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The Solar-Thermal Pump, SUNPULSE^TM water

Low investment cost, high solar-to-water efficiency and low operating cost are the outstanding characteristics of SUNPULSE^TM water, the solar-thermal pumping system for surface as well as for deep-hole pumping. The high efficiency of the pumping system (about 5%) is the result of the superior efficiency and performance of the core components:

	the prime mover, a Stirling engine, converts sun radiation into hydraulic power with an efficiency of 10%
	the double-acting bellows-diaphragm pump, part of the Stirling engine system, has an efficiency of 90%
	the suction ram, used when the system is employed for deep-hole pumping, has an efficiency of about 85%

The following performance data are based on sun radiation of 1kW/m² per hour for a 6-hour day of sunshine (6 kWh/square meter). Actual pumping output will, however, vary with tilt angle, seasonal weather, dust and other conditions.

The economics of SUNPULSE^TM water are assessed as very favorable. In the early 1980s, the World Bank undertook extensive field tests of solar-powered (PV) irrigation pumps. The Bank concluded that for water pumped from a depth of 5 meters (shallow pumping) to irrigate a field of 1 ha throughout the year utilizing different photovoltaic pumping systems the average cost was 11.46 US cents/cubic meter as compared to 8.58 US cents/cubic meter for gasoline-powered pumps. For such an irrigation situation the pumping cost of a SUNPULSE^TM water system is assessed at about 5.1 US cents/cubic meter. This is below the "Maximum Water Cost Target" of 6 US cents/cubic meter the World Bank study's economical benchmark for pumping systems in sunbelt countries.

In a more recent World Bank study dating to 1993, cost of pumping water from a depth of 15 meters was set at 28 US cents/cubic meter for photovoltaic systems and at 23 US cents/cubic meter for diesel-powered pumps. For SUNPULSE^TM water such cost is estimated at 20.1 US cents/cubic meter.

These favorable economics of the solar-thermal pumping system SUNPULSE^TM water are due to high efficiency, simple design and low manufacturing and maintenance cost.