{"id":2367,"date":"2023-08-10T04:45:32","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T04:45:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/35.94.173.37\/blog\/?p=2367"},"modified":"2026-03-30T13:04:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T13:04:29","slug":"case-study-a-green-energy-breakthrough-for-mobile-phone-coverage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/case-study-a-green-energy-breakthrough-for-mobile-phone-coverage\/","title":{"rendered":"Case Study: A Green Energy Breakthrough for Mobile Phone Coverage"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Case-Study-A-Green-Energy-Breakthrough.mp3\"><\/audio><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong><em>Listen to this post here.<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">In the heart of Africa\u2019s rural landscapes, where access to reliable electricity is a constant struggle, a game-changing solution has emerged to power mobile phone base stations. This innovation not only addresses the critical need for energy but also paves the way for stable and extended mobile phone coverage across the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/screen-post-WM7RomoFmy0-unsplash-1-edited-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Black and white Iphones laying facedown on a white table\" class=\"wp-image-2296\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f63c6682e791f683153b04b9df7ce718\" style=\"font-size:25px\"><strong>The Challenge: Powering Mobile Phone Base Stations Off the Grid<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">The surge in mobile phone adoption across Africa has been nothing short of remarkable. According to a United Nations report, mobile phone usage in Africa skyrocketed by more than&nbsp;<strong>500 percent<\/strong>&nbsp;between 2003 and 2008, and this upward trajectory is expected to continue exponentially. Yet, for a mobile phone to be truly transformative, it needs consistent signal coverage \u2013 something that heavily relies on a steady electricity supply to base stations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">However, the traditional energy grid in Africa falls short when it comes to reliability and coverage, especially in rural areas. The sporadic availability of power poses a significant hurdle to extending mobile phone coverage. While diesel generators have been considered a fix, their noisy, inefficient, and environmentally damaging nature doesn\u2019t align with a sustainable solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7ca6559e406fabddfebbe7570a8816b5\" style=\"font-size:25px\"><strong>Diverse Energy\u2019s Green PowerCube<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">Enter Diverse Energy, a trailblazing company that sought to revolutionize this landscape. Their breakthrough solution? A fuel cell technology that transforms industrial gas into electricity without emitting carbon, delivering a clean energy alternative that\u2019s off the grid. In the heart of this innovation lies ammonia cracking \u2013 a process that not only generates regulated DC electrical power but also yields only clean water and nitrogen as by-products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">The centerpiece of this solution is the&nbsp;<strong>PowerCube<\/strong>&nbsp;system, powered by&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/modular-systems\/national-instruments\/compactrio-controllers\">NI CompactRIO<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;hardware and harnessed through&nbsp;<strong>NI LabVIEW&nbsp;<\/strong>software. This dynamic duo controls and monitors the ammonia cracking process, providing a dependable electrical supply to rural Africa. This, in turn, translates to improved mobile phone coverage that\u2019s stable and far-reaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9aefcc7d5660f95e6aa878b1b985ce67\" style=\"font-size:25px\"><strong>A WIN-WIN FOR ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">Diverse Energy\u2019s solution goes beyond powering base stations \u2013 it\u2019s a win-win for both the environment and society. By swapping out diesel generators for&nbsp;<strong>fuel cell technology<\/strong>, harmful emissions and noisy disruptions become a thing of the past. Ammonia, a widely used industrial gas, serves as the raw material for this transformation. The conversion process involves tapping ammonia, reforming it into hydrogen and nitrogen, and then channeling the pure hydrogen to a fuel cell for electricity generation. The process is not only efficient but also&nbsp;<strong>eco-friendly,&nbsp;<\/strong>leaving behind only clean water and nitrogen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">One of the most compelling aspects of the PowerCube is its by-products. Pure, deionized water is a valuable outcome of this process, offering a solution to areas where access to clean drinking water is scarce \u2013 a testament to technology\u2019s potential to address multiple challenges simultaneously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/CompactRIO-1024x574.png\" alt=\"The NI cRIO-9002 chassis with 4 C series modules plugged in\" class=\"wp-image-2297\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-65da0f5260ba7681ae8a1499f2abc129\" style=\"font-size:25px\"><strong>LABVIEW AND COMPACTRIO: CATALYSTS FOR RAPID DEVELOPMENT<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">In the world of innovation, speed to market is paramount. This is where NI LabVIEW and CompactRIO shine. LabVIEW\u2019s graphical programming environment enables engineers to rapidly develop and deploy solutions, making iterative changes and testing different operating modes seamlessly. This agility would have been a challenge with traditional text-based languages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">The scalability of LabVIEW played a pivotal role in this project\u2019s success. Transitioning from C<strong>ompact FieldPoint&nbsp;<\/strong>to&nbsp;<strong>CompactRIO&nbsp;<\/strong>hardware was made smoother by reusing up to 80 percent of the existing code. This not only slashed development time but also reduced costs. The incorporation of a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) within the CompactRIO platform enhanced processing capabilities and reduced the need for custom hardware, further boosting efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4364b77c5858b44b9e9cbdc07289d7b5\" style=\"font-size:25px\"><strong>A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">Currently, the PowerCube solution is making waves, with installations in both African regions and the United Kingdom. The combination of LabVIEW\u2019s real-time monitoring capabilities and CompactRIO\u2019s robust performance continues to support the development and field trials of these systems. The ability to monitor data in real-time and swiftly adapt code has been a game-changer, enabling engineers to fine-tune the solution and respond to evolving needs effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\">In a world where connectivity drives progress, Diverse Energy\u2019s green energy breakthrough stands as a beacon of hope. By harnessing the power of LabVIEW and CompactRIO, they have not only tackled the challenge of mobile phone coverage but have also carved a path towards sustainable, clean energy solutions that uplift societies and protect the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left has-text-align-left\"><em>The original cast study discussed in this post was authored by Dr. Mike Rendall from Diverse Energy Ltd.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-outline is-style-outline--1\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.diverse-energy.com\/powercube.php\">The PowerCube<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the heart of Africa\u2019s rural landscapes, where access to reliable electricity is a constant struggle, a game-changing solution has emerged to power mobile phone base stations. This innovation not only addresses the critical need for energy but also paves the way for stable and extended mobile phone coverage across the continent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2368,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,8],"tags":[196,318,373,393,437,558,910,921],"class_list":["post-2367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-case-study","category-national-instruments","tag-diverse-energy","tag-labview","tag-mobile-phones","tag-national-instruments","tag-ni","tag-powercube","tag-technology","tag-test-equipment"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2367"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3741,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367\/revisions\/3741"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.apexwaves.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}