Field evaluation of a community scale solar powered water purification technology: A case study of a remote Mexican community application

Lack of clean water in small remote communities in the developing world is a major health problem. Water purification and desalination systems powered by solar energy, such as photovoltaic powered reverse osmosis systems (PVRO), are potential solutions to the clean water problems in these small communities. PVRO systems have been proposed for various locations. However, small PVRO systems with production on the order of 1 m3/day for remote communities present some unique technical, cost and operational problems. This paper reports on a project in which a PVRO system is designed, fabricated and deployed in remote village in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. The community residents are indigenous people who are subsistence farmers and beekeepers. Technical and economic models used to configure the system for the community are presented. A plan is developed in cooperation with the community aimed at making the system self-sustaining in the long term. Methods and materials are developed to permit the community members to operate and maintain the system themselves. The results provide insights for the design and deployment of small community-scale PVRO systems in remote communities.