Development of a solar device for jute filling based humidification dehumidification desalination

Abstract

ABSTRACT It is predicted that the ground water sources which are currently termed as sustainable will also begin to deteriorate, and this may lead to the degradation of the cropland and may severely affect food production, smooth colonial expansion and also damage the balance of ecosystem. Since 2011, much of the interest has been laid upon the concepts of Ecohydrology, which dwells upon the interconnectivity of ecosystem and hydrology. This study emphasises on the recycling of waste water and desalination of sea water. Among various desalination techniques, humidification–dehumidification (HDH) technique, using solar energy as the heat source for evaporation of salt water, has gathered attention in recent years. A conventional solar reflector HDH desalination plant requires a humidifier, where saline water is fed and made to evaporate in running air, when drizzled through nozzles and passed through the jute surface, which will be further reduced due to a fan which will be installed at the end of a humidifier region. Therefore, there will be enhancement in vapour formation and then sent to a dehumidifier where pure water is separated from moist air through condensation. The proposed unit in which latent heat can be recovered, which may yield 20 L/day on floor area of 2 m2 and adopting jute as filling in humidifier. The latent heat that is extracted from the moist air may be further utilised in the preheating of the saline water. Here, a prediction model was developed over data collected for 25 days and net gain obtained from the experimentation will be used to calculate gained output ratio. A preliminary parametric study to explore the technical feasibility of the HDH reveals that a fixed bed column filled with EDTA provides a longer working duration to assure the overall system’s performance and to remove surplus salt.