Theoretical and experimental parametric study of modified stepped solar still

Abstract In this paper, a stepped basin is used to improve the performance of solar still. An experimental as well as theoretical investigation is carried out. Two solar stills are used simultaneously and both use saline water; a conventional single sloped solar still and a modified stepped solar still. The influence of depth and width of trays on the performance of the stepped solar still is investigated. Feed water temperature to the stepped still is varied using a vacuum tube solar collector. For further augmentation of the yield a wick on the vertical sides is added to the stepped still. A good agreement between the experimental and theoretical results is observed. The results show that the productivity of the stepped solar still strongly depends on the tray depth and width. Also it is found that maximum productivity of stepped still is achieved at a tray depth 5 mm and tray width 120 mm, which is about 57.3% higher than that of the conventional still. In this case the daily efficiency and estimated cost of 1 l of distillate for stepped and conventional solar stills are approximately 53%–0.039$ and 33.5%–0.049 $ respectively.

[1]  H. N. Singh,et al.  Present status of solar distillation , 2003 .

[2]  J. Ward,et al.  A plastic solar water purifier with high output , 2003 .

[3]  K. Srithar,et al.  Performance analysis in stepped solar still for effluent desalination , 2009 .

[4]  K. Kalidasa Murugavel,et al.  Single basin double slope solar still with minimum basin depth and energy storing materials , 2010 .

[5]  Asao Nakamura,et al.  Experimental and Analytical Study of the Tilted-Wick Type Solar Still , 1981 .

[6]  Farshad Farshchi Tabrizi,et al.  Experimental investigation of a weir-type cascade solar still with built-in latent heat thermal energy storage system , 2010 .

[7]  M. Naim,et al.  Non-conventional solar stills Part 1. Non-conventional solar stills with charcoal particles as absorber medium☆☆☆ , 2003 .

[8]  A. E. Kabeel,et al.  Performance of solar still with a concave wick evaporation surface , 2009 .

[9]  K. Srithar,et al.  Solar stills integrated with a mini solar pond — analytical simulation and experimental validation , 2007 .

[10]  Rahul Dev,et al.  Characteristic equation of a passive solar still , 2009 .

[11]  M. Tiris,et al.  Experimental studies on a solar still coupled with a flat-plate collector and a single basin still , 1998 .

[12]  K. Srithar,et al.  Integrated performance of stepped and single basin solar stills with mini solar pond , 2009 .

[13]  M. Naim,et al.  Non-conventional solar stills Part 2. Non-conventional solar stills with energy storage element , 2003 .

[14]  K. Srithar,et al.  Desalination of effluent using fin type solar still , 2008 .

[15]  T. Alwarsamy,et al.  An experimental study on a regenerative solar still with energy storage medium — Jute cloth , 2010 .

[16]  Mazen M. Abu-Khader,et al.  Performance evaluation of a modified design of a single slope solar still , 2008 .

[17]  M. K. Phadatare,et al.  Influence of water depth on internal heat and mass transfer in a plastic solar still , 2007 .

[18]  Mousa K. Abu-Arabi,et al.  MODELLING AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF A REGENERATIVE SOLAR DESALINATION UNIT , 2004 .

[19]  A. S. Nafey,et al.  SOLAR STILL PRODUCTIVITY ENHANCEMENT , 2001 .

[20]  K. Kalidasa Murugavel,et al.  Performance study on basin type double slope solar still with different wick materials and minimum mass of water , 2011 .

[21]  Abdullah M. Al-Turki,et al.  Experimental investigation on concentrator-assisted solar-stills , 1992 .

[22]  Zeinab S. Abdel-Rehim,et al.  Improving the performance of solar desalination systems , 2005 .

[23]  T. V. Arjunan,et al.  Active solar distillation--A detailed review , 2010 .

[24]  Ali A. Badran,et al.  A solar still augmented with a flat-plate collector , 2005 .

[25]  K. Srithar,et al.  Productivity enhancement of stepped solar still: Performance analysis , 2008 .

[26]  K. Srithar,et al.  Augmentation of saline streams in solar stills integrating with a mini solar pond , 2009 .

[27]  K Abu-Hijleh,et al.  Experimental study of a solar still with sponge cubes in basin , 2003 .