Performance investigations of solar water pumping system using helical pump under the outdoor condition of Nagpur, India Arunendra K. Tiwari, Vilas R. Kalamkar * Department of Mechanical Engineering, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur 440010, India article info Article history: Received 9 March 2016 Received in revised form 13 May 2016 Accepted 8 June 2016 Keywords: SPVWPS Helical pump PV array configuration abstract The solar photovoltaic water pumping system (SPVWPS) has been becoming an increasingly important alternative in the remote, isolated, and non-electrified population. It constitutes a potential option to draw down water in the remote locations for domestic usage and livestock watering in developing countries like India. The wide spread of this technique requires accurate information and experiences in dealing with the system sizing and installation. The aim of this work is to determine an optimum photovoltaic (PV) array configuration to supply an adequate amount of energy to a DC Helical pump, under the outdoor conditions of Nagpur. Four different PV array configurations have been taken into consideration (3S X 2P, 4S X 2P, 5S X 2P and 7S). The tests have been carried out for a head of 7 bar, under sunny daylight hours, at the outdoor location of VNIT, college campus Nagpur. The best results have been obtained for two PV array configurations (4S X 2P) and (5S X 2P), which are found suitable to provide the optimum energy. The helical pump (SQF2.5-2), powered by the selected PV array configurations deliv- ered a maximum daily average volume of water needed (24374 L/day). © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Nowadays, the exertion of PV modules for conversion of solar energy to power the water pumps is an emerging technology but with great challenges. The photovoltaic (PV) technology can be applied on a larger scale, and it also presents an environmentally favorable alternative to fossil fuel (diesel and conventional elec- tricity) powered water pumps. A few researchers have reviewed the performance, utilization and techno-economic aspects of solar photovoltaic water pumping system (SPVWPS) [1,2]. The impor- tance of SPVWPS increases due to the continuous depletion of oil reserves, pollution concerns, uneven distribution and ever- increasing cost of electricity. These are the major areas of concern for the world and importantly to developing countries like India [3e5]. SPVWPS which provides domestic, livestock and irrigation water supplies in remote areas has gained enormous acceptance due to its reliability and performance. SPVWPS installation has many advantages for the pumping site where the national elec- tricity grid connection is not attainable, poor transport facilities and solar energy is available abundantly. In addition to the above-stated advantages, it can also withstand adverse weather conditions, including snow and ice [6]. The use of photovoltaic power to operate the water pumping system is the most appropriate choice because there is a natural relationship between the requirement of water and the availability of solar radiation. These pumps are particularly useful for intermediate applications like small villages and moderate agricultural needs. There are several theoretical and experimental studies about SPVWPS, which are installed in remote regions to supply water for drinking and irrigation [7e11]. Boutelhig et al. [12] performed a study of PV-powered DC pump on an artificial well with the simulated head up to 35 m and found the corresponding maximum daily average water volume of 3 m 3 . Hamza et al. [13] conducted the field-testing to assess the suit- ability of SPVWPS for drinking and irrigation purpose in remote areas of Sudan. They obtained the efficiency of the pumping system at different solar radiation levels and estimated the minimum ra- diation to start the pump in the morning hours. Reshef et al. [14] investigated the efficiency and performance of the entire SPVWPS at James Cook University of North Queensland, Australia. They performed experiment and used computer modeling for various components of the system. They figured out in their investigation that the quality of load, and the photovoltaic array size should match properly for the optimal performance of a system. Yahya & Sambo [15] designed and tested the SPVWPS to replace the * Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: tiwariarunendra1989@gmail.com (A.K. Tiwari), vilas. kalamkar@rediffmail.com (V.R. Kalamkar). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Renewable Energy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/renene http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2016.06.021 0960-1481/© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Renewable Energy 97 (2016) 737e745