Design and implementation of a solar plant and irrigation system with remote monitoring and remote control infrastructures

•A microgrid with solar energy source is designed for irrigation.•The system sizing and feasibility analyses are performed.•The remote monitoring process is implemented with server.•The remote control mechanism is improved by using GSM. One of the most prominent applications of solar plants is the solar pumping systems that are required in rural areas while it is almost impossible to connect to the utility grid. A solar plant and irrigation system with several control features are designed and implemented in this study. The technical aspects of the study include sizing of a solar plant, feasibility analyses, system planning and implementation, remote monitoring, and remote control issues. The sizing and feasibility analyses are performed by using highly reliable software. The remote monitoring system is implemented with several sensing and communication boards designed by authors, and server-client software. The remote control operation is performed owing to implemented 8-channel relaying device that is reached over GSM networks. Each part of the entire system is implemented and is optimized to provide an observable and controllable solar irrigation system in a county yard. The presented study is aimed to express the potential capabilities of a solar plant in irrigation, and integration capabilities to numerous communication systems such as 3G, GSM, and Wi-Fi to implement remote monitoring and remote control infrastructures.