Investigation of the use of photovoltaic solar water pump by occupants of residential buildings in Ile-Ife, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined the types of pumps used in supplying water to buildings, assessed the factors affecting the adoptionand use of photovoltaic solar water pump and the perception of stakeholders on the use of the photovoltaic solar waterpump in the study area. These were done to assess the effectiveness of the use of photovoltaic solar technology toimprove the availability of water for the use of the building occupants. The study was carried out in Ile-Ife Region, OsunState, Nigeria. Stratified random sampling was used to categorize the selected residential buildings based on theirdistance limits to the locations of boreholes, 1-300m, 301-700m, and 711-100m respectively. Systematic sampling wasfurther used in the selection of residential buildings and respondents in the study area. A total of 125 questionnaireswere administered on the respondents and the data collected were analyzed using both descriptive and inferentialstatistical methods. The result shows that a very significant proportion of the respondents, 83.33% depended on wellsand boreholes while 73.33% of the wells/boreholes used in the study area had pumping facility. A large proportion ofthe boreholes in the study area had photovoltaic facilities and were majorly (60%) donated by the government. Themost significant factor that influenced the adoption and use of photovoltaic solar water pumps was the level of technicalknow-how (mean score of 4.1167) and the most ranked benefit had from the use of the facility was less time spent incollecting water (mean score of 4.3583). To foster the availability of quantitative and qualitative water for the use ofthe building occupants through the provision of photovoltaic water supply, efforts are direly needed to take advantageof the tropical environment of the study area, to ensure optimum performance and security of the facility to drasticallyreduce dependence on the national grid.