Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

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Review of performance studies of direct coupled photovoltaic water MARK

pumping systems and case study
⁎
S.S. Chandela, , M. Nagaraju Naika, Rahul Chandelb
a
Centre for Energy and Environmental Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur 177005, Himachal Pradesh, India
b
Photovoltaic Engineering Division, Welspun Energy Pvt. Ltd., Sector-65, Noida 201307, Uttar Pradesh, India

A R T I C L E I N F O A BS T RAC T

Keywords: Solar water pumping is an attractive option for irrigation and drinking water supplies in view of increasing
Solar water pumping diesel costs and grid electricity scarcity. Currently direct coupled DC and AC solar run water pumps are
Direct coupled PV water pump extensively used worldwide. The main objective of this study is to review the performance studies of direct
PV degradation coupled photovoltaic water pump systems (PVWPS) along with a case study of an old functional solar water
DC solar pump
pump after prolonged outdoor exposure in a western Indian Himalayan location. The updated review critically
Western Himalayas
examines PVWPS performance studies, optimum sizing and the use of electronic controls to improve the
efficiency. The intelligent control methods for maximum power point tracking (MPPT) of PV systems are
found to improve the PVWPS efficiency under outdoor temperature and irradiance conditions. The techno-
economic analysis of PV and diesel pumping shows that PV-based water pumping is more cost-effective than
diesel-powered pumping. The study shows that PVWPS are cost effective with little maintenance for water
pumping requirements. The case study on the performance evaluation of an old direct coupled DC solar pump
shows that only two modules of its mono-crystalline PV generator have degraded substantially after 28 years
of field operation affecting its performance. The PV degradation rate is found to be 1.4% per year which is
comparable to the reported degradation rate of 1.45% for mono crystalline in India. The system is still found
to be capable of generating enough power to pump water at average rate of 829 l/h. The experimental
performance results are found to be in close agreement with the simulated results. The performance of
PVWPS is found to improve when installed at an optimum tilt angle for the location. These are first time
reported results of significance to assess the state of PV pumping technology after a prolonged outdoor
exposure for further research.

1. Introduction 1.1. Relevance of renewable energy water pumping

Agricultural production and urban/rural water supplies in devel-
oping countries are mostly dependent on rain and are adversely
affected if sufficient water is not available. The poor irrigation facilities
results in significant crop yield losses which can improve if timely
adequate water for irrigation is available. Thus for improving irrigation
and urban/rural water supplies, water has to be pumped to reduce the
dependence on rain. The irrigation and urban/rural water supplies
mostly use electrical or diesel-powered water pumping systems;
however non-availability or erratic grid supply and high diesel pump-
ing costs continue to remain main problem areas requiring focus on
renewable based water pumping.
The recent environmental and sustainable development concerns
have renewed interest in the use of renewable energy-driven water
pumping worldwide. The renewable energy options for water pumping
include photovoltaic (PV) pumps, wind driven mechanical and electrical
pumps, solar-wind hybrid pumping systems and dual-fuel engine pumps
using biogas or producer gas. The renewable energy based water pumps
minimize the dependence on diesel, gas and coal based electricity [1].
However PV pumps are mostly used due to non-availability / high
distribution costs of grid-power. Besides this the operation, maintenance
and replacement costs of diesel pumps are generally 2–4 times more
than PV pumps [2]. Solar water pumps have also the advantage of

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: chandel_shyam@yahoo.com, sschandel2013@gmail.com (S.S. Chandel).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2017.03.019
Received 1 November 2016; Received in revised form 12 February 2017; Accepted 8 March 2017
Available online 17 March 2017
1364-0321/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

Nomenclature l/d Litres per day

l/y Litres per year
Ac Surface area of the solar cell (m2) Pm Maximum power (W)
AC Alternating current Rs Indian rupees (1US $=Rs 63.24)
DC Direct current rpm Revolutions per minute
FF Fill factor STC Standard testing condition
g Acceleration due to gravity TDH Total dynamic head (m)
hp Horse power (1 hp=746 W) ηtotal Overall solar pump system efficiency (%)
l/s Litres per second ηmp Motor-pump efficiency (%)
l/min Litres per minute ηpv PV array efficiency (%)
l/h Litres per hour

pumping water in summers when both the availability of solar radiation Indian Himalayan location to understand the effectiveness of the
and water requirements are high. These pumps are generally available in technology and associated issues under field conditions.
the range 1.5–7.5 kW or higher and are suitable for water pumping from Thus in the study an updated review of direct coupled PVWPS
shallow (less than 5 m) to higher water tables (100 m or more). performance studies, optimum sizing of components and the use of
electronic controls, intelligent control methods for maximum power
1.2. Historical perspective in Indian context point tracking (MPPT) of a PV systems techno-economic and environ-
mental issues related to PV and diesel pumping are presented. The review
India is endowed with rich solar energy resource varying from 4 to is followed by a first time case study of a 28 year old functional mono-
7 kW h/m2/day with availability of more than 300 sunshine days per crystalline PV water pump, in a western Indian Himalayan location.
year. Thus, there is a vast potential to power water pumps using solar The paper is structured as follows: in Section 2 updated compre-
energy. Solar water pumping systems in India were introduced during hensive literature review of direct coupled PV pumping performance
1980s and number of such pumps were installed throughout the studies is presented; the methodology for performance analysis of old
country as demonstration systems to popularize them. However, these direct coupled DC pump is described in Section 3 followed by results
pumps could not gain much acceptance due to high installation costs. and discussion in Section 4 and conclusions in Section 5.
The present cost of a solar pump (US $ 5515 for a 2.2 kWp) is about
2. Literature review of direct coupled PV pumping system
ten times higher than a conventional pump (US $ 472) therefore
studies
requires capital subsidy and financial support. Keeping in view this
aspect, the Indian Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE)
2.1. Direct coupled Solar PV water pumping system
provided incentives to popularize solar water pumping among farmers.
However, the desired results were not achieved despite launching a
A typical solar water pump system consists of a PV array, controller,
massive demonstration program. Also no performance monitoring of
motor pump-set, mounting structure, manual or automatic tracking
the installed solar pumps was carried out for the pumps installed in
system, electronics and protection devices and a water storage tank.
early 1980's. Recently, there is a renewed interest in promoting solar
The PV modules are connected in series and parallel for the operation
water pumping systems for improving agricultural production in India
of a pump-motor sub-system which will require power to produce a
under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission(JNNSM) launched
certain amount of pressure and water flow. In case of a direct PV
by MNRE in 2010 [3]. At present direct coupled DC and AC PV pumps
powered DC motor, the terminal voltage and the armature current are
of capacity 0.9 and 1.8 kWp with improved technology are commonly
equal to the PV array voltage and current. The pump speed varies with
used in India. However, smaller systems are found to be inadequate for
the level of solar radiation falling on the PV generator. However, if a
agricultural crops so bigger systems with 2 hp DC /AC motor are
MPPT is included in the pumping system, the conversion efficiency of
mostly used [4,5]. MNRE has revised incentives for PV systems of
the electrical power supplied to the motor and the solar radiation is
capacity 200 Wp to 5 kWp with motor pump capacity ranging from 0.2
approximately constant. A power generator of suitable capacity is
to 5 hp. The soft loans are also available for the installation of solar
required to maintain the necessary flow rate in addition to proper
pumping systems. MNRE has also specified qualifications standards for
sizing of the pipes. The centrifugal pumps are generally used in PV
the approval of PV water pumping systems manufactured in India.
pumping systems which are usually driven by DC or variable frequency
These pumping systems are tested and approved by the National
AC motors, with proven long-term reliability and hydraulic efficiency
Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Gurgaon, India. The PV modules of
varying from 25% to 35%. The other types of pumps used are positive
solar pumps have to qualify IEC 61730 Part I and II for safety
displacement pumps, progressing cavity pumps or diaphragm pumps,
qualification testing. MNRE has announced the installation of 25,000
generally characterized by low PV input power requirements, low
PV water pumping systems in different states to meet the irrigation
capital cost with high hydraulic efficiencies. PV array output varies
requirements of small farmers by 2017 under JNNSM phase -II. At
with solar intensity and module temperature and affects the PV-
present 35% of PV pumps are being used for drinking water and 65%
powered DC motor-pump performance. Water is pumped during the
for agricultural purposes in India.
day and stored in the tank for use during day, night or under cloudy
In view of the recent focus on PV pumping in India, the study of the
conditions. Water tank acts as storage so generally no separate battery
old PV water pumps installed in early eighties, gains importance for the
bank is used in these pumps. However, battery storage is also used in
feasibility and assessment of the technology and related issues.
certain cases as per requirements but it adds to the cost of the system,
A typical direct coupled solar water pumping system with DC motor,
1.3. Objective of the study surface pump and water storage tank is shown in Fig. 1.

The main objective of the study is to present updated review on the 2.2. Updated literature review
performance studies of direct coupled photovoltaic water pump
systems (PVWPS) along with a case study of an old functional DC In this section focus is only on the literature review on the
solar water pump after a prolonged outdoor exposure in a western performance study of direct coupled photovoltaic water pumping

164
S.S. Chandel et al.
Fig. 1. Schematic of a direct-coupled photovoltaic water pumping system.
systems in order to identify research gaps and associated issues
relevant to the case-study presented. In a recent comprehensive
literature review Chandel et al. [6] presented an update on photovoltaic
water pumping systems covering PV module reliability, PV generator
degradation, performance analysis, optimum sizing, modelling, eco-
nomics, and applications of PV pumps in India and other countries.
The present work is a follow up of this study. Helmy [7] developed a
methodology for the performance prediction of a direct coupled PV
water pumping system in South Sinai, Egypt using a computer
simulation program. The hourly performance of the system is simu-
lated for different PV array orientations and found PV array efficiency
as 13.86% in winter and 13.91% in summer.
Ramzy et al. [8] analysed the performance of a PVWP system
consisting of a PV array, sun-tracker, a permanent-magnet (PM) DC
motor, a helical rotor pump. The performance of the system is found to
enhance by adding a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and a
sun-tracker. The analysis of the PV array is carried out using PSPICE
software which is validated by field testing.
Loxsom and Veroj [9] developed an algorithm to estimate the long
term monthly performance of a PV water pumping system along with
calculating the total water pumped for a USA location. Khan et al. [10]
designed a photovoltaic water pump by adding a DC-DC buck converter
to boost current to the DC pump. A direct coupled system without a
Power Conditioning Unit (PCU) is compared with DC-DC convertor
type system and improvement in the electrical power output is found
for the designed system.
Mokeddem et al. [11] investigated the performance of a directly
coupled PV powered DC water pumping system without battery and
electronic controls. The motor-pump efficiency did not exceed 30%,
which is typical for a directly-coupled PV pumping system yet such a
system is suitable for low head irrigation in remote areas. The efficiency
of the system can be improved by proper sizing of PV array, optimum
orientation and motor–pump system. Kou et al.[12] developed a
method to predict the long-term performance of a direct-coupled PV
pumping system using the manufacturer data of PV module and pump-
motor. The method can be used in the design and estimation of the
long-term performance of PV water pumping systems for US climates.
Hadj et al. [13] analysed the performance of PV water pumping
systems for 4 locations in Algeria namely: Algiers, Bechar, Oran and
Tamanrasset using typical meteorological year "TMY” data for 3
different profiles and concluded that PV generator costs can decrease
if the simulation program accounts for pump type, the pumping head
and the daily load profile. Pande et al. [14] designed a PV pump
operated drip irrigation system for arid regions considering different
design parameters like pump size, water requirement, and diurnal
variation in pump pressure due to change in irradiance and pressure
compensation in the drippers. The authors reported that a PV system
with 900 Wp PV array, 800 W mono-block DC motor-pump can
provide 70–100 kPa pressure at the delivery side with a discharge of
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175
3.4–3.8 l/h from each dripper during different hours of the day and
suggested that PV water pumping systems need to be tested for water
harvesting tanks with lower suction heads for orchards in arid regions.
Mohanlal et al. [15] analysed the performance of a PV-powered DC
(PM) motor coupled with a centrifugal pump at different solar
intensities and cell temperatures. The experimental results obtained
are compared with the calculated values. The authors reported that by
changing the orientation of PV array, three times a day to face Sun, the
output can be enhanced by 20% as compared to the fixed tilted PV
array. Alghuwainem et al. [16] investigated the steady-state perfor-
mance of a PV powered DC motor driving an isolated three-phase self-
excited induction generator (SEIG) and found that SEIG is a perfect
load match for a PV powered DC motor with the PV generator for
maximum utilization of efficiency. It is found that due to the unique
torque speed characteristics of the SEIG, utilization efficiency is close
to maximum at all insolation levels with no peak-power tracking.
Benghanem et al. [17] determined an optimum PV array config-
uration, which supplies optimum energy to a DC helical pump, under
the outdoor conditions at Madinah in Saudi Arabia. The comparative
performance of four PV water pumping system configurations, are
studied. The techno-economic analysis of PV based water pumping
system carried out in India by Majid et al. [18] found the payback
period of 4 years with estimated life of 20 years which results in
considerable saving and reduces the dependency on the existing
electricity based and diesel water pumping systems.
Badari et al. [19] studied the feasibility of a PV pumping system
under real weather conditions using MATLAB Simulink by modelling
each component of the system. The designed Simulink module can be
used as a template to design PV powered DC water pumping system of
required capacity. This simulation can be useful to solar pump
manufacturers for optimizing the design of solar pump controller.
Maurya et al. [20] developed relationships between array power and
borehole depth per capita water use, rainfall, borehole depth and
capital cost of solar photovoltaic water pumping systems in Nigeria
which could lead to increased performance, reliability, cost-effective-
ness and adoption of the technology.
Biji [21] proposed modelling of maximum power point trackers
(MPPT) with control system for PVWPS selecting the converter-
chopping ratio of MPPT using artificial neural network (ANN). The
model integrated by a MATLAB simulation program shows increased
power output by the system. Flores et al. [22] developed a software tool
that simulates PV pumping systems with sun tracker and the effect of
the level of dirt on the PV generator surface. This effect is important for
dry climates. The results of the simulation are validated with experi-
mental data from pumps installed at the test facility of Solar Energy
Institute, Madrid, Spain.
Joao and Luis [23] proposed a new converter for PV water pumping
systems without storage batteries. The designed converter drives a
three-phase induction motor. Authors claim that by using this type of
S.S. Chandel et al.
system increases efficiency, reliability, makes it maintenance free and
cheaper. The reported results show a peak efficiency of 91% at a rated
power of 210 W for the DC/DC converter and the three-phase voltage
source inverter (VSI) and a peak efficiency of 93.64% only for the DC/
DC converter and suggested that the proposed solution is a viable
option for more reliability.
A detailed first time degradation analysis of a 28 year field exposed
mono-crystalline PV generator of the solar water pumping system has
been carried out in detail by Chandel et al. [24] and average degrada-
tion rate of 1.4% per year is found in the PV generator. The
performance of this PVWP system is carried out as further follow up
in the present case study in Section 3 so as to see the impact of PV
generator degradation on performance of the solar pump.
Ali et al. [25] studied techno-economic and environmental issues
related to PV and diesel pumping and concluded that the PV-based
water pumping is more cost-effective than diesel-powered pumping.
The utilization of PV water pumping systems can also minimize the
greenhouse gas emissions. Muhsen et al. [26] proposed a differential
evolution based multi-objective optimization algorithm for optimal
sizing of a PV system and tested system performance for 365 days
based on hourly meteorological data and concluded that the system
shows high reliability due to water storage tank during peak hours in an
effective manner. Campana et al. [27] investigated the geospatial
distribution of suitable grassland locations in China for installing the
photovoltaic water pumping systems using a spatially explicit optimi-
zation model. The results show that PV water pumping systems have a
high potential for improving forage productivity. However, the identi-
fied optimal areas are highly sensitive to environmental and economic
parameters.
Kabalci et al. [28] designed and implemented solar plant and
irrigation systems with advance technological features which include
sensors, wireless communication systems for remote monitoring and
remote control infrastructure. Rawat et al. [29] reviewed the designing
process of water pumping and standalone and grid connected PV
systems considering techno-economic and environmental parameters.
The identification of financial and reliability parameters for techno-
economic size optimization of PV systems along with different optimi-
zation techniques are also discussed.
Reca et al. [30] analysed the profitability of PV systems for
irrigating greenhouse crops in Mediterranean and proposed a standa-
lone direct pumping PV system using a simulation model for economic-
al optimal design. The simulation model included PV generation
capacity, pumping management, water demand and economic perfor-
mance sub-models and recommended that stand-alone direct pumping
irrigation systems can be a technical and economically feasible alter-
native to irrigate greenhouse crops, in which profit and energy
utilization efficiency are limited, but can be overcomed by efficient
utilization of excess power from PV system for other applications. Such
systems can also be implemented to irrigate greenhouse crops in
different countries.
Muhsen et al. [31] reviewed studies on photovoltaic water pumping
systems modelling, reliability, feasibility, field performance, design
procedures and control strategies, and suggested a numerical method
for PV pumping system sizing and recommended incremental con-
ductance and artificial intelligence (AI) based maximum power point
tracking algorithms for control strategies. Sontake et al. [32] in a
comprehensive review on solar water pumping system studies during
period 1975–2015 provided classification, historical background,
MPPT system, different types of pumps and motors and rating of PV
panels which affect the performance, efficiency and economy of solar
pumping systems.
Chergui and Bourahla [33] have proposed an intelligent control
method for Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) of a SPV systems
under different temperature and irradiance conditions. Robert and
Alma [34] have discussed the reliability, cost effectiveness of solar
water pumping systems, a number of such systems installed about
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175
more than 20 years ago still operates in Mexico, showing the reliability
of these systems. The recent reduction in the cost of PV panels has
resulted in almost 2/3 reduction in the cost of PVWP systems whereas
the fuel prices have increased by more than 250% since 2000. Thus the
better incentives and initiative policies PVWP will become the best
option pumping technology for small farmers in the future with
minimum cost and maximum reliability.
Wahyuni et al. [35] have carried out a case study on community
scale solar water pumping system in Banyumeneng village, Indonesia
demonstrating the sustainability of PVWPS for rural areas. Yahyaoui
et al. [36] proposed an algorithm for sizing of elements in PVWPS with
a battery bank and determined the optimal surface of PV panels,
optimal capacity of battery bank and volume of storage tank consider-
ing solar radiation, number of days of autonomy and measured climatic
data for a 10 ha tomato farm in Northern Tunisia The reliability of
sizing algorithm is shown by comparing the component sizing done
using HOMER software. The optimization and economic analysis of
various water pumping options are done for three different countries
Tunisia, Spain and Jordan showing that the PV/battery/pump system
is the cheapest option.
Tiwari and Kalamkar [37] have carried out the comparative
performance analysis of four different PVWPS configurations under
sunny day outdoor conditions at Nagpur, India and determined the
best optimum configuration for the location and concluded that PV
array optimization is one of the important factors to increase the
overall efficiency and reduction in the cost of PVWP system. Ahmad
et al. [38] developed PVWP system consisting of 32 PV panels to
produce 3200 Wp maximum power, 2 submersible pumps with max-
imum total dynamic head 250 m with flow rate about 0.4–0.9 l/s to
solve water supply problem in Purwodadi Village, in Indonesia. The
main aspects considered in designing the system are analysis of piping
system for selecting appropriate pump and power system planning as
per requirement.
Korpale et al. [39] compared a PVWPS with a conventionally
electrical powered water pump. The system uses thin film Cd-Te solar
panels to power a 2HP existing water pump with MPPT to track best
operating point of PV array and found that the performance and motor
characteristics of PVWP system and conventional powered system are
equal. The efficiency of solar pump was found to increase up to 39% as
compared to electrical powered system and maximum flow rate of 69 l/
m was obtained and 65 l/m for the conventional powered system.
Chinthamalla et al. [40] proposed a PVWPS using MPPT, space
vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) and voltage/frequency (V/f)
control strategies. The authors presented an optimized single-stage
solution for a three-level cascaded inverter for PV water pump
application and compared PV pumping systems with three-level and
two-level inverters and found that the system with three-level cascaded
inverter gives better performance.
Shinde and Wandre [41] found that a PVWPS is economical up to
3 kWp for a village water supply and 1 kWp for irrigation as compared
to a diesel pump in India. The cost of a PVWPS without any subsidy is
about 64.2% of the cost of the diesel pump, over a life cycle of ten years.
Khatib [42] reviewed the design, evaluation and installation of PVWPS
in Palestine to ensure optimal selection of pumps, improve reliability
and feasibility. The author concluded that in order to increase the
efficiency of PVWPS optimum tilt angle should be fixed along with
addition of MPPT and a sun tracker system. Riccardo et al. [43]
designed a stand-alone PVWPS for optimal utilization of energy from
PV generator and to reduce the cost and complexity. The experimental
results show that the regulation of speed plays a major role for stable
operations at MPP.
Ramos et al. [44] introduced standard frequency converters (SFCs)
in PVWPS resulting in high performance with component reliability,
low cost and high power range. The practical difficulties in introducing
SFCs and implementing MPPT in PVWPS are also discussed. Authors
have shown that by adding standard programmable logic controllers
 Table 1
Highlights of PV water pump performance studies in different countries.

S. No. Reference Country Application/study type Highlights

1 Helmy [7] Egypt Domestic water supply Developed a methodology for performance prediction of a direct coupled PV water pumping system in South Sinai, Egypt
S.S. Chandel et al.

using a computer simulation.

2 Ramzy et al. [8]
3 Loxsom and Veroj. [9]
4 Khan et al. [10]
5 Mokeddem et al. [11]
6 Kou et al. [12]
7 Hadj et al. [13]
8 Pande et al. [14]
9 Mohanlal et al. [15]
10 Alghuwainem et al. [16]
11 Benghanem et al. [17]
12 Majid et al.[18]
13 Badari et al. [19]
Australia Domestic water supply Analysed PV array using PSPICE software, theoretical results are verified by simulation and field test results and the
performance efficiency is found to be enhanced by adding a MPPT and a sun-tracker in the system.
Thailand Irrigation Developed algorithm to estimate the long term monthly performance of a PV water pumping system
Bangladesh Rural water supply Improvement in the electrical power output is found for a direct coupled PV water pumping system by adding DC-DC buck
converter.
Algeria Irrigation Investigated the performance of a directly coupled DC PV powered water pumping system and found system efficiency less
than 30%, suggesting that efficiency can be increased by sizing and orientation of PV array and can be utilised for low head
irrigation in remote areas.
USA Domestic water supply Developed a method to predict the long-term performance of a direct-coupled PV pumping system which is used to estimate
the long-term performance of PV water pumping system for US climates.
Spain Domestic water supply Analysed the performance of PV water pumping systems for 4 different locations in Algeria and concluded that the PV
generator costs can decrease by considering all the individual system components for optimization.
India Irrigation The pay-back period of the PV water pumping system is reported to be 6 years and suggested that systems need to be tested
for water harvesting tanks with lower suction heads for growing orchards in arid regions.
Egypt Irrigation Analysed the performance of a PV-powered DC permanent magnet motor coupled with a centrifugal pump at different solar
intensities and cell temperatures and found the system efficiency increases up to 20% by orienting PV array three times a day
to face the Sun.
Saudi Arabia Irrigation The study shows that the use of self-excited induction generator in the PV pumping system does not require the need for
matching devices and tracking systems.
Saudi Arabia Irrigation Electronic array configuration should be included to match maximum power points of PV array with pump.
India Domestic water supply Reported payback period of 4 years with huge savings over 16 years; suggests that utilization of PV systems for water
pumping results in considerable saving and minimizes dependence on electricity based and diesel water pumping systems.
India Domestic water supply MATLAB Simulink is used to design solar DC powered water pumping system of required capacity and for optimizing the

167
design of solar pump controller.
14 Biji. G [21] India Domestic water supply Proposed modelling of MPPT with control system using artificial neural network (ANN); models integrated by a MATLAB
simulation program shows increased power output by the system.
15 Flores et al. [22] Spain Domestic water supply & irrigation Developed a software tool that simulates PV pumping systems with sun tracker and the effect of the level of dirt on the PV
generator surface. Simulation results are validated with experimental data.
16 Joao and Luis [23] – Domestic water supply Proposed a new converter for PV water pumping systems and reported a peak efficiency of 91% at a rated power of 210 W for
the DC-DC converter plus the three-phase voltage source inverter (VSI) and a peak efficiency of 93.64% just for the DC-DC
converter, and suggested that the proposed solution is a viable option for more reliability.
17 Chandel et al. [24] India Domestic & irrigation Detailed degradation analysis of 28 year field exposed mono-crystalline PV generator of a solar water pumping system is
carried out in western Himalayan region and reported average degradation rate of 1.4% per year.
18 Ali H et al. [25] Oman Irrigation & rural water supply PV-based solutions are found to be more cost-effective than comparable diesel-powered systems for water pumping
applications
19 Muhsen et al. [26] Malaysia Domestic, irrigation & rural water supply Proposed a differential evolution based multi-objective optimization algorithm for optimal sizing of PV systems with high
reliability.
20 Campana et al. [27] China Irrigation of grass lands & livestock water Geospatial distribution of technically suitable grassland locations for PV water pumping systems are identified for improving
supply forage productivity
21 Yasin Kabalci et al. [28] Turkey Domestic & rural water supply Designed and implemented various aspects related to solar plant and irrigation systems with advanced technological
features.
22 Rawat et al. [29] India PV and water pumping systems design Literature survey component on water pumping is useful in designing PV water systems.
23 Reca et al. [30] Spain Agriculture & irrigation The proposed system can be implemented to irrigate greenhouse crops
24 Muhsen et al. [31] Malaysia Review of PV water pumping systems A detailed review of designing methods, control strategies and field performance of PV water pumping systems;suggested a
numerical method of approach m sizing and recommended incremental conductance and artificial intelligence (AI) based
MPPT algorithms for control strategies for PV pumping systems.
25 Sontake et al. [32] India Review of PV systems for the period The comprehensive review provides classification, historical background, MPPT system, different types of pumps and motors
(1975–2015) and rating of PV panels which affect the performance, efficiency and economy of solar pumping systems.
26 Chergui and Bourahla [33] Algeria Domestic & Rural water supply Proposed an intelligent control method for MPPT of a PV system under different temperature and irradiance conditions by
direct torque control methods.
27 Robert and Alma [34] Mexico Irrigation PVWPS is found to be the best pumping technology option for farmers with minimum cost and maximum reliability
28 Wahyuni et al. [35] Indonesia Rural water supply Community scale solar water pumping system sustainability is demonstrated for rural areas
(continued on next page)
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175
S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

(PLC) in PVWPS based on SFCs and by introducing efficient algorithm

Analysis of petro diesel, jatropha-based biodiesel and photovoltaic pumps is done and solar pumping system is found to be
Analysis of piping system for selecting appropriate pump and power system planning are important for designing a PVWP

Adding standard programmable logic controllers (PLC) to PVWPS based on SFCs can overcome the drawbacks and increases
Reliability of algorithm for sizing of PVWPS with a battery bank is shown. The optimization and economic analysis of water

PVWP systems are economical up to 3 kWp for village water supply and to 1kWp for irrigation as compared to diesel pumps

Compared the performance and economic viability of both the diesel and solar PV systems for five different geographic
for MPPT to avoid sudden stopping of the system during low solar

Optimization of PV array is important factor for PVWPS to increase the overall efficiency and reduction in the cost
insolation, can overcome the drawbacks and increases the system
performance,. Jan and Katarzyna [45] presented a pasture water

The Efficiency of solar pump is found to increase up to 39% as compared to a conventional powered system
pumping system for irrigation and grazing cattle. The simulations are
performed using PVSYST software and concluded that the designed
Proposed a system which uses a three-level cascaded inverter for better performance of the PV source.

Studied pasture water pumping system for irrigation and grazing cattle drinking water requirements
system fulfils the water demand except in autumn months due to low
solar insolation, which can be met by increasing number of PV panels
which may result in oversizing of system in summer and also increases
Experiments prove that regulation of speed plays major role for stable operations at MPP. the overall cost. However the excess energy can be used for other
purposes.
Rehman et al. [46] investigated and compared the performance and
economic viability of both the diesel and PV systems in five different
geographic locations in Saudi Arabia and concluded that PV based
system, used for pumping at five locations in Saudi Arabia, will result in
eliminating about 600,000 t of GHG during the project life time and a
Addition of MPPT and sun trackers system increases the efficiency.

total of 8900 l of diesel could be saved and found that PV power

generating system not only decreases carbon emission but also is
pumping options are done for Tunisia, Spain and Jordan.

comparable in COE with the diesel only system.

Ranjan et al. [47] investigated the energy alternatives to pump
drinking water in a remote rural village of Nepal. Analyses is done
using petro diesel, jatropha-based biodiesel and photovoltaic pumps
most viable solution drinking water pumping.

and concluded that solar pumping system the most viable solution to
pump drinking water.
Based on the literature survey, the research highlights of relevant
PV water pumping system performance studies carried out in different
countries worldwide are summarized in Table 1.
locations in Saudi Arabia.
the system performance

3. Case study – performance of a direct coupled PV based DC

solar water pump
Highlights

Based on the literature review a first time performance case study of

system.

a 28 year old direct coupled PV based DC water pump in the western

Himalayan region of India, is presented in this section. This study
assumes significance to further research on the impact of outdoor
Irrigation, Domestic and rural water supply

Irrigation, Domestic and rural water supply

Irrigation and grazing cattle requirements

climatic conditions on the PV generator and pump performance.

Domestic water supply and irrigation

3.1. Description of the direct coupled PV water pumping system

Rural water supply and irrigation
Domestic and Rural water supply

Irrigation and rural water supply

Domestic and rural water supply

Domestic and rural water supply

The 28 year old PV pumping system (Fig. 2), a direct coupled DC

Application/study type

motor (permanent magnet) coupled with centrifugal pump without any

Rural water supply

controller system, was supplied by Central Electronics Limited (CEL),

India through HIMURJA, the Himachal Pradesh state renewable
energy development agency, under the demonstration program of
Irrigation

Irrigation

MNRE, Govt. of India. The PV water pumping system with a two axis
manual tracking is installed at the outdoor PV research facility of the
Centre of Energy and Environmental Engineering (CEEE), National
Institute of Technology, Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh, India (latitude
Tunisia, Spain & Jordan

31.68°N; longitude 76.52°E; altitude 875 m above mean sea level). The
Hamirpur town has humid sub-tropical climate with average ambient
temperature ranging between 11.5–20.9 °C; average wind speed
Saudi Arabia

2.6 m/s; total annual rainfall as 135 cm and average global solar
Indonesia
Country

Palestine

radiation as 4.015 kW h/m2/day.

Nepal
Spain
India

India
India
India

The 396 Wp PV generator consists of 12 mono-crystalline silicon

–

modules connected in series and parallel combination to supply power

to the DC-motor. Each module consists of 36 series-connected cells.
Tiwari and Kalamkar [37]

Shinde and Wandre [41]

Chinthamalla et al. [40]

Jan and Katarzyna [45]

The specifications of the PV module and DC pump are given in Table 2

Yahyaoui et al. [36]

Setiawan et al. [38]

Riccardo et al. [43]

and Table 3 respectively.

Rehman et al. [46]
Korpale et al. [39]

Ranjan et al. [47]

Ramos et al. [44]

The current-voltage characteristics and power at different solar

radiation levels as per CEL specifications of mono crystalline PV
Reference

Khatib [42]
Table 1 (continued)

modules and the PV generator are shown in Fig. 3.

The PV array faces south-west with an azimuth of 20° and at an
inclination of 27° from the horizontal. PV array is directly coupled to a
373 Wp DC motor which runs a centrifugal pump with total head of
S. No.

5 m at this location although its maximum head is 10 m. The rated

29

30
31

32
33
34
35
36
37

38
39

40

capacity of the system to pump water at the time of installation was

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S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

Fig. 2. 28-year old direct coupled DC - PV water pumping system at Hamirpur, India.

Table 2 Table 4
Specifications of the PV modules of the solar pump. Technical specifications of measuring equipments.

Parameter Description S.No. Equipment name Make and model Accuracy

Manufacturer Central Electronics Limited (CEL), India 1 Digital multimeter Fluke 15-B 0.5%+/−3
Model PM 648 (33 Wp) 2 Solar power meter Tenmars TM-207 +/−10 W/m2
Technology type Mono-crystalline Silicon
Open circuit voltage Voc 21.34 V
Maximum power rating Pmax 33 W
Rated voltage Vmax 15.83 V 3200 l/h as per manufacturer data. The pump is capable of delivering
Rated current Imax 2.08 A
Short circuit current Isc 2.47 A
water only during daytime as the system has no battery storage. The
Dimensions (L×W) 1 m×0.38 m pump does not function during off sunshine hours and cloudy
conditions. The water stored in the tank can provide water during
night or cloudy conditions.
Table 3
Technical specifications of DC mono-block centrifugal surface solar pump.
3.2. Methodology
S.No. Parameter Range

1 Make Rotomag The performance of water pumping system depends on various

2 Type DC mono-block centrifugal surface type parameters namely: solar irradiance, total dynamic head (TDH),
3 Voltage 96 V discharge head, frictional losses, flow rate, total water requirement
4 Current 3.89 A and hydraulic energy. The parameters solar irradiance (W/m2),
5 Rating 373 Wp(0.5 hp)
8 Maximum head 10 m
ambient temperature, load current (I), load voltage (V), power output
10 Discharge 3200 l/h (W), total input and output hydraulic energy, efficiency of pump, PV
11 Number of stages 1 array and flow rate were measured during the test period. A digital
12 Overall efficiency 85% multi-meter and solar power meter were used for measurements. The
technical specifications and accuracy of measuring equipments are
given in Table 4.

Fig. 3. Current-Voltage characteristics and power at different radiation levels as per manufacturer specifications of the CEL mono crystalline PV module.

169
S.S. Chandel et al.
Fig. 4. Defects identified in the PV panels of the direct coupled DC water pumping system.
Fig. 5. 3D-Infrared thermal image of 12 module PV array of solar pump.
Firstly PV modules and other components of the pump were
examined for any defects and detailed degradation analysis through
visual inspection, thermal imaging and I-V characteristics measure-
ments using a class-A Sun simulator installed at the CEEE, PV research
laboratory. The detailed methodology for evaluating PV module
degradation and results are described in detail by Chandel et al. [24].
The present performance of the PV pump was studied from July 2013
to May 2014 at constant head by keeping PV array at 27° fixed tilt. The
pumped water flow rate depends on pumping head and irradiance but
in case of an old system it will also depend on the condition of PV
generator and other pump components. The amount of water pumped
Fig. 6. Variation of water flow rate during summer, rainy and winter seasons.
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175
was measured at an interval of every 15 min at a constant pressure
using a water flow meter.
The performance of the PV water pumping system is also simulated
using PVSyst software for validation with measured results. The
improvement in PV pump power performance was also studied when
PV array was installed at the optimum tilt angle for the location.
4. Results of the case study
The prolonged exposure of the solar pump under outdoor condi-
tions with hot summers and extreme winters has led to the degradation
of the PV generator modules resulting in the performance reduction of
the PV pump [24]. The visual inspection of PV modules revealed severe
golden brownish discolouration, delamination of encapsulant, oxida-
tion of front grid metal fingers, antireflective coating, front glass
damage of one module and back sheet bubbling (Fig. 4). The degrada-
tion of PV modules has resulted in decrease of output power of the
array and hence lowering the overall efficiency of the system.
Thermal imaging of PV modules was carried out using infrared
thermal analyser to identify hot spots which restrict.
the performance of the entire PV string and cause degradation. The
degradation in the power output of PV modules is attributed to loss in
short circuit current (Isc) or fill factor (FF). Fig. 5 shows the thermal
image in a three dimensions. The X and Y axes describe the pixel
S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

Table 5 pumping system efficiency. The average total water pumped is 4929 l/
Month wise performance of PV water pumping system at Hamirpur. d, as shown in Fig. 8.
The maximum PV array efficiency of 4.32% is found during May
S.No. Month Average Average Total Efficiency Efficiency
power of global water of PV array of the and minimum 3.48% in the July (rainy season) and the average
array (Wp) solar collected (%) pump (%) efficiency of PV array is about 3.85%. The efficiency of the array of
radiation per day (l) PV modules obtained is quite less as compared to original manufac-
at 27° turer data sheet value of 13% for mono-crystalline modules. This
PV tilt
(W/m2)
decline in efficiency has occurred due to degradation of PV modules
due to 28 years of outdoor exposure and damage to two modules. The
1 July 97.94 838.00 5137.5 3.48 50.80 average efficiency of water pump is found to be 47.74%. The monthly
2 Aug 102.10 793.00 4891.5 3.85 37.09 variation of PV array and pump efficiency observed are shown in Fig. 9.
3 Sep 102.50 771.47 4991 3.89 46.18
The flow rate of water pumped decreases with increase in the head
4 Oct 97.24 760.47 4823 3.75 43.82
5 Nov 87.45 699.23 3753 3.70 35.57 i.e. flow rate increases when pressure decreases and flow decreases
6 Dec 79.82 667.28 3765 3.57 32.48 when pressure is increased. A proper design of the system is required
7 Jan 92.15 798.00 4260 4.15 45.05 according to the flow and pressure needs is shown in Fig. 10.
8 Feb 97.02 854.00 4430 3.86 58.79
9 Mar 104.72 834.42 5472 3.97 54.05
10 Apr 107.62 821.92 6157 3.87 54.20 4.1. Comparison of experimental and simulated results
11 May 121.64 932.00 6542 4.32 67.11
12 Average 99.10 797.23 4929 3.85 47.74
The comparison of measured and PV Syst. predicted performance
parameters of PV water pumping system are shown in Table 6.
The difference between measured and PVSyst simulated pump
locations of the image and the temperature values at the corresponding efficiency and overall PV system efficiency are found as 4.84% is
(X, Y) locations in the image are represented on Z axis. 2.2% respectively. The performance results show that the system is
The degradation analysis of PV generator assumes significance in capable of pumping at an average of 829 l/h. The rated power output of
enhancing the life of solar pump beyond the standard prescribed life of the PV modules used in the system is 396Wp which has been reduced
25 years. PV degradation rate is found to be 1.4% per year which is to 235 Wp. The total average power generated by PV array during the
comparable to the reported degradation rate of 1.45% for mono observation period is 95.56 W which is quite less to obtain the nominal
crystalline in India [48]. The PV modules with lower output power flow rate of the pump. The power generated by the PV modules is
can be replaced with new 33 Wp modules which will enhance the power reduced due to degradation of PV modules used in the system due to
output from PV array thus improving the performance of solar prolonged 28 years of field exposure.
pumping system and the pump can continue functioning for more
years to come. The experimental performance results of the solar PV 4.2. PV pump power performance at optimum tilt angle
pump on typical sunny days during rainy, summer and winter seasons
from July 2013 to May 2014 are shown in Fig. 6. As the pump performance has decreased considerably due to
The maximum water flow rate is observed during summer season as degradation so it is important to see the performance when the PV
compared to the rainy and winter seasons as input solar radiation array is inclined at optimum tilt angle in order to study the impact of
received in summers is sufficient to start the system in early hours. The optimum tilt angle on the performance of the PV water pump. The
system gets started at 9:00 a.m. during summers whereas in rainy optimum tilt angle for the location is determined following Yadav and
season (July–Sept) it starts at 10:30 a.m. and in winters the pump is Chandel [49]. The system was simulated using PVSyst by comparing
activated at 11:00 a.m. The month wise performance of PV water the performance under realistic conditions for the study period at the
pumping system as per measured data on sunny days during July existing tilt angle 27° and at optimum tilt angle 30° of PV array for the
2013–May 2014 is shown in Table 5 (Fig. 7). location (Table 7) which shows that there is a slight improvement in
The monthly variation of flow rate (l/min) of water pumped by the solar pump performance parameters when PV generator is inclined at
system is shown in Fig. 10. It is found that the flow rate of the system is optimum tilt angle.
maximum during the month of May with 15.55 l/min and minimum in There is a minor increase in the performance parameters. This is
the month of November with 11.91 l/min and average amount of flow due to the fact that the fixed tilt angle (27°) is close to the annual
rate of water pumped throughout year is 13.98 l/min. optimum tilt angle (30°); however, if the PV array tilt angle is adjusted
The maximum amount of water pumped is found to be 6542 l/d at monthly or seasonal optimum angles then performance is expected
during May as the global solar radiation values are high with maximum to improve substantially. This signifies the importance of installing the

Fig. 7. Monthly variation of water flow rate (l/min) on the tilted PV array.

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S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

Fig. 8. Monthly variation of output PV array power with daily water collected.

PV generator at optimum tilt angle for maximising solar radiation to power output and efficiency. The use of efficient algorithm for MPPT to
improve the performance of PV water pumps. avoid sudden stopping of the system during low solar insolation, can
overcome the drawbacks and increases the system performance. The
optimum sizing methodology of PVWP system components including,
5. Discussion and follow-up research
piping system, appropriate motor-pump, water requirements, shading,
solar radiation and climatic variations is area of further research. The
The relevance of the focused review on performance studies and
evolutionary algorithms are found suitable for better reliability in this
case study of PVWP systems are further discussed in this section.
context.
The motor-pump efficiency of a directly-coupled PV pumping
The performance of solar pump is found to improve if its PV
system generally does not exceed 30% which is typical yet such systems
generator is installed at the optimum tilt angle for a location by
without any control systems are suitable for low head irrigation, small
maximising the solar radiation. However if the PV array tilt angle is
water supply requirements for remote, rural and urban locations in
adjusted at monthly or seasonal optimum angles then performance is
view of low cost and little maintenance. However, integration of MPPT
expected to further improve substantially. Most of the performance
and electronic control systems results in improvement in the electrical

Fig. 9. Variation of PV array and pump efficiency.

Fig. 10. Variation of water flow rate (l/min) versus head (m) at constant solar radiation.

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S.S. Chandel et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 76 (2017) 163–175

Table 6 i. The direct coupled PVWP systems without any control systems are
Comparison between experimental and PVSyst predicted results. still suitable for low head small water supply requirements for
livestock, pasture, green house and drip irrigation in view of their
S.No. Parameter Experimental results Predicted
results low cost and little maintenance.
ii. However, the direct coupled PVWP systems needs to be integrated
1 Water pumped (m3) 4560 4820 with MPPT and electronic control systems as per solar radiation
2 Yearly average total 5 5.1
data and other climatic variations for the location to improve their
head (m)
3 Efficiency of pump (%) 47.74 42.9 performance for large water supplies and irrigation.
4 System efficiency (%) 22.1 24.3 iii. The efficiency of the system PVWP systems can be improved by
proper sizing of PV array, optimum orientation and motor–pump
system along with adding standard programmable logic controllers
and by introducing efficient algorithm for MPPT to avoid sudden
Table 7 stopping of the system during low solar insolation to overcome the
PV pump performance comparison at actual and optimum tilt angles.
drawbacks and increase the system performance.
Parameter Values at actual tilt Values at Optimum tilt iv. The field performance of PVWP systems is found to be less than
angle (27°) angle (30°) predicted values given by the manufacturer and the efficiency of the
motor and pump for variable speed operation due to solar radiation
Water pumped (m3) 4820 4826
Energy at pump (kW h) 157 158
variations, is also not known exactly as such local specific actual PV
Unused PV energy 135 137 pump performance is essential to be assessed. The field monitoring
(kW h) of installed water pumps needs to become a part of solar water
PV Array virtual energy 612 614 pumping promotion program of any government program for
(kW h)
further follow-up research and design improvements as per local
Pump efficiency (%) 42.9 43.5
System efficiency (%) 24.3 24.9 requirements.
v. The case study results show that original rated power output of PV
generator of 396 Wp is found to be reduced to 235 Wp due to
studies in different locations worldwide have focused on technical, degradation of PV modules thus affecting the amount of water
economic and other aspects but little focus is on the degradation or pumped. The results show that degradation of PV modules affects
defects developed in the PV generator which affect the performance the prolonged performance of the solar pump under field conditions
after prolonged field operation of PVWP systems. This an area of as such it is important to assess the state of PV generator from time
further research which will be important for improving the perfor- to time to determine the actual life of the system.
mance. vi. The PV array of this old PVWPS is still capable of generating enough
The performance of direct coupled photovoltaic pumps under actual power to drive the DC pump and solar water pump can function
field conditions is found to be less than manufacturer given values even after 28 years of exposure effectively although the flow rate has
based on ideal laboratory test conditions as the PV pump has to operate decreased significantly. The system efficiency can further be im-
under real outdoor climatic conditions including varying insolation proved by replacing the two most degraded modules with matching
received at the location thus requiring the need for optimum designs modules signifying still the relevance of low cost solar pumps for
and electronic control systems. small water requirements.
The efficiencies of the motor and pump for variable speed operation
under field conditions are also not known exactly as such actual PV The study assumes significance in view of ever increasing diesel
pump performance needs to be assessed for every location. There is a costs and scarcity of grid electricity for irrigation as it shows that PV
need for detailed performance analysis of field installed old but water pumping systems can effectively be used in developing countries
functional direct coupled solar water pumps in order to assess the especially for improving agriculture production, drinking supplies,
state of PV technology to determine actual life under field conditions. surface irrigation like green house, pasture, drip irrigation keeping in
view the reasonable performance even after 25 years of warranty
6. Conclusions period.

A comprehensive review with focus on the performance studies of

direct coupled solar PV water pumping systems along with a first time
reported case study of the performance of an old direct coupled DC
solar water pump is carried out after a prolonged exposure of 28 years
under different outdoor climatic conditions in a western Himalayan
Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Based on the study following
conclusions are drawn:
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Central Electronics Limited (CEL),
India for providing the data on initial PV module characteristics of the
28year old Solar PV water pumping system.

Appendix A. Important relations for PV pump performance analysis

Hydraulic energy Eh (kW h/d) required per day to supply a volume V of water (m3) at TDH is given by (1):
Eh = ρ × g × V × TDH (1)
2
where ρ is water density, gg is the acceleration due to gravity (9.81 m/s ), TDH is the total dynamic head (m) is sum of static head (m) and friction
losses (m).
Solar photovoltaic array power Ppv required is given by
Ppv = E w /(IT × ηmp × F ) (2)

173
S.S. Chandel et al.
where It is average daily solar irradiation (kW h/m2day) incident on the plane of array, F is array mismatch factor, ηmp is daily subsystem efficiency.
From (1) in (2) one gets
Ppv = (ρ × g × V × TDH )/(IT × ηmp × F )
3
The amount of water pumped V (m ) is given by
V = (Ppv × IT × ηmp × F )/(ρ × g × TDH )
The efficiency of the motor-pump system ηmp is given as:
Efficiency of motor pump system = Hydraulic energy output/Energy input
Outputpower
Efficiency of PV array × 100
SolarRadiation × Area
2
where Solar radiation (W/m ). The overall solar water pump system efficiency will depend on PV array efficiency and motor pump efficiency
ηtotal = (ηpv × ηmp )
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