Low-Tech Waterwheel - Concept for a Simple and Small Hydro Power System for Remote Areas in Nepal

Despite the continuously increasing access to electricity in Nepal, millions of its inhabitants still live without electrical energy, and many more have a very unreliable supply connection. Simultaneously, Nepal has enormous hydropower potential thanks to its mountainous topography, but only a fraction of this potential has been taken advantage of. Rural communities in remote areas are already experienced in the manufacture and operation of traditional water mills pani ghattas, and could thus adopt similar technology to produce electrical power. Consequently, this paper presents a modular concept for a small-scale hydropower system, optimal for the unelecrified remote regions of Nepal. The design is simple, cost-effective and robust, and all individual components of the system are manufactured or otherwise readily available locally. The concept is based on a classical overshot waterwheel with a horizontal shaft, ideal for low heads and small volume flows, and it was developed in collaboration with craftspeople, researchers and operators in Nepal. The modularity of the concept makes it adaptable to different operating conditions, resulting in a wide spectrum of possible power outputs. The proposed system was developed for off-grid operation, and offers a viable alternative to high-tech hydropower plants. This paper presents results from first Nepalese prototypes of the proposed waterwheel.     «

Despite the continuously increasing access to electricity in Nepal, millions of its inhabitants still live without electrical energy, and many more have a very unreliable supply connection. Simultaneously, Nepal has enormous hydropower potential thanks to its mountainous topography, but only a fraction of this potential has been taken advantage of. Rural communities in remote areas are already experienced in the manufacture and operation of traditional water mills pani ghattas, and could thus ad...     »