Energy Harvesting and Water Saving in Arid Regions via Solar PV Accommodation in Irrigation Canals

The Egyptian irrigation system depends mainly on canals that take water from the River Nile; nevertheless, the arid climate that dominates most of the country influences the high rate of water losses, mainly through evaporation. Thus, the main objective of this study is to develop a practical approa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Energies (Basel) 2021-05, Vol.14 (9), p.2620
Main Authors: Alhejji, Ayman, Kuriqi, Alban, Jurasz, Jakub, Abo-Elyousr, Farag K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accommodation
Algorithms
Arid climates
Arid zones
Canals
Clean energy
Climate change
Configurations
Cost control
cuckoo search
Dams
Diesel generators
economic feasibility
Efficiency
Electricity
Emissions
Energy
Energy conservation
Energy harvesting
Evaporation
Evaporation rate
Feasibility
Feasibility studies
Genetic algorithms
Greenhouse effect
Greenhouse gases
Industrial plant emissions
Investigations
Irrigation
Irrigation canals
Irrigation systems
Leachates
Life span
Linear programming
microgrids
Optimization
Photovoltaics
renewable energy
Rivers
Search algorithms
Solar power
Water conservation
water evaporation
Water loss
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Summary:The Egyptian irrigation system depends mainly on canals that take water from the River Nile; nevertheless, the arid climate that dominates most of the country influences the high rate of water losses, mainly through evaporation. Thus, the main objective of this study is to develop a practical approach that helps to accommodate solar photovoltaic (PV) panels over irrigation canals to reduce the water evaporation rate. Meanwhile, a solar PV panel can contribute effectively and economically to an on-grid system by generating a considerable amount of electricity. A hybrid system includes a solar PV panel and a diesel generator. Several factors such as the levelized cost of energy (LCOE), total net present cost, loss of power supply probability, and greenhouse gas emissions should be considered while developing a technoeconomically feasible grid-connected renewable integrated system. A mathematical formulation for the water loss was introduced and the evaporation loss was monthly estimated. Thus, this study also aims to enhance an innovative metaheuristic algorithm based on a cuckoo search optimizer to show the way forward for developing a technoeconomic study of an irrigation system integrated with an on-grid solar PV panel designed for a 20-year lifespan. The results are compared using the mature genetic algorithm and particle swarm optimization to delimit the optimal size and configuration of the on-grid system. The optimal technoeconomic feasibility is connected to the graphical information system to delimit the optimal length and direction of the solar PV accommodation covering the canals. Finally, based on the simulated results, the optimal sizing and configuration of the irrigation-system-integrated on-grid solar PV accommodation have less impact on the LCOE without violating any constraint and, at the same time, generating clean energy.
ISSN:1996-1073
1996-1073
DOI:10.3390/en14092620