Kevo Proposal
Kevo Proposal
Kevo Proposal
BY:
PS25/00070/20
A research proposal submitted to the department of Physics in fulfillment of the requirement for
the award of Bachelor of Science in Renewable Energy in the School of Pure and Applied Sciences
© YEAR 2024
DECLARATION
This my original work prepared with no other than the indicated sources and support, and has not
SUPERVISOR
The undersigned certify that he was the proposal supervisor to the above-named student in Kisii
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DEDICATION
This proposal is dedicated to my family, friends, course mates, lectures, and to anybody else, for
Thank you.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I acknowledge the Kisii University for the permission granted to access their premises and for data
given for this proposal. I also acknowledge my supervisor Dr. Willis Otieno who provide the
guidelines and procedures in achieving this proposal. I acknowledge myself for the efforts put in
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ABBREVIATION
PV- Photovoltaic
AC-Alternating Current
DC-Direct Current
HE-Hydraulic Energy
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List of figures
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TABLE OF CONTENT
DECLARATION ............................................................................................................................ ii
DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................................. iv
ABBREVIATION........................................................................................................................... v
List of figures ................................................................................................................................. vi
TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................................................ vii
ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................. viii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1
1.0 Background of study ........................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Statement of justification .................................................................................................... 1
1.2 Justification of the problem................................................................................................ 1
1.3 Objectives ............................................................................................................................. 2
1.3.0 Main objectives ............................................................................................................. 2
1.3.1 Specific objectives ......................................................................................................... 2
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................. 3
2.0 Solar insolation .................................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Pvsyst software .................................................................................................................... 3
2.2 Solar energy ......................................................................................................................... 5
2.3 PV technology ...................................................................................................................... 7
2.3 Solar cell ............................................................................................................................... 7
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................... 9
3.0 Area of study ........................................................................................................................ 9
3.1 Planning................................................................................................................................ 9
CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................. 12
References ..................................................................................................................................... 13
WORK PLAN ............................................................................................................................... 14
BUDGET ...................................................................................................................................... 15
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ABSTRACT
Kisii University and its surrounding frequently faces water shortages from the water supplier
(Gussi water and sanitation company), forcing them to rely on borehole water pumped using
electricity. This dependence on Kenya Power's unreliable grid results in high electricity bills. To
address these challenges, this proposal shows the design and sizing of a solar water pumping
system. The proposal will assess the university's water demand, available solar irradiance, and
borehole characteristics to determine the optimal pump size, solar panel array capacity, and
battery storage requirements. The system's economic feasibility will be evaluated by comparing
its lifecycle cost with the current electricity-powered pumping system. The proposal aims to
provide Kisii University with a sustainable and cost-effective solution to their water shortage and
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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
As the cost of electricity is increasing at a high rate within the country, Kisii University has been
affected in such a way that they spent a lot of power to pump water in case of low water supply
from Gussii company. Therefore, the aim is to design a solar water pump which is self-reliant and
effective solar powered system. To achieve this, solar water pump sizing is one of the core areas
where technicians concentrate on through its design by making use of the pvsyst software. For a
given entity to be entirely solar power dependent, and fully off grid, the total power consumed
during pumping of the entity will be calculated as well as the amount of water consumed within
The increasing cost of electric power associated with grid electricity has brought about a great shift
to embrace the use of power harnessed from solar to pump water. The uptake is also due to cheaper
solar technology and the unstable nature of both hydro and wind power generation which are
expensive to install, maintain and requires a specific location for their installation.
Solar water pump sizing of Kisii University will provide the required number of solar modules
together with batteries that can fully generate enough power to sustain the water pump even when
there is little or no sunshine. Also, water pump sizing using pvsyst enables the stakeholders to
know amount of energy that will be produce to sustain the pump and also number of panels. The
end product is a self-reliant solar powered system that can pump water to sustain the University.
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The type of solar module used is one-axis tracker that are typically designed to track the sun from
east to west in order to attain the high-power output per day from the solar panel.
1.3 Objectives
• To determine solar water pump sizing using Pvsyst software to mitigate water shortage and
• To determine the number of solar panels that can sustain the power to run the pump.
• To determine the size of controller, inverter and solar modules that can sustain the system.
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CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Solar insolation
Kenya is lying in the equatorial regions which receives good solar insolation throughout the year
and with no significant changes of seasons. The country receives an average daily insolation of 4-
7 kWh/m2 (Ongaki, 2021) (EPRA, 2018). Most areas in Kenya receives peak insolation for about
6-7 hours in a day. This shows the potential of the country has to harness the available solar energy
into electrical energy, which can help in industrial areas, transport and for solar water pump system
PVsyst is the most widely used solar simulation software for the energy yield estimation and for
optimal design of solar power system. The configuration of the photovoltaic system depends on
the location and solar irradiation. The quality, orientation and inclination of solar panels often
rely on the modules and inverters. (Markson, I., Ozuomba, S. and Abasi-Obot, I.E.,, 2019)
Pvsyst as a tool is used in the analysis for simulation of all data that will be used to achieve solar
To design a solar water pumping system collection of the information regarding the system
components and local climate data of the location are required. This information helps to obtain
preferred design and results. To obtain this design, optimization of PV system is done by
simulation software tool PVsyst 5.52 (Sharma, Rakhi, Shivanshu Sharma, and Sumit Tiwari.,
2020). This simulation software helps to design the system and shows how the different
parameters affect the system performance results. This will make it easier for determining PV
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array, controller, pumping unit, water supply network is needful to fulfill design requirements.
The performance evaluation of a system located at Babaracho region is done with help of
simulation software by using existing local data. The theoretical and simulation results are used
to understand the system design and its performance by taking different parameters into
2.Openning of the software ie launching the software system, this entails the orientation part of
the software, the water needs, system itself ie the number of modules, hydraulic system, type of
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Figure 2:Pumping Hydraulic circuit
Solar panels are a proven and reliable way to produce clean electricity where it’s needed – on a
home, RV, boat, farm, or anywhere else that receives at least moderate sunlight (website, June
2008). The sun delivers its energy to us in two main forms: heat and light. There are two main
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types of solar power systems, namely, solar thermal systems that trap heat to warm up water and
solar PV systems that convert sunlight directly into electricity as shown in figure below.
In the solar photovoltaic system, direct light (sunlight) shining on the solar cells which induces the
photovoltaic effect, generating DC electric power. This DC power can be used, stored in a battery
system, or fed into an inverter that converts DC power into alternating current AC power, so that
it can feed into water pump AC without affecting the quality of power supply. PV cells and
modules do not utilize the heat, only the light. When the source of light is not the sunlight then the
photovoltaic cell is used as the photo detector for example infra-red detectors. Homeowners and
businesses are increasingly demanding solar systems that are paired with battery storage. While
this pairing is still relatively new, the growth over the next five years is expected to be significant
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2.3 PV technology
The basic unit of a photovoltaic system is the photovoltaic cell. Photovoltaic (PV) cells are made
of at least two layers of semiconducting material, usually silicon, doped with special additives.
One layer has a positive charge, the other negative. Light falling on the cell creates an electric
field across the layers, causing electricity to flow. (El Chaar, L., and N. El Zein., 2011)The
intensity of the light determines the amount of electrical power each cell generates.
The solar cell is the basic unit of a PV system. A typical silicon solar cell produces only about 0.5
volt, so multiple cells are connected in series to form larger units called PV modules. Thin sheets
of EVA (Ethyl Vinyl Acetate) or PVB (Polyvinyl Butyral) are used to bind cells together and to
provide weather protection. The modules are normally enclosed between a transparent cover
(usually glass) and a weatherproof backing sheet (typically made from a thin polymer or glass).
Modules can be framed for extra mechanical strength and durability. Usually, 36 solar cells are
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connected to give a voltage of about 18V. This is enough to charge 12V battery.
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CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
This proposal aims at solar water pump sizing for Kisii University located along Kilgoris road,
(Nyanza region, Kenya). This targeted the wells dung within the Kisii university so that the
3.1 Planning
After inquiring permission from Kisii University management team, an extensive planning of the
approach of the sizing follows in order to meet the objectives of the work proposal. Planning also
provides the time period that will be taken to accomplish the intended purpose of the proposal.
Energy used in Kisii University covers all the activities related to the energy used in the University
premises like pumping water using electricity which increases the University bills. Here are the
materials that will be used to achieve the problem that University faces.
- Inverter- to convert the DC electricity to AC electricity (this will mainly depend with the
-Storage batteries- stores electric power for operation during nighttime or during extended
periods of cloudy or overcast weather when the PV array by itself cannot supply enough power.
-Pvsyst software -mainly used for designing of the solar water pump in such a way that it
determines the number of modules that will help to pump a given amount of water.
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Figure 6:Solar water pump system
Using Pvsyst software the following can be carried out to achieve the main objectives:
Hydraulic:
Determination of the Hydraulic Energy(HE) needs over one day, assuming that Flow and Head
are rather constant over the year (otherwise the day-by-day rough simulation will be indicated in
the pvsyst software) operating during about 6 hours; i.e.; provide a flowrate [m³/h] of about the
PV-array sizing:
This will depend with the consumption rate i.e. amount of water to be used within the University,
since the consumption is very high, the pvsyst will provide the number of solar panels depending
on the needs i.e. amount of power that will sustain the water needed within the premises.
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Tank sizing:
Through pvsyst software the tank size is simply determined by the required autonomy which
fluctuates depending on the region, using the daily consumption defined by the user which is in
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CONCLUSION
Energy plays a crucial role in modern societies. It has a vital input to all sectors i.e. residential,
transportation, and manufacture, and is essential to generate electricity. All societies require energy
services to meet basic human needs such as lighting, heating and mobility. Through this proposal,
it help Kisii University to meet their basic needs and to lower the electrical bills and shortage of
water within university premises. Having the knowledge on renewable energy course, the design
and sizing of solar water pump sizing using pvsyst software can be made successful compare to
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References
El Chaar, L., and N. El Zein. (2011). . "Review of photovoltaic technologies." . Renewable and
sustainable energy reviews , 15, no. 5.
Foster RE, C. A. (2024). Afghanistan photovoltaic power applications for rural development,”
Area 9.5 Modules and Systems.
Jain, D. (2017). International Journal Renewable energy Research.
Markson, I., Ozuomba, S. and Abasi-Obot, I.E.,. (2019). Sizing of solar water pumping system
for irrigation of oil palm plantation in Abia State. Universal Journal of Engineering
Science,, 7(1), pp.8-19.
Nelson, Jenny A. (December 2003). The physics of solar cells. MLA: World Scientific
Publishing Company.
Sharma, Rakhi, Shivanshu Sharma, and Sumit Tiwari. (2020). "Design optimization of solar PV
water pumping system.". Proceedings 21 (pp. 1673-1679.). MLA: Materials Today:.
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WORK PLAN
PROPOSAL WRITING
PROPOSAL PRESENTATION
PRESENTATION
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BUDGET
1. STATIONARY 1000/=
2. TRANSPORT 800
3. SOFTWARE 15000/=
TOTAL 16800/=
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