Using solar photovoltaic energy in urban water supply systems: a case study in Kayseri, Turkey

Abstract

Submersible pumps, widely used in deep wells drilled to meet the water needs of users in urban areas, add an additional load to the conventional electricity grid infrastructure and are responsible for increasing the concentration of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. The main objective of this study is to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of using solar photovoltaic (PV) energy to reduce the net power drawn from the grid by submersible pumps in urban water supply systems. The Germiraltı catchment area (Kayseri, Turkey), which provides all of its energy needs from the city electricity grid, was chosen as the research area. Two different scenarios, ‘hybrid-powered water pumping system’ and ‘grid-connected PV system’, were analyzed and evaluated. A 1,620 kWp grid-connected PV system can inject 2,787.8 MWh/year of energy into the grid, which is more than the total annual energy need of the submersible pumps. The system operates with 85.7% performance ratio (PR), 19.6% capacity factor (CF) and 4.71 (h/d) final yield. The payback period of the system is calculated as 4.1 years. The results show that it is economically competitive to meet the energy needs of submersible pumps in urban water supply systems with solar PV energy.

Reliability and performance evaluation of a solar PV-powered underground water pumping system

“…The solar-generated electricity can then be used to power the water pump or stored by pumping water into a high tank during the day and distributing it by gravity after dark. A battery will be required to store the energy generated during the day for electrical applications at night 16 , 17 . There are two methods for pumping water with a photovoltaic system: Solar energy is consumed in “real time” in the first technique, which is known as “pumping in the sun.” This solution necessitates water storage in a tank (water pumped during the day is stored for later use in the evening, for example).…”