On Friday, March 27, the International Workshop “Solar Radiation in the Arica and Parinacota Region and its applications: Solar Water Treatment” was held in Arica, organized by Research Line 5 of SERC Chile, led by Dr. Lorena Cornejo.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Diego Alarcón, Researcher at the Plataforma Solar de Almería-Spain; Dr. Luis Martin Pomare, from Qatar Foundation; Dr. Juan Rodríguez, Researcher at the Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería de Lima; and Dr. Patricia Palenzuela, researcher at the Plataforma Solar de Almería.
After the workshop, all participants were consulted on the possibility of mass application of solar energy in the region. Dr. Alarcón responded that the combination of an excellent solar resource, coupled with the fact that desalination technologies are already prepared, provides a high probability for its use, "as long as things are done correctly and with care." Dr. Pomare added that the region could be the right place to install storage systems that operate 24 hours a day and are competitive, like those currently used in Morocco, where the cost is between 9 and 11 Euro cents per kW. Dr. Rodríguez went further and estimated that, with the right resources and proper execution, in 5 to 10 more years there will be a mapping of solar energy availability and an exact knowledge of how it changes and its availability, and that within the same timeframe, there could be knowledge of which industrial initiatives can be installed in the region. Thus, according to Rodríguez, the sector could take less time to be convinced to invest there.
Among the pending points is the definition of which desalination system will be applicable. Dr. Palenzuela considers that the best alternative in the area, given the high salts, arsenic, and boron content of the water, is to apply simple thermal desalination technologies. She remarks on her choice: "Membrane distillation or multi-effect, which can be applied in isolated areas because it does not require highly trained personnel and which we have tested with solar energy at the PSA".
Workshop program here.
Researcher abstracts:
