Economic Evaluation of Hydraulic Ram Pumps Using Life-Cycle Cost Analysis

Background: A hydraulic ram pump is a sustainable technology that can be a good alternative to pumps powered by electricity or diesel fuel. However, various ram pumps are commercially available in the market, ranging from small-scale to large-scale. Methods: This study employed a Life-Cycle Cost Analysis for six selected ram pumps in its economic evaluation at one-, five-, and ten-year periods, respectively. It also used a sensitivity analysis to determine the confidence level for interest rates in recurring and residual values across all evaluation periods. Results: The evaluation shows that small-scale ram pumps may appeal to consumers during the one year due to their low market price and initial project cost. Further evaluations also reveal that small-scale ram pumps surpass the cost investment of large-scale ram pumps in the five and ten-year evaluations because of higher expenses related to maintenance, material replacements, and services. The sensitivity analysis also confirmed that the data calculations have a high confidence level in all evaluation periods. Conclusion: Thus, the study concluded that the uncertainty level is low, and the economic evaluation can serve as a good basis for consumers when purchasing hydraulic ram pumps, considering the sustainable investment cost over an extended period of operation.