Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal
The current study presents the concept of a stand-alone solar organic Rankine cycle (ORC) water pumping system for rural Nepalese areas. Experimental results for this technology are presented based on a prototype. The economic viability of the system was assessed based on solar radiation data of dif...
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doaj-6a3f5056798943adbb57368bca5eae692020-11-25T00:02:48ZengMDPI AGSustainability2071-10502015-12-01811810.3390/su8010018su8010018Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in NepalSuresh Baral0Kyung Chun Kim1School of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan 609-735, KoreaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan 609-735, KoreaThe current study presents the concept of a stand-alone solar organic Rankine cycle (ORC) water pumping system for rural Nepalese areas. Experimental results for this technology are presented based on a prototype. The economic viability of the system was assessed based on solar radiation data of different Nepalese geographic locations. The mechanical power produced by the solar ORC is coupled with a water pumping system for various applications, such as drinking and irrigation. The thermal efficiency of the system was found to be 8% with an operating temperature of 120 °C. The hot water produced by the unit has a temperature of 40 °C. Economic assessment was done for 1-kW and 5-kW solar ORC water pumping systems. These systems use different types of solar collectors: a parabolic trough collector (PTC) and an evacuated tube collector (ETC). The economic analysis showed that the costs of water are $2.47/m3 (highest) and $1.86/m3 (lowest) for the 1-kW system and a 150-m pumping head. In addition, the cost of water is reduced when the size of the system is increased and the pumping head is reduced. The minimum volumes of water pumped are 2190 m3 and 11,100 m3 yearly for 1 kW and 5 kW, respectively. The payback period is eight years with a profitability index of 1.6. The system is highly feasible and promising in the context of Nepal.http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/1/18solar ORC water pumping systemirrigationeconomic viabilitythermal efficiencysolar energyStand-alone system |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Suresh Baral Kyung Chun Kim |
spellingShingle |
Suresh Baral Kyung Chun Kim Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal Sustainability solar ORC water pumping system irrigation economic viability thermal efficiency solar energy Stand-alone system |
author_facet |
Suresh Baral Kyung Chun Kim |
author_sort |
Suresh Baral |
title |
Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal |
title_short |
Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal |
title_full |
Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal |
title_fullStr |
Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal |
title_full_unstemmed |
Stand-Alone Solar Organic Rankine Cycle Water Pumping System and Its Economic Viability in Nepal |
title_sort |
stand-alone solar organic rankine cycle water pumping system and its economic viability in nepal |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Sustainability |
issn |
2071-1050 |
publishDate |
2015-12-01 |
description |
The current study presents the concept of a stand-alone solar organic Rankine cycle (ORC) water pumping system for rural Nepalese areas. Experimental results for this technology are presented based on a prototype. The economic viability of the system was assessed based on solar radiation data of different Nepalese geographic locations. The mechanical power produced by the solar ORC is coupled with a water pumping system for various applications, such as drinking and irrigation. The thermal efficiency of the system was found to be 8% with an operating temperature of 120 °C. The hot water produced by the unit has a temperature of 40 °C. Economic assessment was done for 1-kW and 5-kW solar ORC water pumping systems. These systems use different types of solar collectors: a parabolic trough collector (PTC) and an evacuated tube collector (ETC). The economic analysis showed that the costs of water are $2.47/m3 (highest) and $1.86/m3 (lowest) for the 1-kW system and a 150-m pumping head. In addition, the cost of water is reduced when the size of the system is increased and the pumping head is reduced. The minimum volumes of water pumped are 2190 m3 and 11,100 m3 yearly for 1 kW and 5 kW, respectively. The payback period is eight years with a profitability index of 1.6. The system is highly feasible and promising in the context of Nepal. |
topic |
solar ORC water pumping system irrigation economic viability thermal efficiency solar energy Stand-alone system |
url |
http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/1/18 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT sureshbaral standalonesolarorganicrankinecyclewaterpumpingsystemanditseconomicviabilityinnepal AT kyungchunkim standalonesolarorganicrankinecyclewaterpumpingsystemanditseconomicviabilityinnepal |
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