Ecosense, a leading provider of renewable energy solutions, has taken a significant step toward fostering education and innovation in sustainable energy by establishing a state-of-the-art Renewable Energy Lab at Kathmandu University, Nepal.
Ecosense, a leading provider of renewable energy solutions,
has taken a significant step toward fostering education and innovation in
sustainable energy by establishing a state-of-the-art Renewable Energy Lab at
Kathmandu University, Nepal. This milestone project is aimed at equipping
students, researchers, and educators with hands-on training and research
capabilities in cutting-edge renewable energy technologies.
The Renewable Energy Lab is designed to serve as a platform
for advancing knowledge and practical skills in clean energy solutions. The lab
features three advanced systems that cater to diverse aspects of renewable
energy: the Solar PV Training and Research System, the Thermal Energy
Storage System, and the Solar Concentrator Training System. Each of these
systems is tailored to address specific educational and research needs, making
the lab a comprehensive hub for renewable energy studies.
Solar PV
Training and Research system is a compact miniaturised version of an actual
Solar PV standalone power plant. The system enables user to study wiring and
interconnections of different components involved in the system to develop
basic understanding of working and operation of a Standalone PV system. Through
the help of experiments a student can understand underlying principles of solar
PV, its applications in standalone system and challenges like sizing of system,
MPPT, installations etc. by doing various experiments. The system also provides
scope for further research.
The system
is an indoor system which utilises halogen lamps to act as artificial sun to
illuminate to solar panels which can be configured in series or parallel
depending upon experiments and requirements of users. The experiments are
divided into 3 sections: a) Solar PV characteristics, b) Standalone PV system
and c) Research experiments. In the first section i.e., Solar PV
characteristics there are 5 experiments through which a user can study about
Solar PV characteristics, interconnection of solar panel, effect of tilt,
radiation and temperature on solar panels and usage of diodes in a solar panel.
In second section there are 4 experiments through which user can study about
the different components involved in solar PV standalone systems, their
interconnection and usage. In third section user can research on maximum power
point tracking of the solar panels.
The system
consists of individual plug-in units each with components for different
experimental arrangement. The conception of system facilitates indoor as well
as outdoor experiments.
The thermal energy storage (TES) can be defined as the
temporary storage of thermal energy at high or low temperatures. The TES is not
a new concept, and at has been used for centuries. Energy storage can reduce
the time or rate mismatch between energy supply & demand and it plays an
important role in energy conservation. Energy storage improves performance of
energy systems by smoothing supply and increasing reliability. For example,
storage would improve the performance of a power generating plant by load
levelling. The higher efficiency would lead to energy conservation and improve
cost effectiveness. Some of the renewable energy sources can only provide
energy intermittently. Although the sun provides an abundant, clean and safe
source of energy, the supply of this energy is periodic following yearly and
diurnal cycles; it is intermittent, often unpredictable and diffused. Its
density is low compared with the energy flux densities found in conventional
fossil energy devices like coal or oil-fired furnaces. The demand for energy,
on the other hand, is also unsteady following yearly and diurnal cycles for
both industrial and personal needs. Therefore, the need for the storage of
solar energy cannot be avoided.
This system has been designed to perform TES related
experiment by using PCM materials. As there are several types of PCM, the
system has been designed to perform experiment with at least two PCM
separately. Provision is also kept to examine the combine (known as cascading)
effect of two PCMs in thermal energy storage. To visualize the phase changes in
the material another set of arrangement are there in the system.
To maximize the potential of the system, Ecosense conducted
a detailed demonstration and training program for the faculty, researchers, and
technical staff at Kathmandu University. This hands-on orientation equipped the
participants with the skills needed to operate the system effectively and
explore its full range of capabilities. The trained personnel will further
mentor students and professionals, cascading the knowledge and ensuring its
wide dissemination across the academic community.