osmosis (RO) membrane. RO is a pressure driven process, where pure water is continuously drawn from salty water through a semi-permeable membrane. Again, PV is an alternative to using diesel or wind power, and is suitable for small-scale plants.
In a typical system, a PV cell array is used with or without a battery bank to power a DC pump and push the fresh water into a storage tank. Such a system will include a cartridge pre-filter and a spirally wound RO membrane element. In sun- belt areas, for 15W input, 0.1m³ of fresh water per day can be obtained, which can cater for the drinking and cooking requirements of a couple of families.
Some companies supply bespoke solutions for water purification and desalination. These are small-scale devices, with the module typically 50–100W, with built-in batteries. A unit consists of a complete kit containing a solar module and a water purification or desalination unit (they are different products). A water purification unit will contain water pre-filters, an ultraviolet disinfection lamp and, say, a 100-litre (22-gallon) water tank. Relatively portable, they might weigh 40–50kg. The purification units are effective against viruses, bacteria, protozoa and worm eggs. Desalination units will remove dissolved salts. In clear tropical conditions, a 75Wp system can provide around 2000 litres (440 gallons) – enough for 300–400 people.
More sophisticated systems use AC pumps and ultraviolet treatment to disinfect the water and provide greater reliability, which requires the use of an
Figure 7.6 Schematic
diagram of simple solar pumping system using a submersible pump.
since fresh water is a vital supply. An example of such a system is in use at Trombay, India. In a tropical region, using this equipment, 2m³ (20ft3) per day can be supplied by a
2kWp array. In subtropical regions, this figure could drop to
0.8m³ (28ft3) per day, which is clearly not cost-competitive.
In any region, economic viability will depend upon the availability and price of water, and the existence of subsidies or relative fuel price.
Another, community-scale example has been in use since 2006 in Rajasthan, India, on the shore of the Sambhar salt lake. It has been producing 5000 litres (1100 gallons) per six hour day from a 3kW array. The water comes from the salt lake, whose water is otherwise undrinkable, around which 100 villages produce salt by evaporating the water. This system makes both salt and water.
A second method is membrane distillation (MD). There are two differences between MD and RO. One is in the pore diameter of the membrane used. For RO, membranes have a pore diameter in the range of 0.1–3.5nm; membranes for MD generally have a pore diameter of 0.1–0.4 microns. At this much smaller size, up to a certain limiting pressure, surface tension prevents water from entering the pores, but water in the form of vapour can pass through the membrane, to condense in a pure form on the other side, where it is collected.
The other difference is that a solar thermal collector is used to raise the temperature of the water to 80–85°C (176–185°F), before it is introduced to the membrane by the PV-powered pump. A basic description of this system is that the salty or polluted feed water is pumped to the condenser inlet of the membrane module, where it is pre-heated and enters the solar thermal collector at the bottom. It rises, warms, and is pumped into the evaporator of the
membrane module. Its heat is
communicated to the incoming water, the distillate is collected and any residue returned to the brine tank for recirculation. Up to 150 litres (33 gallons) per day can
be produced by 6.7m² (72ft2) of solar
thermal collectors and a small PV-driven pump.
Refrigeration
Fridges are used by health agencies in rural health centres in remote areas to store blood banks and vaccines. When powered Figure 7.7 Dutch company Nedap’s all-in-one
solution for PV-powered water purification.
Source: © Nedap NV
by a PV system with battery back-up they provide a reliable service in countries as disparate as Yemen, Indonesia, Ghana and Nicaragua. Larger, turnkey systems, which include a fridge whose power requirements are perfectly matched with the PV system, are available for aid organizations and emergency relief. These typically include low maintenance, sealed, high-performance batteries (non- hazardous), an inverter for powering AC equipment and a charge controller with an easy-to-read display.