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A new solar energy class has inspired a student to help American Indians living without electricity.

By Rebecca Ruiz-McGill
June 19, 2008

University of Arizona professor Raymond Kostuk’s Photo Solar Energy System class, a new offering at the UA, has inspired a graduate student to investigate solar energy solutions for the Navajo Nation.

Rochellee Manygoats, a member of the Navajo Nation, is pursuing a master's degree in materials science and engineering. The Photo Solar Energy System course spoke to her interest in the environment and her interest in the needs of those on the reservation living out of reach of the electrical grid.

Kostuk, who holds a joint appointment in electrical and computer engineering and optical sciences, created a class project for the course in which students were challenged with a solar design problem. The design problem had students investigating solar energy systems that would allow users to feed into existing electrical systems and sell saved power supplies back to their local power company.

Manygoats had a question for her professor: What if you don’t have access to the local power grid or any other electrical supply? Kostuk began thinking about possible solar solutions for those living without electricity and vowed to work with Manygoats on a solution.

Manygoats will conduct research as part of Kostuk's research team now that the class is over beginning with a needs assessment. She will look at existing photovoltaic or solar energy solutions for those living off the grid on the reservation.

She will begin by conducting a survey on the number of people who currently live off of the electrical grid and gather information on their energy needs because they vary.

"Many people have moved to areas that are on the grid but many elders stayed behind, and some family members live on the grid but return to nongrid areas on the reservation on the weekends," she said.

She will also conduct a cost analysis of photovoltaic systems versus propane-powered systems given that propane has become the energy solution for those living off the grid. Many people on the reservation use propane powered appliances for energy needs but there are also solar appliances that can do the tasks--Manygoat's job is to compare efficiency and costs and make recommendations.

The project, the class and the issue are part of Kostuk’s ongoing research with photovoltaic systems. Solar energy is clean, safe and abundant, yet Americans currently get less than 1 percent of their energy from this source. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Arizonans have the potential to produce over 150 percent of the state's energy demand with solar energy.

Kostuk's work involves addressing the challenges that renewable energy resources can pose.

"Though they are environmentally responsible, they're not necessarily cheaper when compared with fossil fuels," said Kostuk, who holds the Kenneth VonBehren Chair in the electrical and computing engineering department. Current photovoltaic systems, he explained, are only 15 percent efficient in converting solar energy into usable energy – the rest is lost. Plus, he added, the systems are expensive.

Kostuk's lab has teamed up with a Tucson solar company, Prism Solar Tech, to optimize holographic elements for use as low-cost solar collectors. If successful, this approach would significantly reduce the cost of existing residential solar arrays.

In a related area, Kostuk and his team work on holographic elements for making low-cost solar concentrators for desalination systems. Salinated water is quickly becoming an issue the reservations must contend with but is also an issue for the world.

In the future, Kostuk and his team, including Manygoats will work on a longer-term project involving photovoltaic devices and system design solutions for water desalinization.