We all know how important potable water is to our lives and I'm sure you've heard how you can go for weeks without food and only days without water. Lack of access to clean water is a major cause of waterbourne disease, killing thousands of children every year.
The village where the MIT researchers are field testing their system has limited access to water. Locals get their water from local authorities that deliver water from groundwater wells that are only suitable for washing clothes or else from collected rainwater. Villagers purchase potable water in 20-liter bottles for 20 pesos per bottle which is still a lot for the villagers who are mostly subsistence farmers.
The solution to the water problem that the researchers are trying out in this village in the jungles of the Yucatan Peninsula is composed of several photovoltaic panels, a large water tank for the purified water, and a small shack that houses the pumps, filters and membranes. The solar panels power the pumps that filter well water through semiporous membranes into a tank. All-in-all, the system produces 1,000 liters of drinking water a day even on cloudy days.
The system can operate mostly by itself but the team is still training locals to maintain it by changing out filters and replacing additives in the water. With the system in place, the villagers can now get their 20-liter bottles of drinkable water for just one peso instead of 20 pesos.
Professor Steven Dubowsky is leading the team's work in Mexico and their work is being supported by the Kellogg Foundation and the Mexican organization Fondo Para La Paz as reported by MIT News. Dubowski also led an MIT team which designed a solar-powered desalination system that can be used in crisis situations.
The work of Dubowsky and his team is yet another example of how solar power can be used to bring water to those who need it. Social entrepreneur Paul Polak is undertaking a project to bring solar powered water pumps to farmers in developing countries. Polak and his team have undertaken a crowdfunding campaign to move forward with the project which they say can improve the lives of 50 million people.
The post Solar power delivers drinkable water to small Mexican village appeared first on Solar power today.
0 comments:
Post a Comment