Solar Irrigation system

Project Title

Solar Irrigation system

Project Area of Specialization Electrical/Electronic EngineeringProject Summary

Solar energy is the most abundant source of energy in the world. Solar power is not only an answer to today's energy crisis but also an environment friendly form of energy. Photovoltaic generation is an efficient approach for using solar energy. For formers in the rural areas, it the easiest way to utilize Solar energy for irrigation, livestock and drinking water. There for the use of solar energy in agriculture is becoming increasingly popular specially in irrigation. Usually, farms are more exposed to sunlight and not hindered by the shadow of trees, turning them into ideal place to settle a photovoltaic system. When the sun shines, it feeds the irrigation system, well, we know that corps need more water when the sun shines a lot. Therefore, a large quantity of energy is available when it is needed. But increment in the use of photovoltaic system has generated new challenges, like control strategies to provide optimal conditions of the PV system. The control strategies need to cope with the fact that the performance of PV systems depends on solar irradiance, ambient temperature, and load impedance.

The main drawback of PV systems is their low conversion efficiency. For an optimal operation, it is required for the system to operate at the Maximum Power Point (MPP), which represents the maximum energy that can be extracted from the PV panel. To achieve this condition, it is necessary to use Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) system.

To counter this problem, perturb & observe algorithm is used for power converters.  For this purpose, PIC microcontroller can be used to improve the stability, which track the P-V trajectory of the PV panel and incremented constantly using P&O algorithm, until the maximum point is achieved. 

MPPT method not only allow an increase in the power delivered by photovoltaic systems to the loads, but they also give rise to a longer life of the system. So, water pumping system using MPPT can enable the farmers to receive optimal power more easily as it is easy to operate and do not require a sophisticated installation plant.

Project Objectives

Farmers have always played a significant role in our society as they provide the world’s population with food. They play key role in national economy, but majority of the farmers faces financial problems. They live in rural areas, where there is always shortage of electricity or electricity bills are unaffordable for them. They need cheap and reliable source of electricity to water their crops. Pakistan is an agricultural country, but the farmers are mostly having the only skill to grew different crops and not familiar with technology to use their lands more productively, also some of the lands are faraway from rivers, which need to be watered from tube wells using water pumps. The Solar irrigation is the most suitable solution to encounter this problem because it is the cheap source. 
The other main objective of the project is the serious environmental hazards due to combustion of fossil fuel and limited availability of conventional fossil fuel energy source. Therefore, the renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydral and geothermal etc. are attracting more consideration as alternate energy sources. Among the renewable energy sources, the solar photovoltaic energy has been widely utilized in many applications due to its advantages such
as direct electric power form, easy maintenance, no noise, fewer limitations with regard to site of installation etc. Being cheap and ease of operation make photovoltaic system favourable for different users, particularly in rural areas, that have a substantial amount of insolation. Besides irrigation, standalone solar water pumping system have also become a favourable choice for livestock farms’ holder and drinking water supply and gaining more satisfaction. Due to these features solar irrigation system has a great market share.
The implementation of solar irrigation specially in rural areas will definitely help farmers to increase their living standard and will impart a great share to the national economy.

 
Fig1: Solar Irrigation
 

Project Implementation Method

Block Diagram:

The source of Energy for this project is  PV Module. PV Module is actually a current source upto some limit. So Voltage on the its terminal is a function of Load connected to it. And hence Power drawn from this system is dependent on voltage. If we connect a load directly to the terminals of PV Module then the power drawn from it is according to the requirment of load, its not have any deal with the ability of PV Module. The Aim of this project is to design such a system which on the basis of the ability of the PV Module and draw the Maximum Power which is dependent on envoirnmental condition such as Temperatuare and Irradiance. 

The power drawn from PV Module is a function of voltage on its terminal and the plots is below.

The Maximum point on the red plot is the desired point to achieve. So, In order to achive this, someone must control the voltage (Vpv). In the Block Diagram, The Boost converter is used to do this job.

First the Measurement of Input Voltage (Vpv) and Current (Ipv ) and Load signal (u) and give These inputs to the MPPT controlller and MPPT controller will Execute an Alogrithm and Generate the (Uav) in order to control the Output voltage of the Boost converter.

There are different Algorithms used to achive the maximum point and one of them is P&D algorithm which we will use in this project.

The Load in this project is an Inductive Load which is Brushless DC motor coupled with Centrifugal Pump. The Load signal (u) is the RPM of the Motor which cause emf and its then oppose the inuput voltage. So, Limit on the RPM is mandatory in order to prevent the exceeding the rating of the Load.

Benefits of the Project

Solar energy is environmentally friendly:

Despite ensuring that your crops are well watered each day, solar energy is also known to be environmentally friendly. Unlike some energy sources such as biogas and coal, solar power doesn’t emit greenhouse gases. As you already know, greenhouse gases have wreaked some serious havoc on the ozone layer for the past several decades.

Solar irrigation is also ideal because it doesn’t generate much noise as its the case with generators. Finally, solar energy doesn’t require that much water for maintenance purposes. This means you’ll end up saving on the water which can be used to irrigate your crops.

Solar energy is free:

Unlike electricity where you are obligated to make monthly payments, solar energy is free. All you need is to have solar panels installed on your farm, and you’re good to go. Also, make sure you’re investing in the best quality solar panels installed by a seasoned expert.

Solar energy is the perfect alternative to electricity:

Farmers who use electricity to run their irrigation systems know exactly how inconveniencing an impromptu blackout can be. Since generators are quite expensive to both run and maintain, solar energy is often seen as the perfect, most effective alternative. This is because it not only runs on sunlight, which is free, but the system is also quite straight forward from an operational standpoint.

Solar panels are applicable:

There are many other benefits associated with solar panels besides irrigation. For starters, you can use some of the energy from your solar irrigation systems to light up your farm. Moreover, since solar energy is free, expect your utility bill to drop significantly.

Solar energy is efficient:

Since your solar panels for your solar irrigation systems will be installed in the farm, you can rest assured that 100% of the energy generated will be used for irrigation as well as other useful purposes. Besides avoid energy wastage, you also won’t have to incur any of the supply costs, which is usually the case with electricity. Also, due to the short distance solar energy covers from the panels to the systems, you can always count on the irrigation systems to run a bit more efficiently.

Job creation:

There are businesses within your locality that deal exclusively in solar panels and everything about them. So, if you use solar energy to run your irrigation systems, then you’ll be creating jobs for the people who run such businesses as well as their employees. Apart from buying the solar panels from these businesses, your solar irrigation systems will also need regular maintenance; all of which can also be sourced from the same companies.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

The Final Deliverable of this project will be a MPPT controller and Boost Converter hardwares connected with a Pump and PV Module. 

PV Module Rating will be more then 200 Watts. The convereter and Controller rating will be according to the PV Module which is the source in this case.

Final Deliverable of the Project HW/SW integrated systemCore Industry AgricultureOther Industries Energy Core Technology OthersOther Technologies Clean TechSustainable Development Goals Good Health and Well-Being for PeopleRequired Resources

Item Name	Type	No. of Units	Per Unit Cost (in Rs)	Total (in Rs)
			Total in (Rs)	50580
PV Module	Equipment	1	10000	10000
Pic Microcontroller	Equipment	1	400	400
Battery	Equipment	1	5000	5000
Transistors	Equipment	4	620	2480
Inductor core	Equipment	2	4000	8000
Resistors	Equipment	6	50	300
Capacitors	Equipment	4	500	2000
Diodes	Equipment	4	200	800
Solar Pump	Equipment	1	7000	7000
Display	Equipment	1	300	300
Heat Sinker	Equipment	2	200	400
PCB	Equipment	1	5000	5000
DAC	Miscellaneous	1	8000	8000
Digital Multimeter	Miscellaneous	1	900	900