Design of a Cost Effective Solar Powered Water Pump

摘要

The design and performance of a vacuum lift, solar powered water pump is discussed. The basic design consists of an expanding gaseous piston confined inside a chamber which is located in series with, and between, an inlet and an outlet check valve. The gas is generated by volatilizing cyclopentane or hexane. Four variations of this basic design concept were built and evaluated. The various features of each are discussed. Considerations in the choice of a cost-effective solar collector are also reviewed. Several of the more promising types of solar collectors were built and evaluated for use on the pump. A 70C heat source temperature is required to operate the pump if cyclopentane is used as the volatile fluid, 90C is required if hexane is used. The volatile fluid is not expended in the pumping process. The pumps constructed on this project have a capacity of approximately 6 liters/minute when pumped to a height of 2 meters. Two square meters of sunshine are sufficient to operate the pump.