Publication date: 21 March 2023
Author: MDPI / Sustainability
Description: Solar PV systems in Africa are installed in high-temperature environments ranging from 25 °C to 40 °C. Experience and the literature note that these systems frequently fail a few years after installation and require the replacement of essential components such as PV panels, inverters, or batteries. In Burundi, batteries operating in high-temperature environments with a designed shelf life of 15 years are being replaced every 4 years due to thermal runaway. The motivation of this paper was to redesign a 45 kWh/day multi-use solar PV kiosk in Ruhoro, Burundi, Africa, so as to improve its sustainability. Using original primary field data, the project calculated a mean energy demand at the Ruhoro PV kiosk of 14.50 kWh/day in 2022 and a forecasted demand of 16.50 kWh/day in 2025.
