The scientists from the University of Cape Town have proposed a new model of an autonomous solar power plant for rural clinics in South Africa. The system includes solar panels, lithium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, and hydrogen fuel cells and provides round-the-clock power, allowing medical facilities to completely abandon diesel generators, which account for up to 30% of their annual budget.
For Africa, the problem of a stable access to electricity remains one of the most acute: more than half of the population of the Sahara south does not have a reliable power supply yet. This situation is particularly critical for medical centers, where electricity is required to power refrigerators for vaccines, sterilizers, laboratory equipment, and lighting systems. Power outages directly affect the quality of services and, likely, the mortality rates. At the same time, about 30% of clinics budgets is spent on fuel for generators, not counting the costs of repairs and regular maintenance. As a result, less money is left for medicines, consumables, and staff salaries. Added to this is dependence on fuel transportation and annual emissions — over 24 tons of CO₂ from just one clinic.
To solve the problem, researchers offered to replace diesel generators with a combination of renewable sources. The main generator is a 16-kilowatt solar battery. It is supplemented by three types of storage devices: 10-kW lithium-ion batteries, which smooth out daily fluctuations; supercapacitors, which respond instantly to load surges; and hydrogen fuel cells, which act as a long-term reserve. Excess energy during the day is used for water electrolysis, and hydrogen is stored in a special tank and used for electricity generation in case of prolonged cloudy weather.
The system was modeled using HOMER Pro software for a medical center in Elands Bay (Western Cape Province), where daily energy consumption is about 45 kWh. The results showed that the proposed configuration fully covers the facility’s energy needs, produces no CO₂ emissions, and provides electricity at a cost of approximately 24.35 South African rand or $1.3 per kWh. For comparison, energy from a diesel generator costs almost 80 rand or $4.4 per kWh. Even with a high initial cost, the system pays for itself in 3.7 years. Moreover, it is predicted that by 2030, the cost of key components may decrease by 20-40%, which will make such systems even more affordable.
