Design of Nature-Inspired Solar Concentrator for Rural India | Original Article

ABSTRACT:

ABSTRACT

Energy consumption is on the rise with technological advancement across the globe and access to conveniences to the majority population. In India that is not the case as the majority of its population lives in rural areas where there is no electrical connectivity, demoting their standard of living. The major reason for this lack of connectivity are, they are located too far from the source of generation, and the revenue as a whole does not make the project viable. Hence the only way to provide them with better living conditions is through the installation of efficient and low cost nature inspired solution that are capable of powering light sources and storing energy. A lot of research has been conducted on increasing the efficiency of solar energy through nature inspired techniques. Solar energy-harvesting has seen a steady progress since its inception, yet price and efficiency barrier prevents photovoltaic cells from becoming more accessible. Acrylic, polycarbonate, or glass lenses and reflectors are current strategies used to increase the amount of sunlight focused onto PV cells. Concentrators and reflectors require additional costs and usually do not track with the sun to intercept direct sunlight. Our project idea is to design and build the hardware required for a Concentrator Photovoltaics (CPV) array. The goal of this project is to study the economic feasibility of using water lenses rather than conventional optics which are usually cost-prohibitive for these kinds of applications. Thereby creating an opportunity to remain self-sufficient, in terms of generating power needed for lighting. Driving it with the concepts of sustainability and green energy would help to fulfill the Atmanirbhar Bharat vision.