Uganda is a landlocked country with 20% of its territorial area covered by lakes and rivers. Diesel-based wooden monohulled canoes are the main means of water transport. Currently, there is a growing trend to harness renewable energy in the marine sector. This paper presents a cost-effectiveness study of implementing a solar photovoltaic electric propulsion drive system in a catamaran boat for use in public transport. The boat size is 12 m long, and 4 m wide, carrying 42 passengers making 12 trips per day for 8 hours. The boat’s energy demand is 88 kWh/day with a daily solar energy requirement of 110 kWh produced from installing 24 solar photovoltaic panels each of 435 watt-peak. A 24 V 8 kAh lithium-ion battery pack powers two 5.5 kW AC permanent magnet motors to generate the propulsion thrust required. A detailed cost analysis covering CAPEX and OPEX is also presented using the payback period method.
Sizing an Electric Propulsion System for Catamaran Passenger Boat in Uganda
2022-07-15
1001330 byte
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English