Researchers at Texas A&M University have come up with an economical, green solution that can help underprivileged communities with their water and electricity needs.
Researchers at Texas A&M University have come up with an economical, green solution that can help underprivileged communities with their water and electricity needs.
Their standalone water-energy nanogrid consists of a purification system that uses solar energy to decontaminate water. The setup, they said, is mathematically tuned to use solar energy optimally so that the water filtration is unhindered by the fluctuations of solar energy during the course of the day.
“To serve areas that are remote and isolated, the infrastructural cost of laying down new water pipes or setting up an electricity grid is enormous and can take a very long time,” said Le Xie, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “To overcome these hurdles, we presented a cost-effective solution that uses solar energy to both purify water and generate electricity for basic household use.”
The researchers have described their technology in the journal Applied Energy.
Read more at Texas A&M University
Image: The water-energy nanogrid. Electricity generated at solar panels during peak availability is used to run a water nanofilteration system. Any excess energy is either fed to the battery pack or is available for basic household use. (Credit: Dr. Le Xie and Dr. Shankar Chellam/Texas A&M University College of Engineering)
