Solar-powered cool storage a boost for transporting vaccines
In Africa, infectious diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in infants. A large number of these deaths can be prevented through effective vaccination. However, vaccines remain in a "potent" state only when stored at temperatures between 2°C and 8°C. The effective transport of vaccines to remote parts of Africa where electricity is not available is a huge challenge. This problem was recognised by the engineering faculty of North-West University, Potchefstroom. Its solution was the design of a portable solar vaccine carrier. It is completely self-sustaining, requiring no additional source of electricity. Using design software SolidWorks, the researchers simulated various topologies for the cooling holder. The most efficient design was selected, which allows the cooling holder to store the vaccines at 5°C at the realistically high ambient temperature of 30°C with the lowest power requirement. To charge the batteries during the day and provide power to the cooling unit,...
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