Alternative Utilization of Photovoltaic Panels from the Solar Home System Project for Rural Community

Abstract

The concept of this research was to find out sustainable solutions for the Solar
Home System (SHS) project; especially for abandoned systems due to malfunction of
system components including battery, charge controller, inverter, and even access to the
grid utility. However, photovoltaic panels are able to be applied for alternative utilizations.
The results of the Solar Home System (SHS) potential evaluation showed that 93.5% of
photovoltaic panels, were working normally. The photovoltaic panels could be applied to
generate electricity for remote learning or community health facilities. The alternative
systems include a stand-alone system with a battery or a PV-diesel engine hybrid system
for tasks that need more reliability and a grid-connected system in case of grid utility
access. The designed system produced 5.6 kWp that could support an electricity demand
of about 20 kWh per day. The costs of energy were about 11.32, 7.05, 1.36 Baht/kWh,
respectively.