Life Cycle Analysis of the Raseta Pump Using OpenLCA

Developed and crafted in Madagascar, the Raseta pump is a novel hydraulic ram (hydram) pump using a springs system. It operates differently from other pumps by the exclusive use of water energy due to the water hammer phenomenon induced by the sudden stop of the water flow. The present study initiates the investigation of the environmental impacts of this new type of hydram pump through a life cycle analysis using OpenLCA 1.8. It was found that, when operating in a small-scale water pumping system, the choice of the pump supply pipe material has small differences of environmental impacts, whether the material is made of steel or polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Moreover, compared to a solar pump for the same pumping flow rate, the use of the Raseta pump is more environmentally friendly and less harmful to human health. However, the actual advantageous utilization of such a system needs further studies such as social and techno-economic analysis.

DSMC simulations of neutral gas flow in the DTT particle exhaust system

Divertor Tokamak Test Facility (DTT) is a new European superconducting tokamak, currently under final design, addressed to investigate alternative power exhaust solutions for DEMO. Although the divertor system is not finalized yet, the machine and port geometry set limitations on the divertor pumping system operational space. A numerical study of neutral gas dynamics in the divertor region is performed based on the DSMC method by applying the DIVGAS code. The study includes both single-null (SN) and double-null (DN) divertor configurations. For both configurations, the SolEdge2D–EIRENE plasma simulations have been performed for a deuterium plasma with neon seeding and the extracted information about the neutral particles on the predefined interfaces is imposed as incoming boundary conditions for DIVGAS simulations. In the SN case, two plasma puffing scenarios and three candidate pumping port arrangements have been considered. The divertor dome influence on the pumped fluxes can reach 50%. An increase of the capture coefficient six times leads to a decrease in the pressure at the pumping openings by a factor of about 4.5–7. The influence of the size of the lower vertical opening has been studied showing that the enlarged vertical port may establish as the main pumping opening. In the DN case, when the pumping is performed from both lower and upper divertor the overall pumped fluxes at the upper divertor are always higher than the corresponding ones for the lower divertor by a factor of 2–2.5, mainly due to the difference in the pumping areas. In both SN and DN cases, the neutrals outflux toward the X-point dominates the particle transport in the private flux region. The operational space provided by this first assessment is relatively stable against modified classical divertor geometries and allows a more thorough assessment of the pumping technology of the DTT fusion device in the future.

Etude Comparative De La Rentabilité Des Systèmes De Pompage Solaire Et Thermique Sur Le Périmètre Irrigué De Soumarana Au Niger

Le Niger dispose d’important potentiel de terre irrigable et plusieurs formes d’irrigation ont été développées notamment la petite irrigation, afin de réduire la dépendance de la production vis-à-vis des aléas climatiques. L’objectif de ce travail est de justifier le besoin de vulgariser la technologie des équipements de pompage solaire. Pour cela une enquête technicoéconomique a été conduite auprès d’un échantillon de 80 exploitants choisis de manière aléatoire sur le périmètre irrigué de Soumarana, à raison de 40 irrigants utilisant des systèmes de pompage thermique et 40 des systèmes de pompage photovoltaïque. Les cultures de carotte et d’oignon, étant les principales spéculations, ont été retenues pour conduire l’étude afin de comparer les performances de systèmes de pompage en place. Il ressort de l’analyse des résultats que le système de pompage solaire dégage des marges brutes nettement supérieure à celles du système de pompage thermique avec des différences de l’ordre de 402 148 FCFA/ha et 342 812 FCFA/ha respectivement pour la culture de carotte et celle de l’oignon. De même, le coût du pompage du mètre cube d’eau en système de pompage solaire est nettement inférieur à celui du système de pompage thermique avec respectivement 57,27 FCFA/m3 et 80,75 FCFA/m3. Ces résultats indiquent une meilleure performance du système de pompage solaire comparativement au système thermique. Niger Republic has significant potential for irrigable land and several forms of irrigation have been developed, including small-scale irrigation, in order to reduce the dependence of production on climatic hazards. The objective of this study is to justify the need to popularize solar pumping equipment technology. To this purpose, a techno-economic survey was conducted among a sample of 80 farmers chosen randomly in the Soumarana irrigated area, at the rate of 40 farmers under fuel powered pumping system and 40 under photovoltaic pumping system. Carrot and onion crops, being the main speculations, were selected to conduct the study to compare both pumping systems performances. The analysis of the results shows that the solar pumping system has higher gross margins than the fuel powered pumping system with differences of the order of 402 148 FCFA/ha and 342 812 FCFA/ha respectively for carrot and onion crops. Similarly, the cost of pumping per cubic meter in the solar pumping system was clearly lower than that of the fuel powered pumping system with respectively 57.27 FCFA/m3 and 80.75 FCFA/m3. These results indicate a better performance of the solar pumping system compared to the fuel powered ones

Groundwater lowering for construction of the Kilsby Tunnel – pumping and tunnelling

The Kilsby Tunnel, constructed in the 1830s under the direction of Robert Stephenson, faced severe problems when a section of the tunnel, almost 400 m long, was driven through water-bearing unstable ‘quicksand’ conditions. Contemporary methods were not well suited to tunnelling through such conditions, and in previous decades, several canal tunnels had been planned to specifically divert around expected ‘bad ground’, and others took years to complete at great expense. Stephenson’s team, drawing on their experience from the mining industry, did not take this approach and ultimately worked through the unstable ground, albeit with considerable delays and cost increases. This was achieved in part by establishing a large-scale groundwater pumping system, unique for the time, that lowered groundwater levels and stabilised the quicksand, which resulted from a buried channel of glaciofluvial sands, cut into bedrock, that had been missed by trial borings. Steam engines were used to pump from multiple shafts (including four dedicated pumping shafts, off set from the tunnel alignment), with a reported pumping rate of 136 l/s for several months. One unusual feature was the use of flatrod systems to transmit mechanical power horizontally; this allowed a single engine to drive pumps in several different shafts.

Energy Reduction with Application of Shaft in Water Supply Systems

A Water Transmission Network (WTN) conveying raw water from a source to the Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is often pumped supply. Pumped supply-based networks have more energy consumption, water hammer, and high operation and maintenance compared to gravity systems. The present study reports the application of a Shaft in WTN for improving the efficiency of the pumping system. The Shaft is a hydraulic isolation structure based on a similar hydraulic principle as Break Pressure Tank (BPT). The benefits of using Shaft are quantified based on the two case studies from Maharashtra, India. The impact of Shaft on the WTN is reported using energy grade lines, energy performance indicators, and life cycle energy cost. In addition to the reduction in energy consumption, from the case studies, it is shown that the system’s carrying capacity could be increased by using the Shaft at an appropriate location in WTN. Overall, a Shaft provides operational flexibility to the operators, improving the efficiency of the system.

Emplacement of the Photovoltaic Water Pumping System in Remote Areas by a Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Method: A Case Study

Utilizing the solar energy from photovoltaic panels integrated into a water pumping system to provide electricity for dispersed villages that have no access to backup systems not only reduces the electricity grid costs and environmental pollutants but also is an innovative approach in areas with sufficient solar irradiation. Therefore, identifying and studying the feasibility of stand-alone solar power plants in various locations is the first step in using this reliable source of energy. For this reason, 93 sites in the provinces of Razavi Khorasan, Northern Khorasan, and Southern Khorasan, Iran, were chosen by the renewable energy organization engineers as regions with high potential for establishing a solar water pumping station. The goals of this research were to prioritize the 93 sites and find the perfect location for the establishment of the aforementioned station. In order to investigate and prioritize these sites, a multi-criteria decision-making method, namely, TOPSIS (technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution), has been used. Therefore, the geographical locations of the sites and the weather in these provinces have been studied; consequently, 15 important and essential criteria, including slope, solar irradiation, precipitation, wind speed, relative humidity, altitude, distance from substation, distance from grid, obtainable solar energy capacity, distance from river, population, distance from city center, distance from road, average temperature, and number of dams in the vicinity of the site, have been chosen. All the aforementioned criteria have been weighted using the Shannon entropy method, and then the sites have been prioritized using the TOPSIS method. The results indicated that Sarayan, Isk, Esfadan, and Dasht Byaz in Southern Khorasan and then Beydokht 2 in Razavi Khorasan are the top five locations and Shosef in Southern Khorasan is the least favorite location for establishing a solar pumping station. In order to achieve more reliable results, sensitivity analysis was implemented.