Green technology for disaster relief and remote areas

Abstract

Hurricanes, cyclones, tornadoes, earthquakes and flooding are natural disasters that can happen at any time anywhere. The electrical power is usually the first critically important service to be lost affecting homes, hospitals, schools, food stores and other vital services. In the aftermath of these disasters photovoltaic (solar electric) energy has the potential to help bring natural, reliable power to places devastated by these events. The earth surface receives an average of 120,000 Terawatt from the sun, (ignoring the energy being scattered by the atmosphere and clouds) which would be sufficient to satisfy the energy requirements of all human activities for more than one year in less than one hour. Photovoltaic (PV) power systems is an example of green technology which provide emission free electricity fueled by the sun which is reliable, secure, noise free and does not need refueling. It also helps to reduce consumption of fossil fuels in power plants, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions causing climate change. One of the new trends in disaster relief is to mount PV systems on trailers, move the energy supply to wherever it is needed and redeploy as necessary. Mobile PV power systems are standalone systems which have been deployed to provide electricity to power radio stations, health clinics, shelters and homes at the disaster sites before utility electricity is restored. These systems can be assembled in a short time and can replace gasoline and diesel generators for temporary power in many small applications. Such systems can also be used for more than a billion people living at remote locations that have no access to electricity. New community partnerships are also emerging between citizens, utilities and governments to provide electricity at a reduced rate for small businesses, low-income utility customers, agricultural producers, and other people frustrated by shading, limited roof space, not owning their home, or the high initial cost of ownership. These community partnerships or solar gardens essentially allow such people to "own" a portion of the energy from a solar electric generating facility operated by an electric utility or other entity and have that energy credited toward their electricity bill similar to what would happen if they installed solar panels on their roof or property. The purpose of our paper is to review the use of mobile photovoltaic system to provide electricity in the aftermath of disasters for emergency relief and to remote areas having no access to the grid. It will also discuss the advantages of community solar and solar microgrid for disaster resilience. The paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of these technologies in engineering education and integrating them in programs related to solar energy and disaster & emergency management. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2014.