TechnicalIssues

Technical Information

System size is determined by the pumping head and the daily water requirements. To design a solar pumping system, the following information is required:

Application i.e. domestic water, irrigation or livestock watering
Total pumping head (m)
Daily water requirement m³/day or required flow rate m³/hour
Average insolation (Kwh/m² day)
System voltage AC/DC.
Well draw down
Water quality
Storage requirements

The table below shows the different installation types

Pumping concept	Installation type	Rated Power (kW)	Yield m³/d	Water Head (m)	Application
Deep well	Submersible pumps	0.3 - 5.0	130 - > 2600	25 - 150	domestic water supply
Medium water head	Surface mounted pumps	0.3 - 15	150 - > 12500	10 - 30	domestic and irrigation
Low water head	Floating pumps	0.15 - 4.0	100 - > 2500	0.8 - 15	irrigation from rivers

Cost

Cost is dependent upon system size. Hardware costs range from $3,500 for a 0.18 kWp system (head 5 -15 m, output 3-12 m3 /day) to $15,000 for a 2kWp system (up to 200m head, out put 10 m3). Smaller DC powered, low head (0.5- 5m) low yield (3- 5 m3/day) PV pumps are also available approximately $ 800.

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