Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project
This article presents a field-performance investigation on an Integrated Solar Water Supply System (SWSS) at two isolated agricultural areas in Thailand. The two case-study villages (Pongluek and Bangkloy) have experienced severe draughts in recent decades, and, therefore, water supply has become a...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2020-08-01
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| Series: | Water |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/9/2438 |
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| author | Thanongsak Imjai Kamon Thinsurat Pakorn Ditthakit Warit Wipulanusat Monthian Setkit Reyes Garcia |
| author_facet | Thanongsak Imjai Kamon Thinsurat Pakorn Ditthakit Warit Wipulanusat Monthian Setkit Reyes Garcia |
| author_sort | Thanongsak Imjai |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article presents a field-performance investigation on an Integrated Solar Water Supply System (SWSS) at two isolated agricultural areas in Thailand. The two case-study villages (Pongluek and Bangkloy) have experienced severe draughts in recent decades, and, therefore, water supply has become a major issue. A stand-alone 15.36 kW solar power and a 15 kW solar submersible pump were installed along with the input power generated by solar panels supported by four solar trackers. The aim is to lift water at the static head of 64 and 48 m via a piping length of 400 m for each village to be stored in 1000 and 1800 m<sup>3</sup> reservoirs at an average of 300 and 400 m<sup>3</sup> per day, respectively, for Pongluek and Bangkloy villages. The case study results show that the real costs of electricity generated by SWSS using solar photovoltaic (PV) systems intergraded with the solar tracking system yield better performance and are more advantageous compared with the non-tracking system. This study illustrates how system integration has been employed. System design and commercially available simulation predictions are elaborated. Construction, installation, and field tests for SWSS are discussed and highlighted. Performances of the SWSS in different weather conditions, such as sunny, cloudy, and rainy days, were analysed to make valuable suggestions for higher efficiency of the integrated solar water supply systems. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:42:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a8b45fd8d90d4387a73f0f6c0f4662dd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4441 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:42:12Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Water |
| spelling | doaj.art-a8b45fd8d90d4387a73f0f6c0f4662dd2023-11-20T11:55:41ZengMDPI AGWater2073-44412020-08-01129243810.3390/w12092438Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative ProjectThanongsak Imjai0Kamon Thinsurat1Pakorn Ditthakit2Warit Wipulanusat3Monthian Setkit4Reyes Garcia5School of Engineering and Technology, and Center of Excellence in Sustainable Disaster Management, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80161, ThailandSchool of Engineering and Technology, and Center of Excellence in Sustainable Disaster Management, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80161, ThailandSchool of Engineering and Technology, and Center of Excellence in Sustainable Disaster Management, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80161, ThailandSchool of Engineering and Technology, and Center of Excellence in Sustainable Disaster Management, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80161, ThailandSchool of Engineering and Technology, and Center of Excellence in Sustainable Disaster Management, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80161, ThailandSchool of Engineering, The University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UKThis article presents a field-performance investigation on an Integrated Solar Water Supply System (SWSS) at two isolated agricultural areas in Thailand. The two case-study villages (Pongluek and Bangkloy) have experienced severe draughts in recent decades, and, therefore, water supply has become a major issue. A stand-alone 15.36 kW solar power and a 15 kW solar submersible pump were installed along with the input power generated by solar panels supported by four solar trackers. The aim is to lift water at the static head of 64 and 48 m via a piping length of 400 m for each village to be stored in 1000 and 1800 m<sup>3</sup> reservoirs at an average of 300 and 400 m<sup>3</sup> per day, respectively, for Pongluek and Bangkloy villages. The case study results show that the real costs of electricity generated by SWSS using solar photovoltaic (PV) systems intergraded with the solar tracking system yield better performance and are more advantageous compared with the non-tracking system. This study illustrates how system integration has been employed. System design and commercially available simulation predictions are elaborated. Construction, installation, and field tests for SWSS are discussed and highlighted. Performances of the SWSS in different weather conditions, such as sunny, cloudy, and rainy days, were analysed to make valuable suggestions for higher efficiency of the integrated solar water supply systems.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/9/2438water resource managementsolar watersolar water supply systemSWSSdecision supportsolar pumping |
| spellingShingle | Thanongsak Imjai Kamon Thinsurat Pakorn Ditthakit Warit Wipulanusat Monthian Setkit Reyes Garcia Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project Water water resource management solar water solar water supply system SWSS decision support solar pumping |
| title | Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project |
| title_full | Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project |
| title_fullStr | Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project |
| title_full_unstemmed | Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project |
| title_short | Performance Study of an Integrated Solar Water Supply System for Isolated Agricultural Areas in Thailand: A Case-Study of the Royal Initiative Project |
| title_sort | performance study of an integrated solar water supply system for isolated agricultural areas in thailand a case study of the royal initiative project |
| topic | water resource management solar water solar water supply system SWSS decision support solar pumping |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/9/2438 |
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