Pumping Groundwater in the Desert Using Photovoltaic and Wind Energy

Researchers at the Israel University in Jordan have studied the feasibility of a water pumping system powered by solar and wind energy. In the Jordanian desert, limited surface water forces communities to rely on groundwater sources for agricultural irrigation, livestock irrigation, and residential water use. Currently, most stand-alone water pumping systems (WPS) in the region are powered by internal combustion engines.

“Determining the feasibility of various hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) options to power a WPS is an important step that could yield significant technical and economic benefits,” the team said. “In addition, there has been no dedicated study to assess the feasibility of integrating a fully hybrid renewable energy system in a WPS in the desert and arid regions of Jordan.”

The case study focuses on the consumption of the Al-Mudawwara WPS. Al-Mudawwara is a small village in the eastern part of Jordan, near the border with Saudi Arabia. The temperature ranges from 4°C to 36.7°C throughout the year and the average monthly solar radiation is 3.79 kWh/m2/d in December and 8.54 kWh/m2/d in June.The average monthly wind speed varies from 6.29 m/s in October to 9.15 m/s in June.

The WPS currently uses diesel fuel with a daily demand of 40.71 kWh and a peak of 8.48 kWh. In order to evaluate it, HERS was simulated in HOMER software for different scenarios.The first scenario consists of a diesel generator (DG) and a battery (SB), the second scenario consists of PV and SB, the third scenario consists of a combination of PV, DG, and SB, and the fourth scenario consists of a wind turbine (WT), a DG, and a SB.The last scenario uses a combination of PV, a WT, and a SB.

In all scenarios, the PV is monocrystalline, 315 W, and has an efficiency of 19%. The wind turbine has a nominal power of 10,000 W and the batteries have a capacity of 3,000 Ah. The inverter system is rated at 5 kW and has a 12.5 kW alternator. The system was optimized to determine the lowest cost per kWh of energy produced.

The optimal system consists of 33 solar panels totaling 10.18 kW, one 10 kW WT, 8 batteries and 3 inverters.

The system had a cost of energy (CoE) of $0.241/kWh, a payback period of 6.67 years and a net present value cost (NPC) of $59.611. The implementation of the selected option results in the elimination of all GHG emissions, including CO2. According to the sensitivity analysis, a nominal discount rate of 6.5% is appropriate for the reduction of NPC and CoE. The CoE obtained is within the typical range for the MENA region. In addition, HRESs produced a unit CoE of 0.241 USD/kWh, which is within the average range.

They presented their findings in a recent article published in Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, “Feasibility study of combining solar/wind energy to power water pumping system in Jordanian Desert/Al-Mudawwara village”.