| project
description |
There are two daily power cuts of four hours each in Pabal and the surrounding villages. Many of Pabal’s inhabitants use 12 volt batteries to supply their energy needs during power cuts. These batteries are expensive and often only last one year. Once batteries have ceased to hold enough charge they are thrown away and often disposed of improperly. Thus there are two main needs: a cheaper method of delivering electrical energy during power cuts and a method of increasing the life of lead acid batteries.
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| utility
of the solution |
The number of batteries which are thrown away should be reduced (for example, by ensuring that batteries are never discharged below 50%). If an alternative to batteries is found, the community can avoid the negative environmental and economic effects of reliance on batteries.
Vigyan Ashram has used batteries in the past in conjunction with solar cells as an environmentally-friendly and more reliable alternative to state-provided electricity. It was found that that batteries made the solar energy system prohibitively expensive as the batteries had to be replaced every year at a cost of Rs. 8000. Since the use of solar cells only saves Vigyan Ashram Rs. 4000 per year on electricity it is cheaper not to use solar cells. If batteries could be made cheaper or longer-lasting, their use in conjunction with solar cells could be beneficial to Vigyan Ashram. |
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| economic
benefits / required training / major
impacts |
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A cost-effective alternative to batteries would reduce the amount spent yearly on replacing batteries in Pabal. Hopefully no training will be necessary for the manufacture or use of the solution; if any training is necessary, Vigyan Ashram will be available to provide assistance. |
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| description
of current local situation & resources |
| Most people use hand-held torches for lighting outside and use an inverter to connect a 12V battery to a tube light for lighting inside their homes. Telephone booth operators use 12V, 1.4A rechargeable batteries to allow people to use phones during power cuts; these batteries generally last two to three years and cost about Rs. 700. The rechargeable 12V batteries used in torches cost Rs. 250 and last between one and two years. The 12V, 32A rechargeable batteries used by Vigyan Ashram currently last just over one year and cost Rs. 8000. |
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| For more information on this project, please contact engindia@mit.edu. |
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